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Tag: Speeches

  • Alex Norris – 2021 Speech on the Covid-19 Vaccine

    Alex Norris – 2021 Speech on the Covid-19 Vaccine

    The speech made by Alex Norris, the Labour MP for Nottingham North, in the House of Commons on 4 February 2021.

    Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. I am grateful to the Minister for advance sight of his statement and for his kind words about my birthday. Of course, the gladdest tidings is the news that more than 10 million people have received their first dose. Once again, our incredible national health service has delivered for us. I visited a site in Nottingham earlier in the week, and that team of the NHS, armed forces, local councils, volunteers and many more coming together was an uplifting and incredible sight.

    We welcome today’s announcement about the new clinical trial. It is clear that we will live with covid-19 and its mutations for a long time, so this is the best way to get out in front of it. We were glad also to hear the study results regarding the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine reducing transmission and maintaining protection over 12 weeks. As the Minister said, it is clear that vaccines are the way out of this pandemic. Daily cases are beginning to fall, but it is vital that the Government do not repeat previous mistakes and take their foot off the gas just as things look to be getting better. Could the Minister update us on whether he expects similar trial data to be published for the Pfizer vaccine?

    The Government seem to be on track to deliver on their promise of vaccinating the top four Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation priority groups by the middle of this month. We really welcome that, and I commend the Minister’s work in that regard, but in a spirit of co-operation, I need to press him on a couple of points about what comes next.

    First, regarding data, we are all concerned about the reports of lagging take-up among black, Asian and minority ethnic communities, as well as poorer communities, and I associate myself with the comments about the brilliant work done by our colleagues to fight that. We know that these groups have been worst affected by the pandemic, and we need them to take up the vaccine, but I am conscious that much of what we hear is based on anecdotal stories, rather than hard data at a community level, split by ethnicity. Can the Minister say what data he has on that and when colleagues can get council ward-level data, so that we can all be part of the effort to drive up take-up? As the first phase is coming to an end, can the Minister update us on the number of care home staff who have received their first dose and perhaps what the plan is to encourage those who have not done so to take it up on reflection?

    When we get to the beginning of April, those who have had their first dose will be expecting and needing their second one. Can the Minister give an assurance that there will be enough supply to ensure that everyone who is due their second dose gets it, as well as, obviously, to manage those who are due their first? The Foreign Secretary would not offer that commitment on behalf of the Government recently. I hope the Vaccine Minister will be able to.

    Colleagues have raised with me the fact that constituents who have received a national letter and called 119 to book are not routinely being offered local primary care network-based options. Can the Minister confirm that that should not be the case and that he would welcome hearing examples of where that is happening so that we can change it?

    The Opposition fully supported the Government in prioritising those at greatest risk of dying—those in the first four categories—but as we move to categories 5 to 9, it is reasonable to ask the JCVI about including key workers. Data has shown that those who work closely with others and are regularly exposed to covid-19 have higher death rates than the rest of the population. By prioritising those workers alongside the over-50s and 60s, and people with underlying health conditions, we can reduce transmission further, protect more people and keep the vital services that they provide running smoothly, which includes reopening schools. Putting the politics of this to one side, we raised this suggestion over a week ago now. Will the Minister say whether he has had those conversations with the JCVI, or whether he will at least commit to asking it to look at how that suggestion might work?

    It is HIV Testing Week. Those living with HIV are in category 6. If their doctor knows their HIV status, they will have their opportunity as planned. However, some choose, perfectly legitimately and for some profoundly important reasons, to access their healthcare through other means, such as an HIV clinic. Their doctor might therefore not know their status and they may well be missed. In this specific case, will the Minister commit to looking at a possible workaround? Allowing HIV clinics to connect those individuals directly would be one way, but we would support any effective way of doing that.

    Finally, given that it is World Cancer Day, what consideration has the Minister given to vaccinating household members of the clinically extremely vulnerable, to give another layer of protection to blood cancer patients and other CEV people, an argument strongly supported by the reports that transmission is reduced by these vaccinations?

    To conclude, this programme really is the light at the end of the tunnel. Our NHS has delivered, and we must support it to continue to do so by making the right policy decisions.

  • David Cameron – 2005 Article on Conservative Election Fortunes

    David Cameron – 2005 Article on Conservative Election Fortunes

    The article written by David Cameron for the Guardian and republished by the Conservative Party on 14 March 2005.

