'I would love to wave a magic wand and have PPE fall from the sky..'

[Casino218]

To think Mat Hancocks facetious comments are not welcome when health care workers are dying every week! He needs to stop acting clever and do his job!

If you saw the whole section on PPE in the Health Select Committee questioning, he was not facetious at all. He was stating facts. When you see it on the news they just pick the one part where he also happens to lean back in his chair and not have a very solemn look on his face. He was very forthright and professional in the interview which lasted about 2 hours.

The Govt have arranged a BA flight to go to China and come back with 2.5 million pieces of PPE in it. They aren't messing about:
www.google.com/amp/s/www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8229741/amp/BA-flies-2-5-million-pieces-PPE-China-UK-government-asks-help.html

He also said there are 55,000 gowns arriving today but that sourcing them is a challenge. There is a worldwide shortage.
www.google.com/amp/s/www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/coronavirus-uk-nhs-ppe-gowns-matt-hancock-news-latest-a9470421.html%3famp

"Do his job?"
Just what, exactly, do you expect him to do about this, beyond what he is already doing?
I'm getting really irritated by all these armchair "experts" who are throwing toddler-like tantrums demanding instant solutions to impossible conditions.
If it were that simple, we wouldn't, globally, be in this situation, would we?

Matthew could've ordered some back in January. By then the situation was pretty clear.

^ this

Yes basically when this was developing in China they should have been getting their act together instead of white ring on about Brexit! They were caught with their trousers down and as a result people are dying. That doesn't make me an armchair expert that's pretty bleeding obvious and his snarky attitude does not make that any better!

From where? China maybe? Do you not think most countries needed it at the same time?

It was hard to get it from China even at the start, because they stopped exporting it because they needed it. This is the issue when we want things cheaply, we stop manufacturing them ourselves and are at the mercy of another country. Every country is fighting for the limited supplies there are, Trump has been attempting to gazump everyone but they still have shortages.

So yes, he would probably love to have a magic wand. Do people really think they just won't release money for it? Honestly?

Hancock is doing all he can in desperate circumstances.
He faces questions relentlessly.
It's global.
Give him a break, he's dealing with this nightmare as best as anyone can.

Hancock has categorically screwed up testing. I work for a private company who would be able to support this effort, not giving more details as would be outing. PHE were contacted weeks ago with the offer and some questions and we've not had a proper response; this is the same for lots of similar companies.

Govt managed to crowdsource NHS volunteers, it's scandalous they haven't been able to do the same with the private sector to make a) reliable tests and b) increase capacity.

Tony Blair had it right on the radio last week when he said he'd appoint a minister specifically to sort out testing.

Unfortunately, they left it too late. When the scale of the issue started to become clear in January, and China stopped exporting PPE, UK efforts should have started then. British firms are saying the contacted the government offering to help but heard nothing back. For example: www.theguardian.com/fashion/2020/apr/16/government-ignores-uk-textiles-firms-desperate-to-make-ppe

Then they kept up the claim that there were millions of items being delivered and it was just a minor logistical problem.

This makes me cross because a family member is a care worker and her company doesn't have enough PPE. She has had to use bin liners as aprons. She tells me their office staff are spending all day trying to source PPE, and when it does turn up it's often not what they need. E.g. thousands of pairs of gloves when they needed aprons.

I'd also add for PPE, yes there is a global shortage. What are we doing to engage UK manufacturers (weeks ago). Do we think 1 country is singularly the only one who can produce this.

I think he's done a good job with the Nightingale hospitals but the PPE and testing is a poor show.

Exactly @JustVisiting9

Do people really think they just won't release money for it?

It's crazy.

The money is not the problem. PPE is relatively cheap. It's the shortage of supply and so now we have started manufacturing our own again. infact this started a while ago, but it takes time

This morning on Sky news, Matt Hancock was repeatedly asked the same question about PPE from different guests, over and over again. It was a ridiculous news section because even though they could all see and hear each other, they refused to accept his reasonable and obvious answer and kept badgering him about it.

His answer was of course that because this is a pandemic, there is a world wide shortage of PPE equipment. Places like China made it, but held onto it from an early date. What part of this don't people understand?

Maybe he just got tired of people not a acknowledging his answer. He's right, he cannot wave a magic wand and make it fall out of the sky, or Sky news even.

On the radio he said they had ordered ppe, but what it says on the box isn’t necessarily what’s in the box, so could say masks, but could be gloves. He said if what they had ordered had actually arrived they’d be ok.

Ah yes, January! Those halcyon days - when everyone here on MN was screaming "SCAREMONGERING!" and they weren't worried and it was all a load of conspiracy theories.
And now, with the glorious benefit of hindsight, it's all Matt Hancock's fault.

They put out a call for companies to make ventilators, have they done similar for PPE and asked UK-based manufacturers to produce it? I know in Italy Armani and Gucci among others have switched to making gowns and masks, for example.

No it's not that there's a worldwide shortage - uk firms are offering to make it so what his reason for not organising it? They just haven't bothered to take qualified uk textile manufacturers up on their offers to make it, it's beyond negligence (see guardian article above). They'd rather appoint barbour - like dyson who don't have the right of equipment or experience. I literally don't understand. It's like testing - they are nkt testing to our current capacity amd not using existing univeristy labs etc, why not? I don't get it.

It is the same

On the radio he said they had ordered ppe, but what it says on the box isn’t necessarily what’s in the box, so could say masks, but could be gloves. He said if what they had ordered had actually arrived they’d be ok.

Other countries have this kind of problem as well. I think it was a video from France, or possibly Canada, where some French speaking nurses are unpacking PPE on film and as they try it on, the protective clothing literally falls apart on them. In shreds

PHE were contacted weeks ago with the offer and some questions and we've not had a proper response; this is the same for lots of similar companies.

Have you not had your PCR machines requisitioned, government took ours about a month ago (I work in pharma)?

@CountFosco

No we haven't had PCR machines requisitioned. I work in Biotech.

Hesitate to say this but had we not had fucking Brexit going on, we might have been in a better position.
And now look at us. Airlifting in all those people from Romania to pick fruit and veg for us. They were here in previous years, but presumably scared away, and are now having to train Brits whilst digging us out of a large hole.

From what I heard and read there have been many issues coming together ( global needs, reliance on other countries for supplies who have blocked export for their own desperate needs, incorrectly marked deliveries, ) plus thinking that a plastic disposable pinny would be enough protection when full length sleeved gowns are now known to be needed. 3 weeks ago we were told no protection was needed in close face to face non Covid patient contact- now it’s known that social distancing is needed as any patient or staff member could be infectious, so all patient facing staff need some protective clothing and masks, and patient and staff contact must be minimised. Why the powers that be planning for a future virus threat years ago, ever thought a sleeveless pinny would be adiquate I have no idea. Back then doctors wore white coats in clinic and hospitals steam laundered them- could that have been why?

I should have added doctors wear their own clothes now- no laundered white coats.