The government is "fully committed to learning the lessons at every stage" of the pandemic, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in May 2021. He announced that an independent public inquiry will investigate the handling of the pandemic in spring 2022. Boris mentioned that the inquiry would place "the state's actions under the microscope" and take evidence under oath. The Prime Minister also said that the inquiry could not "inadvertently distract" those within the NHS and government advisers, who were continuing to deal with the pandemic. Back in May, the inquiry's terms of reference had not been defined but Johnson said that it would be published in "due course”. We are almost three months away from spring 2022. The virus has mutated countless times and two years later, we’re battling the latest variant of concern that has started to create panic. An independent investigation by Evening Standard has found that the London boroughs with the greatest number of adults who have yet to receive a Covid jab have been revealed. Newham has more than 130,000 residents aged 18 or older who have not had their first vaccination, followed by Brent, 125,000, Lambeth, 117,000, and Ealing, 111,000.
NHS crisis continues
Reacting to the fact that there is no sign of any such public inquiry, Dr Chaand Nagpaul, BMA council chair, exclusively told Asian Voice, “The UK went into the pandemic woefully underprepared, without adequate supplies of PPE, which left thousands of frontline staff risking their health and lives while being exposed without sufficient protection against a deadly virus. Brutal cuts of hundreds of millions of pounds to public health budgets over the past decade left the nation without adequate testing capacity resulting in ministers wasting billions on a shambolic test and trace system that failed to adequately control the spread of the infection.
“Severe workforce shortages with 100,000 NHS vacancies, coupled with too few beds and a lack of surge capacity, led to the suspension of non-Covid care services in the first wave resulting in today’s record backlog of care, with excess non-Covid deaths last year estimated at 12,000. Public health measures to contain the infection were introduced too late, lifted too early or sometimes not put in place at all, and which led to the virus spiralling out of control.
“All this has contributed to the tragedy of over 140,000 deaths from the virus in the UK - the highest number in Western Europe – disproportionately affecting ethnic minorities and who accounted for 85% of all doctors who have died from Covid. A recent health select committee report concluded that the government's actions represented "the greatest public health failure…"
“With the NHS facing its greatest ever waiting lists, a depleted and exhausted workforce, and with the emergence of Omicron risking another Covid surge, it is vital that the Government learns the lessons of the past 20 months and takes decisive action now to protect the nation as well as prevent further inequalities - not wait for a public inquiry next year. The BMA has additionally launched its own review into the pandemic, and the impact on the NHS, the medical profession and the public’s health, as we realise the importance of hearing from those on the frontline while their harrowing experiences are still fresh in their minds.”
Speaking to the newsweekly, Consultant Cardiologist Dr Arjun Ghosh said, I think we need to be cautious given the number of infections and deaths we have seen thus far. While we are still learning about the new variant, we do not want the health services to be overwhelmed if that is a possibility. It is good if the public enquiry gives an independent and accurate account of events as this will help prevent such catastrophes in the future.”
Charities to the rescue of homeless and needy
A former diplomat has claimed bureaucratic chaos, ministerial intervention, lack of planning and a short-hours culture in the department led to “people being left to die at the hands of the Taliban”, The Guardian reported.
Tens of thousands of Afghans were unable to access UK help following the fall of Kabul because of turmoil and confusion in the Foreign Office, according to a devastating account by a whistleblower.
Dominic Raab admitted that a ‘formal party’ in No 10 last Christmas would have broken rules. Boris Johnson has failed to deny reports Downing Street staff members held a party on December 18 during Tier 3 restrictions – but he has insisted that no rules were broken. “If there is a breach of the rules, there is a breach of the rules. But I don’t know the full facts because I wasn’t there. Of course, if there was a formal party held, of course, that is something that is clearly contrary to the guidance. If anyone held a party that it is contrary to the rules, of course, that is the wrong thing to do. If something unsubstantiated from anonymous sources actually materialised, then, of course, it would be wrong,” Raab told BBC.
The Afghan Council in the UK is currently focusing on thousands of British citizens, their children, parents and families left behind by the UK government as hostages to starvation, terror and Taliban. “We are trying to get them out instead of corrupt politicians and warlords along with their families being resettled into the UK,” the council told Asian Voice.