    With 51 days to go before May 5, this election campaign is going to be a long one.

    The consensus among commentators so far is that the Tories are having a good war and Labour a bad one. Tony Blair and his cabinet have come across as defensive, negative and even petulant. Peter Hain’s extraordinary branding of Michael Howard as “an attack mongrel” is just the latest example. We’ve had anti-semitic posters, misuse of the Freedom of Information Act, and claims about Conservative policy that are so absurd the press doesn’t bother to report them.

    The media seem to have found the mixture of Alan Milburn’s machismo and Alastair Campbell’s comeback a complete turn-off.

    Blair’s behaviour over the terrorism bill was inexplicable. There was never a realistic prospect of painting the Tories as “soft” on terror, so why bother trying? He left the impression of being arrogant while losing control of events. At the same time, Blair fatally undermined the reputation of his home secretary. Every time Charles Clarke shuffled to his feet to read out a new list of half-concessions, a little more of his authority drained away. While the last home secretary occasionally resembled a megalomaniac, the current one looks like a muppet.

    Conversely, the Tories have set the agenda with positive and clear messages about cutting council tax for pensioners, cleanliness in hospitals, discipline in schools and bringing order to Britain’s immigration and asylum system.

    To date New Labour has always been seen as the ultimate campaigning machine and the Tories as flat-footed. So why the turnaround?

    First, our approach and our policies are clearly based on practical responses to people’s needs, rather than some ideological blueprint. We’ve sought to deliver quality public services, safeguard personal prosperity and family security and provide safer communities.

    And while all our answers are rooted in Conservative values, they are far from being predictable. On public services we believe that major reforms are needed, but we also accept that quality costs money, which is why we are committed to matching Labour’s spending plans of £34bn more for health and £15bn more for education. As a result, Labour jibes about “Tory cuts” to schools and hospitals ring completely hollow.

    In terms of personal prosperity and family security, we have explained how we will reduce taxes in our first budget, but we have also set out plans to uprate the basic state pension in line with earnings rather than prices. We know that without doing this it will be impossible to restore the savings culture and end the spread of means testing. Labour is left as one of the only participants in the debate about pensions who is outside the growing consensus that a strong basic state pension should be at the heart of the system.

    When it comes to delivering safer communities, we have pledged tougher penalties and more police on the streets, but we have also made a huge commitment to expanding drug rehabilitation, pledging an extra 25,000 places. People increasingly recognise these commitments as practical, commonsense responses to the most pressing problems this country faces.

    Second, the Conservative party is holding a sensible conversation with the British people. Blair’s version of this was the ludicrous “broken crockery” speech, which left most people reaching for the sick bag. The Tories are clearly addressing the things people want dealt with – cleaner hospitals, school discipline, more police – but we also know that they want reassurance about what a Conservative government would be like.

    In Brighton at the weekend Michael Howard explained that the Conservatives were now the only party that could guarantee leaving control over interest rates to the Bank of England, as both the other major parties would prefer interest rates to be set by the European central bank. His speech also made absolutely clear our commitment to the National Health Service and that it should remain available and free to all. The NHS has expanded massively since its foundation in 1947. For 35 of the subsequent 58 years, Conservative governments have been in power, building hospitals, training doctors and nurses and funding new treatments. So in many ways it shouldn’t be necessary to give assurances that continued NHS expansion will be secure under a Conservative government, but we know Labour will continue to make unfounded and desperate attacks and we want people to know the truth.

    Third, there is a coherent theme linking Conservative policies together. Giving parents the power to choose the right school for their children. Allowing patients to choose where they are treated. Cutting taxes to let families spend more of their own money as they choose. Extending the right-to-buy to housing association tenants. All of these things are about driving down power and responsibility to individuals and families.

    We are the only party committed to bringing powers back from Brussels to Westminster. Likewise we are the only party committed to abolishing the unwanted regional assemblies and returning their powers to local government. Our plans to scrap police authorities and let people elect their own police commissioners represent a truly radical expansion of “people power”. There are two types of devolution. Giving more power to people – and devolving power in government to the lowest possible level. The Conservatives are now the only party in favour of both of them.

