by Niamh Harris, The Peoples Voice:
The UK is to launch the largest ever national pandemic response exercise this year….
Local councils, government officials and emergency service team are to take part in a large scale ‘pandemic preparedness exercise’ to prepare for potential future threats.
The exercises will involve thousands of people across different parts of the UK, Labour minister Pat McFadden announced. They are expected to take place in the autumn and go on for several days.
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The plans follow in response to the first set of recommendations made by the Covid-19 Inquiry.
The BBC reports: The chair of the inquiry, Baroness Hallett, found the UK was “ill-prepared” for the coronavirus pandemic, and “failed” its citizens.
The national pandemic response exercise will be the first of its kind in nearly a decade, designed to test capabilities, plans and procedures in the face of new threats, the government says.
The findings and lessons will be made public, as requested by Baroness Hallett, who made a series of recommendations in a 217-page report, external published in July 2023.
Another measure will be a full test of the emergency alert system – which sounds an alarm through mobile phones – later this year.
The alert has been used four times since its launch in 2023, including in areas hit hardest by recent storms.
The government has also committed to training 4,000 people a year to be better prepared for crises such as pandemics, through a UK resilience academy, planned to open in April.
The Covid-19 inquiry report found the pandemic had a disproportionate impact on vulnerable groups.
A new national “vulnerability map” will be produced, Mr McFadden says, to highlight populations who may be vulnerable in a crisis, using data on age, disability, ethnicity and whether someone is receiving care.
It is designed to help people get more targeted local support.
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