Midland Langar Seva Society (MLSS) is a Sikh ethos charity said, “During the pandemic, we continued our services being frontline key workers who may not have eaten all day relying on passers-by in towns to buy them a hot meal i.e., Greggs, McDonald’s etc. We set up food parcel delivery services to the elderly in isolation especially during the supermarket stock crisis, also picking up prescriptions and posting letters.
“As every year in 2020, we still managed to hold Xmas parties for our service users followed by social distancing guidelines. Gifts were given by our very own Santa as well as a three-course hot meal, greeted by choir singers as the festive season is a very lonely time, with the suicide rate being high for these individuals.
“Families in poverty with young children who may not have had Christmas dinner let alone gifts for the children were also visited by our Santa and elves surprising them with a Christmas dinner/ snacks food parcels and gifts for every child. Every year we witness children as young as 5 in tears as they see Santa and unwrapping their presents which they may not have had.
“We have a large red bus called the Guru Nanak Langar Bus which was placed at the Queen Elizabeth hospital and also travelled to offer the vaccinations to those that who may not have been offered this. We continue to provide our services to anyone that requires it.”
Nishkam Swat (Sikh Welfare & Awareness Team) have made a rucksack appeal for Christmas. Nishkam SWAT gives out rucksacks with essential winter supplies to the homeless. They request people to purchase a large, durable rucksack and each day, for 25 days, put in an essential item that would help those sleeping rough this winter. They request to ensure all items are new and unused, and that all food items are vegetarian, sealed and in date. You can also Sponsor a Rucksack for £50.00 and Nishkam can purchase the items and make a bag for the homeless from you.
Studying is not a luxury expenditure
Speaking to Asian Voice, Sanam Arora, NISAU UK Chairperson said, “Because it's the festive period, a lot of people haven’t gone back home for quite a while, many for the past two years, a lot of people were looking forward to going back and booking their travel in time. Now, if Omicron spreads, then they're worried about being stranded in India. In the first and second waves, over 1000s of people had gotten stranded both in the UK and India. If they get stranded, it means that they will miss out on the on-campus experience and that’s not what they’ve paid for. So for those who want to travel or had already booked travel, Omicron is basically leading to havoc.
“A lot of people who do want to go back are scared if they will get stranded because they need to get back in time to apply for their post-study work visa for which you have to be in the country to be able to apply so far. They’re thinking that if they get stranded and are not able to make it back to the UK, they will miss their golden opportunity of being able to apply for a job post.
“The pandemic has been here for almost two years now and flight costs are not coming down. People who are wanting to travel can’t do so because the financial constraint is forcing them not to travel. It would cost £200-£300 for one way ticket to Delhi, but now it is at least £1500 or above.”
Sanam also said that a lot of students who have just entered the UK are facing difficulties and delays in getting registered with their GPs and confused about taking a jab (those who are partially vaccinated). Since AstraZeneca is not being preferred for those below 40, those who have taken Covishield in India are being advised by NISAU UK to consult their GP for further steps and not take any jab in haste.
“The whole process is not instantaneous. It takes time,” she added.
According to the NISAU UK Chairperson, a definite matter of concern is the way notifications are being issued by authorities particularly in India. She said they’re ‘confusing’.
Withstanding the fact that the rules keep changing all the time, Sanam said, “We appreciate that guidelines are constantly changing because it's a dynamic situation but want to request authorities to make sure that the information they are releasing is easy to understand and in simple English - bullet points. Expecting people who deal with constantly changing information when you have tons of pages of complicated information is not particularly helpful. So organisations like mine issue regular advisories whenever there is a major travel update. But why do we have to do that? Because there is such a disjointed nature of updates coming from all these different stakeholders. There's no singular flow of information. So our request is that people are having to rely on organisations like mine to receive our advisories which essentially to just a simplification job so that people can actually understand what's being said and in terms of what's relevant for them. Why can't that be done at source is a request we have.
“We also want the aviation industry and the government to get together to put a cap on travel expenses for students. Studying is not a luxury expenditure. Contrary to popular sentiment, particularly in India, people who are studying abroad in the UK are not necessarily rich people who have you know, who have liquid money to waste. Students are on scholarships, and so many people have taken very expensive education loans. They essentially belong to all sorts of strata. There should be some form of cap on how much airlines are allowed to charge from students and we recognise the difficulty for the aviation industry, but this is why the government needs to buckle up and support students.”