    No one knows for sure what is going to happen in this election. Bad campaigns can translate into good results, and vice versa. But it is increasingly clear that it is wide open.

    To me, the architecture of the election has always been fairly clear. A large swath of the British people feel that New Labour has taken their money, wasted it and failed to tell the truth about things that really matter. These people – and there are literally millions of them – are looking for an alternative that is practical, credible and mainstream. They want an alternative that shares their values, focuses on the issues they care about and has costed plans for getting things done.

    Under Michael Howard, that is precisely what the Conservative party has set out to do. And in the next 51 days we have to prove that we have done it.

  • Michael Howard – 2005 Speech on Controlling the UK Borders

    Michael Howard – 2005 Speech on Controlling the UK Borders

    The speech made by Michael Howard, the then Leader of the Conservative Party, in London on 29 March 2005.

    Fair play matters. I believe in a Britain where government upholds the rules – not turns a blind eye when they are bent and abused. And let’s be quite clear. Our immigration system is being abused – and with it Britain’s generosity.

    Firm border controls are essential if we are to:

    – Limit immigration;

    – Fight crime; and

    – Protect Britain from terrorism.

    In 1997 Mr Blair promised that he would deliver “firm control over immigration”. That was all talk. Mr Blair has totally failed to secure Britain’s borders.

    At the week-end it was revealed that Mr Blair’s Government is now operating a DIY deportation policy. Immigration officials allow people with fake or suspect ID to enter Britain for 48 hours – instructing them to return later for questioning or deportation.

    Does anyone seriously imagine that someone with the clear intent to inflict harm or terror in Britain would turn up?

    It’s hard to imagine a laxer system.

    We face a real terrorist threat in Britain today – a threat to our safety, to our way of life, and to our liberties. But we have absolutely no idea who is coming into or leaving our country. There are a quarter of a million failed asylum seekers living in our country today. No one knows who they are or where they are. To defeat the terrorist threat we need action not talk – action to secure our borders.

    Action to secure our borders will also help in the fight against crime. As Stephen Lander, head of the new Serious Organised Crime Agency, has said:

    “We are not winning. Drugs or people smuggling … some we are holding our own just but we are clearly not rowing back the problems … nobody would claim we are on top of these problems – any of these problems at all”.

    Illegal immigrants are extremely vulnerable to exploitation. To get here many have to undertake long and dangerous journeys at the hands of unscrupulous people smugglers. Once in Britain they are often forced to work long hours in terrible conditions, for less than the minimum wage.

    A Conservative Government will take action to limit and control immigration and secure Britain’s borders.

    Parliament will set an annual limit on the number of people that can settle in Britain – just like they do in Australia.

    We will introduce a points system to control work permits so that priority is given to those whose skills Britain needs.

    So today we are announcing a new British Border Control Police.

    We will have one face at the border.

    One police force.

    With one chief constable.

    With just one job: securing Britain’s borders.

    The clearest line of accountability in any organisation is to a single individual: a person who sits behind a desk with a sign that says “I’m responsible – the buck stops here”.

    Britain is an island nation.

    We can control our borders.

    But it will only happen if we have a government with the determination to act.

    People will face a clear choice at the next election: between controlled and limited immigration with the Conservatives or unlimited, uncontrolled immigration under Mr Blair and the Liberal Democrats.

  • Nadhim Zahawi – 2021 Statement on the Covid-19 Vaccine

    Nadhim Zahawi – 2021 Statement on the Covid-19 Vaccine

    The statement made by Nadhim Zahawi, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, in the House of Commons on 4 February 2021.

    With permission, I would like to make a statement on coronavirus, but before I do that I wish my shadow opposite number, the hon. Member for Nottingham North (Alex Norris), a happy birthday.

    Our nation is getting safer every day as more and more people get protected by the biggest immunisation programme in the history of our health service. More than 10 million people have now received their first dose of one of our coronavirus vaccines. That is almost one in five adults in the United Kingdom. We are vaccinating at scale, while at the same time retaining a close focus on the most vulnerable in our society to make sure those at greater need are at the front of the queue.

    I am pleased to inform the House that in the UK we have now vaccinated almost nine in 10 over-80s, almost nine in 10 over-75s and more than half of people in their 70s. We have also visited every eligible care home possible with older residents in England and offered vaccinations to all their residents and staff. That means we are currently on track to meet our target of offering a vaccine to the four most vulnerable groups by mid-February.

