By Sammie Jones-
Labour Welsh first minister, Mark Drakeford, has described the UK government as being “in a state of paralysis” over Covid-19 when asked why Boris Johnson, a she joined predictors of doom in suggesting that the omicron variant will hit the roof soon, and was worse than perceived by experts. Drakeford addressed reporters after it was announced that Wales has introduced the rule of six for hospitality as from boxing day in a bid to stem the spread of the virus.
The Welsh first minister is taking no chances when it comes to the omicron variant, but he is simply taken the advice of scientists who may be right or wrong with respect to the seriousness of the omicron variant. The facts remain that there is no evidence of mass hospitalisations or deaths, despite the already wide spread of the variant. The question of whether or not to pursue a lockdown is one about weighing up the potential gains and losses, and in many ways quite subjective. There are also believed to be many people who have a hidden reason for a lockdown.
When asked why he was refusing to announce new restrictions, when the Welsh government was. Drakeford replied: ‘I think that the UK government is in a state of paralysis about all of this. We see the reports of infighting within the cabinet. There are, as I would see it, sensible voices urging the prime minister to act to protect the NHS and to protect people’s lives as he has in previous waves.
‘And there are others who I simply think take a different view of the balance of risk here and are prepared to allow those risks to run. I don’t believe it’s because they don’t see the data. They see the data but they’re not prepared to act on it.
Dismissing claims that Wales was overracting to the omicron variant after the UK Health Security Agency reportedly concluded that the Omicron variant causes less severe illness than Delta. (Se he replied: ‘It really is a misunderstanding of the position we are facing to think that, if Omicron is less severe than Delta, then that solves the problem.
If Omicron was only half as severe as Delta, because of the extra speed at which it is transmitted, that would buy you 48 hours before you see those numbers, and numbers of people going to hospital, climb to the various steep levels that we have seen.
Drakeford also suggested that the UKHSA findings might be more equivocal than some reports indicated. He went on:
‘The detail that I have seen suggests that if you have already been infected by coronavirus, it may be that Omicron will not be as severe as the first time you were infected. If you’re getting it for the first time, there is no evidence that it is any less severe than any of the earlier variants.
‘So I’m afraid, nice as it would be to think that that will solve the problem of January for us, just the sheer number of people who will fall ill, and the more nuanced information about severity, means that the protections that we have announced today are a necessary precaution.
He said he expected Omicron cases to peak in January, implying the new restrictions could be reviewed soon after that. Asked how long they would be in place, he said they would be reviewed every week. He went on:
The modelling that we see tells us that we have to expect a sharp rise of cases into January and then, compared to earlier variants, a relatively sharp decline in those numbers as well”.
Drakeford gave himself away in stating there is no evidence it is any less severe than other variants because there is also no evidence suggesting it is more severe, making the decision of the Welsh First Minister purely based on hearsay and speculation, but which also stays on the safe side.