3. Statement by the Minister for Health and Social Services: Coronavirus (COVID-19)

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 3:13 pm on 1 April 2020.

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Photo of Vaughan Gething Vaughan Gething Labour 3:13, 1 April 2020

Thank you for the questions. On the 7,000 extra beds, I'm delighted that the health service has been able to undertake this work in the most difficult of circumstances, and also the response from partners. I think it's entirely appropriate that Angela Burns has welcomed and recognised that too—the local authorities family, wider partners and, of course, the support that we've now been provided with by the army in recent days as well. So, it is a real national effort and it does show what our committed public servants are capable of in times of crisis.

I'll deal with your points on PPE. In terms of our stocks, we're releasing our pandemic stocks that we have built up. The need for the amount of resupply rather depends on the outbreak, and because we can't accurately forecast when the outbreak will end, we can't accurately forecast how much we'll need. But we know we'll need to resupply at several other points, and I've had conversations with the other Cabinet Ministers for health in the other three national UK Governments. We spoke on Friday and again yesterday, and we'll be talking again tomorrow. But at each point in time, each of us have made points about the need to have a UK mechanism to procure and bring in a supply of personal protective equipment into the UK and then for a properly equitable distribution to each of the four nations, and there's agreement on doing that. That's another point that myself, Jeane Freeman and Robin Swann have made and I'm pleased to say that Matt Hancock has confirmed that he agrees that is exactly what should happen.

On the guidance that you've mentioned, there's a real challenge here and I recognise the point you made over the fact people are worried. People are concerned whether they work in health and social care or not. There's an issue about the trust in the guidance as well. Part of our difficulty is there's been widespread demand for PPE in any and every setting, and the revised guidance that is being undertaken, there's a rapid review of the guidance, so all of the chief medical officers across the UK are sighted on it, there's been a range of—. All of the medical royal colleges have contributed and front-line staff too, and that's been important, because there appeared to be a loss of confidence in the guidance and in the way that guidance was being implemented. I expect that rapid review to be available imminently and, when it is, the important point for Governments is to be able to not just confirm what that guidance is to staff, but both who does need PPE and what form of PPE, but also for those people that don't need it. And it's really important that that guidance will deal not just with the settings and the tasks that people have for appropriate PPE, and that's the place it should be provided, rather than whoever happens to employ them, and it will then be our task to make sure that the supply actually matches that guidance.

On ventilation and testing kits, I've given some updated numbers in this statement. Again, we're taking part in UK-wide procurement mechanisms as well as some of our own procurement as well. And the challenge, again, about what do we need, that will be partly about the progress of the pandemic, but I'm happy to continue to give updates not just in the conversations I have with health spokespeople, but in public as well, and to the mini Senedd as it meets, and the people of Wales.

And your final point on ethical guidance, I agree with you that there has got to be a proper decision-making framework to help our staff to make really difficult choices, and it can't be telling people that you need to get out of the way because you're no longer valuable; that is exactly what should not happen. I am happy to say that, today, the Royal College of Physicians have published some guidance for doctors to look at and consider, and that's been done together with 14 other royal colleges and other medical faculties as well. So, that's been published publicly and we'll be re-providing that, making sure people have it, and I'll happily undertake to make sure that's circulated to all Members to see as well.