    That is an incredible effort that has drawn on the hard work of so many, and I want to just take a moment to thank every single person who has made this happen: the hundreds of thousands of volunteers up and down the country, the scientists, our colleagues in the NHS—the GPs, the doctors, the nurses and the vaccinators—those in social care, the manufacturers, the local authorities, the armed forces, the civil servants who work night and day to make this deployment possible, and anyone else who has played a part in this hugely logistical endeavour. It really is a combination of the best of the United Kingdom. At our time of national need, you have given us a big boost in our fight against this deadly virus, which remains a big threat to us all.

    There are still more than 32,000 covid patients in hospital, and the level of infection is still alarmingly high, so we must all stay vigilant and keep our resolve while we keep expanding our vaccination programme, so that we can get more people protected even more quickly. We have an ambitious plan to do that. We are boosting our supply of vaccines and our portfolio now stands at more than 400 million doses, some of which will be manufactured in the United Kingdom, and we are opening more vaccination sites, too. I am pleased to inform the House that 39 new sites have opened their doors this week, along with 62 more pharmacy-led sites. That includes a church in Worcester, Selhurst Park—the home of Crystal Palace football club—and a fire station in Basingstoke, supported by firefighters and support staff from Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service.

    One of the greatest pleasures for me over the past few months has been seeing the wide range of vaccination sites that have been set up right in the heart of our local communities. Cinemas, mosques, food courts and so many other institutions have now been transformed into life-saving facilities, giving hope to people every day. Thanks to that rapid expansion, we have now established major national infrastructure. There are now 89 large vaccination centres and 194 sites run by high street pharmacies, along with 1,000 GP-led services and more than 250 hospital hubs. Today’s announcement will mean that even more people will live close to a major vaccination site, so we can make vaccinating the most vulnerable even quicker and even simpler.

    We have always believed in the power of science and ingenuity to get us through this crisis, and I was pleased earlier this week to see compelling findings in The Lancet medical journal, reinforcing the effectiveness of our Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine. It showed that the vaccine provides sustained protection of 76% during the 12-week interval between the first and second dose, and that the vaccine seems likely to reduce transmission to others by two thirds. That is really great news for us all, but we will not rest on our laurels.

    No one is really safe until the whole world is safe. Our scientific pioneers will keep innovating, so that we can help the whole world in our collective fight against this virus. I saw how wonderful and powerful this ingenuity could be when I was one of thousands of volunteers who took part in the Novavax clinical trial, which published very promising results a few days ago. Today, I am pleased to announce another clinical trial—a world-first study that will help to cement the UK’s position as a global hub for vaccination research. This trial will look at whether different vaccines can be safely used for a two-dose regime in the future to support a more flexible programme of immunisation. I want to reinforce that this is a year-long study, and there are no current plans to change our existing vaccination programme, which will continue to use the same doses. But it will perform a vital role, helping the world to understand whether different vaccines can be safely used. Our scientists have played a pivotal part in our response to this deadly virus, and once again they are leading the way, helping us to learn more about this virus and how we should respond.

    It has been heart-warming to see how excited so many people have been to get their vaccine and to see the work taking place in local communities to encourage people to come forward to get their jab. Hon. Members have an important role to play too. I was heartened to see colleagues from both sides of the House coming together to encourage take-up within minority ethnic communities through two joint videos posted on social media last week. As the video rightly says, “MPs don’t agree all the time, but on taking the vaccination, we do.” I could not agree more, and I am grateful to every single Member who has come forward to support this national effort. We want to make it as easy as possible for colleagues to do so. This week, we published a new resource for Members that provides more information on the vaccine roll-out and what colleagues can do to increase the take-up of the vaccine in their constituencies. That is an extremely valuable resource, and I urge all Members to take a look at it and think about what they can do in their constituencies.

    Our vaccination programme is our way out of this pandemic. Even though the programme is accelerating rapidly and, as the chief medical officer said yesterday, we appear to be past the peak, this remains a deadly virus, and it will take time for the impact of vaccinations to be felt. So for now, we must all stand firm and keep following the steps that we know make a big difference until the science can make us safe. I commend this statement to the House.

