Covid-19: ‘far too much time spent analysing graph trends’

The last few weeks have been incredibly difficult for everyone in our community. Lockdown has forced us all to endure the immense strain of being segregated from friends, family and our loved ones.

New grandparents haven’t been able to hold their first grandchild. Children haven’t been able to visit parents in hospital. And, for too many, this virus has claimed the life of a close family member, with distancing restrictions making it more difficult to fully process that grief.

Separation, even if it’s only on the other side of a window, has taken a toll.

This period of isolation will not last forever. Families will be reunited, friends will be able to socialise again and normality will return. But the duration of lockdown will be determined by our ability to get this virus under control and to plan for a safe relaxation of the restrictions we’re all living under.

As MP for Foyle, I called for a swift lockdown to prevent the spread of COVID 19, to save lives and to minimise the impact of the virus. I continue to believe in the World Health Organisation’s advice that the only way to tackle coronavirus is testing, testing, testing.

That was the approach taken in South Korea where an unprecedented partnership between government, businesses and voluntary groups has, undoubtedly, prevented unnecessary deaths.

That’s why I’ve made a call for an island-wide mass testing and tracing regime as part of a detailed lockdown exit strategy. We need to know the full scale of infection, transmission and recovery before we make the decision to relax the social and economic restrictions that remain in place for our safety.

It is a matter of profound regret that we are nowhere near the scale of testing that we need to be doing to successfully fight the virus. Too much time has been spent, particularly in Britain, analysing graph trends and developing social theories rather than following the best public health advice - test, trace, isolate, recover. That should be our four word mantra for tackling this crisis.

We need to be increasing testing capacity, creating a detailed picture of outbreak clusters and the communities most at risk. One way to scale up the approach is to examine home testing and exploring how we can make kits available to as many people as possible. That needs to be the next testing frontier.

I know some have said it’s too early to be talking about an exit strategy but, if we don’t press this issue now, we will continue to drift rather than taking decisive action. I cannot in good conscience allow that to happen.

Where government’s response has been slow, however, this crisis has again shone a light on the selfless heroism of our healthcare workers. They are our frontline in the fight against this virus, putting their own lives at risk in service to our community. A round of applause every Thursday night isn’t enough to show our gratitude. And I sincerely hope that, when this ends, those who saw fit to deny a pay increase for our nurses will find their sense of shame and reconsider their priorities.

Think how much stronger the frontline in the North West could be if we had a fully functioning medical school producing skilled graduates to fortify local health services. I have written to the Health Minister this week requesting that sign off for our medical school is given immediately to allow enrolment for the upcoming academic year.

We can only get through this crisis together. The weeks and months ahead will be difficult. Our priority remains saving the lives of as many people as possible; to do that, we need a detailed plan and deeper cooperation across this island on testing and tracing.