TUC demands public inquiry into ‘grotesque’ PPE failure

The government must set up an independent inquiry into the “grotesque” failure to provide frontline workers with adequate personal protective equipment (PPE), says the TUC.

More than 80 health and social care workers had lost their lives to the virus when, in April, Public Health England issued guidance for health workers to reuse PPE if stocks run low.

TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady called on ministers to commit to an inquiry starting by the end of the year. She said that frontline workers who are forced to risk their lives because they don’t have proper protective equipment are now “being told just to make do. This is a grotesque failure of planning and preparedness.”

Last month, Christina McAnea, assistant general secretary of the UNISON public services union, said many care staff were still going into workplaces where safety kit is still unavailable or locked away. She described this as “simply unacceptable” nearly two months after the introduction of the lockdown.

Meanwhile, a new survey from the Royal College of Midwives found more than half of midwives do not feel safe carrying out home visits. A staggering 99% of those who felt unsafe cited fears of exposure to the coronavirus, with almost half (46%) saying it was because of a lack of appropriate PPE.

https://www.tuc.org.uk/news/public-inquiry-needed-over-grotesque-failure-planning-ppe-says-tuc

https://www.unison.org.uk/news/press-release/2020/05/high-covid-19-deaths-among-care-staff-shocking-says-unison

https://www.rcm.org.uk/media-releases/2020/april/new-rcm-survey-reveals-more-than-half-of-midwives-do-not-feel-safe-carrying-out-home-visits