There have been no changes or tightening of the measures announced by Boris Johnson and the Government Medical Advisors on Monday.

The Government has announced details about the emergency Coronavirus Bill which it plans to publish this week which will provide powers and mechanisms to deal with the current crisis.

The bill will focus on 5 key issues:

  • Increasing the available health and social care workforce – for example, by removing barriers to allow recently retired NHS staff and social workers to return to work (and in Scotland, in addition to retired people, allowing those who are on a career break or are social worker students to become temporary social workers).
  • Easing the burden on frontline staff – by reducing the number of administrative tasks they have to perform, enabling local authorities to prioritise care for people with the most pressing needs, allowing key workers to perform more tasks remotely and with less paperwork, and taking the power to suspend individual port operations.
  • Containing and slowing the virus – by reducing unnecessary social contacts, for example through powers over events and gatherings, and strengthening the quarantine powers of police and immigration officers.
  • Managing the deceased with respect and dignity – by enabling the death management system to deal with increased demand for its services.
  • Supporting people – by allowing them to claim Statutory Sick Pay from day one, and by supporting the food industry to maintain supplies

Once the bill is published, we will provide a further update. Until then please dont hesitate to contact us or access any of our supporting resources here.