  • Stephen Kinnock – 2021 Speech on the Treatment of Uyghur Women

    Stephen Kinnock – 2021 Speech on the Treatment of Uyghur Women

    The speech made by Stephen Kinnock, the Labour MP for Aberavon, in the House of Commons on 4 February 2021.

    The Chinese Government’s brutal campaign of oppression in Xinjiang is a scar on the conscience of the world. The Labour party stands shoulder to shoulder with the Uyghur people. We already know about the forced labour camps, and yesterday we heard utterly heartbreaking testimonies from Uyghur women who have been systematically raped, sexually abused and tortured. This follows last summer’s harrowing accounts from Uyghur women who are victims of forced sterilisation and forced intrauterine device insertion. The Chinese Government’s own statistics show that birth rates in Xinjiang fell by a third in 2017-18—further evidence that what is happening may meet the international legal definition of genocide, which the new US Administration have already acknowledged.

    Last month the Foreign Secretary rightly condemned the events in Xinjiang as

    “barbarism we had hoped was lost to another era”—[Official Report, 12 January 2021; Vol. 687, c. 160.]

    Surely the time for tangible action has now come. First, where on earth are the Magnitsky sanctions that the Opposition and Members across the House have been calling for since last June? The Foreign Secretary said that the body of evidence in Xinjiang is “large, diverse and growing”, and we know the names of the senior Chinese officials who are responsible for these atrocities. The US sanctioned them last summer. Who in Government is holding this up?

    Secondly, 20% of the world’s cotton comes from Xinjiang. We welcome the steps that the Government have taken to help UK business cease being complicit in forced labour, but they did not go far enough. Companies must be accountable, not simply transparent. Rather than tinkering around the edges of the Modern Slavery Act, will the Minister commit himself to bringing forward legislation that moves us to a system of mandatory due diligence?

    Next Tuesday, when the Trade Bill returns, the House has the chance to send a united message to the world that genocide can never be met with indifference, impunity or inaction. This should not be a partisan issue. Given that it is a long-standing Government commitment that courts, not the Government, must rule on genocide, will the Minister join with us and colleagues across the House to give UK courts the powers to determine genocide and therefore prevent the UK from ever doing trade deals with genocidal states?

  • Nusrat Ghani – 2021 Speech on the Treatment of Uyghur Women

    Nusrat Ghani – 2021 Speech on the Treatment of Uyghur Women

    The speech made by Nusrat Ghani, the Conservative MP for Wealden, in the House of Commons on 4 February 2021.

    I thank the Minister for his powerful statement. Yesterday, the BBC broadcast harrowing footage of Chinese state-orchestrated abuse against Uyghur women on an unprecedented scale.

    “They had an electric stick, I didn’t know what it was, and it was pushed inside my genital tract, torturing me with an electric shock.”

    That is the testimony of Tursunay Ziawudun. “They did whatever their evil minds could think of. They were barbarians. I felt I had died. I was dead.” Then there are the gang rapes of Uyghur women by the police in front of other camp detainees, as a form of re-education, seeking out those who look away to punish them even further.

    These horrifying stories add to the huge and growing body of evidence detailing atrocities perpetrated by the Chinese authorities in Xinjiang—atrocities that may even be genocidal. These horrors have led the Board of Deputies of British Jews to compare the plight of the Uyghurs to the Holocaust. But as everybody in this House knows, there is no prospect of China being held to account through the International Criminal Court or the International Court of Justice. So I ask the Minister: how will the Government get the court judgment they need to act when all international routes are paralysed by China? We cannot be bystanders to the deliberate attempt to exterminate a group of people. Not again.

    Will the Minister make a promise today that no further deepening of ties of any kind will take place with China until a full judicial inquiry has investigated these crimes? Will he commit himself to a meeting with Rahima Mahmut, a Uyghur survivor, who is known by so many in this House? Rahima is a brave woman, risking her safety to save her family and her people. The United Kingdom cannot stand by and do nothing about the extermination of the Uyghur—mass rapes, scalping and forced sterilisations. We can act and we must act.

  • Nigel Adams – 2021 Speech on the Treatment of Uyghur Women

    Nigel Adams – 2021 Speech on the Treatment of Uyghur Women

    The speech made by Nigel Adams, the Minister for Asia, in the House of Commons on 4 February 2021.

