A NEW England-wide four-week lockdown will become law from midnight tonight after Parliament approved it this afternoon – however Wokingham MP Sir John Redwood was one of 38 who voted against it.
And Maidenhead MP Theresa May, whose constituency includes parts of Woodley, Sonning, Twyford and Ruscombe, abstained.
The lockdown runs from Thursday, November 5, through to Wednesday, December 2. During this time, people should stay at home unless they need to leave for specific reasons, such as taking children to school, shopping for essential food or commuting to work that cannot be carried out from home.
During the debate, Sir John called on the Government to do more to help self-employed sector.
He said: “I am glad that the Government agree that where, by law, they stop people working and earning a living, they should compensate them.
“Will the Government look again at the terms of the scheme for the self-employed—there are restrictions on several categories of self-employed who have no other means of earning their living and no large company support—and be more generous?”
Responding, the chief secretary to the Treasury, Steve Barclay, said: “We have set out a generous self-employment income support scheme, but we need to deliver that operationally in a way that meets the tests set by, for example, the Public Accounts Committee, which has asked whether we have the right level of controls in place, given the speed at which these schemes were deployed.”
Mrs May, who was Prime Minister until last year, had her speech interrupted by the current incumbent, Boris Johnson, walking out on her.
She criticised the circuit breaker two-week lockdown idea. “I looked at the SAGE paper of 21 September and what was absolutely clear was that this was not a two-to-three-week circuit breaker, full stop, end of story. It would have had to have been repeated, possibly again and again, and I doubt if any economy could have borne the irreparable damage that would have done, with the impact on lives that that would have had, which would have been significant.”
She also called for an assessment of the tiered approach that was in place prior to this lockdown. #
“There is one set of data that has not been available throughout. There is a lack of data on the costs of the decisions being made: costs in non-Covid treatment in the NHS, and in non-Covid deaths; costs in domestic abuse; costs in mental health, with possibly more suicides; and of course costs to the economy, with jobs lost, livelihoods shattered, businesses failing and whole sectors damaged.
“What sort of airline industry will we have as we come out of this? What sort of hospitality sector will there be? How many small independent shops will be left?
“The Government must have made that assessment, so let us see it and make our own judgments.”
And she also spoke up for the religious communities who can no longer attend services during this new lockdown.
“My concern is that the Government today making it illegal to conduct an act of public worship, for the best of intentions, sets a precedent that could be misused by a Government in future with the worst of intentions, and that has unintended consequences,” she said.
“The Covid-secure remembrance service in Worcester cathedral will now be turned into a pre-recorded online service.
“Surely, the men and women who laid down their lives for our freedom deserve better than that.”
Matt Rodda, the MP for Reading East, told the House of Commons: “We undoubtedly face a very difficult and, indeed, challenging situation, and I support the Government’s approach.
“Cases of the virus are doubling every few days and, given the sheer pace of growth now, it is quite clear that they will outstrip the capacity of the NHS to respond. We cannot ignore the very serious position that we now face.”
He thanked NHS staff, care workers, key workers and volunteers for their “bravery and determination”.
And he said that the Government should have acted sooner to implement a lockdown, saying that it would have saved lived and protected the economy.
“I hope the Secretary of State for Health will look into fixing the test and trace system,” he continued.
“It is quite apparent that it is currently failing. There is a low rate of test and trace going on compared with what is needed. In my own area, we have seen some very serious problems, including delays in facilities coming to Reading and Woodley.”
Writing on his blog afterwards, Sir John explained why he decided not to back the four-week shutdown.
“I voted against, as the government did not amend the Regulations in ways suggested to reduce the damage to jobs and social life.
“Most of the speakers were Conservative, with many asking for amendments to the rules, seeking better data and asking for an exit plan even where they were voting for the motion.”