One wrong move could wipe out the Christmas harvest for hospitality
Jaf Ali of Khai Khai restaurant told us about bookings within the health sector, especially by nursing homes have already been cancelled owing to the rising cases of Omicron in the UK. He said, “Generally we are quite aware over the last few weeks or months that if you have a large party, of let's say 10 or 12 people, most of the times the numbers are dropping because someone is coming in contact with somebody who's had Covid. So, there is a lot of that that is going on at the moment, which is very, very disruptive because you start to evolve with a certain number of personnel based on the platform that you have in terms of my staff. But the coverage dropped quite a lot.
“I feel that it is going to be disruptive. But we're just hoping and pleading that the government don't introduce any new changes to any rules or regulations. Because if they do then they could wipe out Christmas which is our harvest in hospitality. One decision by the government and that will be the end of Christmas for us.”
Should the government bring back the furlough scheme to help employees?
Jaf said, “No, I don't think they should bring back furlough because life must continue. Furlough comes with its own problems and headaches. It was very difficult for us. Whilst you have to call a member of the team because we would resort back to take away where there's a lockdown, a core team is required to do takeaways. For that, they're going to come to work and work the normal hours and they get paid 100%. If someone stayed at home, they get paid 80% but doesn't it's not logical and it causes problems for me, as an operator. The businesses need to fend for themselves.
“We have to live with a variant, and we have to go on with our lives. And our businesses need stability, and they can't just keep on knocking us down and closing us down. We need to stay open, and the government should understand the decisions that they make. They need to think about businesses because we are important lots and lots of people in this sector. And if they just keep making decisions, which have a direct effect on our business, then there is a problem. But I think we can't just rely on government support. We have to get on with business continuously, regardless of what is ahead, because Covid is a constant.”
Speaking at the Asian Catering Federation's Asian Curry Awards last week, its Chairman, Yawar Khan, spoke of the sector’s resilience and innovation in the face of such adversity posed by the pandemic and lockdowns. He said, "The overreaction to the Omicron variant - which is reportedly milder than the Delta - is potentially devastating to the hospitality sector. Another round of furloughs would be totally uncalled for. Businesses want to stay open and the sector's biggest problem is staff shortages. The Government needs to grant more work permits for skilled chefs to come to Britain, allowing asylum seekers to work rather than rely on benefits whilst their applications are processed. He also urges the Home Office to grant an amnesty to those restaurant employees whose work permits have expired and forced to work for less than minimum wage in substandard living accommodation provided by unscrupulous restaurant owners - who evade tax and National Insurance contributions, whilst undercutting legitimate, honest businesses.”
Rob Khan owner of the Rajdhani in Sevenoaks, Kent said, “Those businesses who had hoped to partly make up for the loss of trade with Christmas party bookings are being hit badly, with cancellations. Many restaurants have faced over 20 cancellations on the weekend and are worried about the upcoming bookings. Anticipating the possible changes in hospitality rules affecting his restaurant,
Rob added, “We are well prepared like we always have been. During the lockdown, we undertook a full refurbishment. We invested in screens to create safety barriers between tables. We've done away with tablecloths and invested in news tables and flooring which make disinfection more effective. Business is being affected with the cancellation of larger groups, despite sending messages to our regulars, detailing the extra measures in place to ensure our staff and our customers feel safe."
Sharif Uddin of Kushi chain of curry houses in East London and Essex said, “VAT at 20% for hospitality venues is at unsustainably high - especially given rising wages, food costs, energy prices and the rest. The real problem is the overly negative media and lazy journalism. "
Dev Biswal of Ambrette Kitchen said: "It's time for business to stop asking for Government handouts. We have schools and hospitals to fund and a transport infrastructure to make it fit for purpose. Some customers are cancelling bookings and are asking for their deposits to be returned. It has had an impact on bookings overall as numbers are nowhere close to previous pre-Covid years. However, we are still busy and doing decent numbers this festive season. I am not a big fan of the furlough scheme as I think it breeds an attitude of entitlement to free money. However, I would urge the government to reconsider fundamental issues such as VAT increase etc.”