    I acknowledge the strength of feeling about the human rights situation in Xinjiang, which is shared by hon. Members across the House. The BBC report to which my hon. Friend refers is chilling. It includes deeply distressing testimony of the rape, torture and dehumanisation of Uyghur women in Xinjiang detention centres. It is a further compelling addition to the growing body of evidence of the gross human rights violations being perpetrated against Uyghur Muslims and other minorities in Xinjiang. The evidence of the scale and severity of these violations is now far reaching. It paints a truly harrowing picture. If China wishes to dispute this evidence, it must allow unfettered access to the region for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights or another independent fact-finding body.

    This Government are committed to taking robust action in respect of Xinjiang. That is why on 12 January the Foreign Secretary announced a series of targeted measures to help ensure that British organisations are neither complicit in nor profiting from the human rights violations in the region. This includes a review of export controls as they apply to Xinjiang, the introduction of financial penalties for businesses that do not comply with the Modern Slavery Act 2015, and support for UK Government bodies to exclude suppliers that are complicit in forced labour.

    These measures demonstrate to China that there is a reputational and economic cost to its policies in Xinjiang, and it is why the UK has played, and will continue to play, a leading role in building international pressure on China to change course. In October 2019 and June 2020, the UK led the first two joint statements on Xinjiang at the UN. In October 2020, 38 countries joined the UK in a robust statement at the UN Third Committee. This diplomatic action is vitally important. More countries than ever are speaking out about Xinjiang. China has already been forced to change its narrative about the camps, and its denial of these violations is increasingly hard to sustain. The Foreign Secretary has made clear the extent of our concern directly to his counterpart, Foreign Minister Wang Yi, and I have raised the issue with the former Chinese ambassador in London.

    On the specific allegations of forced birth control, we have raised these with the Chinese authorities and used our national statement at the UN Human Rights Council last September to draw international attention to this deeply concerning issue.

    I can assure the House that we will continue to work with our international partners, including with the new US Administration and through our G7 presidency, to hold China to account for its actions. The UK has called repeatedly for China to abide by the UN’s recommendation to release all those who have been arbitrarily detained, and I know that right hon. and hon. Members will join me today in reiterating that call.

  • Matt Hancock – 2021 Comments on Rapid Workplace Testing

    Matt Hancock – 2021 Comments on Rapid Workplace Testing

    The comments made by Matt Hancock, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, on 7 February 2021.

    To save lives and protect the NHS, we have again asked for everyone to work from home. But we know that for some this is not possible, which is why the workplace rapid testing programme is so important.

    Employers should regularly test their staff, and this drive across government to raise awareness and encourage more businesses to introduce rapid testing for employees is incredibly important. When you consider that around one in three people have the virus without symptoms and could potentially infect people without even knowing it, it becomes clear why focusing testing on those without symptoms is so essential.

    We are already working with many employers to scale up workforce testing, spanning the food industry, retail sector, transport network, and across the public sector too. I strongly urge businesses and employees across the country to take up this offer of rapid testing to help stop this virus spreading further.

  • Anneliese Dodds – 2021 Comments on Tax Cuts for Hardest-Hit Sectors

    Anneliese Dodds – 2021 Comments on Tax Cuts for Hardest-Hit Sectors

    The comments made by Anneliese Dodds, the Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer, on 7 February 2021.

    Labour is the party of work and business. We understand that businesses create the jobs and drive the growth that will build the recovery. That’s why they need breathing space, with a targeted business rates holiday and an extension of the reduced rate in VAT.

    The Chancellor has acted at the last minute time and again during this crisis – and that dither and delay has created uncertainty for businesses, cost jobs and threatened our recovery.

    Britain can’t afford the Chancellor to make the same irresponsible mistake all over again. He must announce these continued tax cuts now, not wait another month and risk even more job losses.

  • Jonathan Ashworth – 2021 Comments on Workplace Testing

    Jonathan Ashworth – 2021 Comments on Workplace Testing

    The comments made by Jonathan Ashworth, the Shadow Health Secretary, on 7 February 2021.

    Extra workplace testing is welcome but so much more needs to be done to make workplaces Covid-secure including improving ventilation and upgraded PPE standards.

    This is even more important when the most recent data shows hundreds of outbreaks in workplaces since the start of January.