News

News

Facebook scam warning

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It’s been brought to our attention that several MPs have received a message in their Facebook notifications, saying that their page has been reported and asking them to click on a link to ‘repair’ their page.

DO NOT CLICK ON THE LINK!

This is a known scam and could result in malware being downloaded to your computer and could compromise the Parliamentary network.

If you have already clicked the link, please notify PDS immediately.  You should also report it to Facebook, and you can find the email address in our hotlines list.

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Banner – Equipment for returning to the workplace

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Our office supplier, Banner, has published a catalogue of equipment to allow MPs and staff to return to the workplace safely, including:

  • preparing the building
  • equipping the workforce
  • controlling access to sites
  • implementing a social distancing plan
  • reducing virus transfer

You can view the catalogue here: https://www.easyflip.co.uk/BannerReturntotheWorkplace/

Daily Update 30/07/2020

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The total deaths as a result of Coronavirus now stands at 45,961, an increase of 83 as of today. 

According to the ONS the UK has recorded the highest level of excess deaths amongst European countries with 6.9% more excess deaths in the country as a whole and 7.5% more in England. Spain and Belgium are second and third with 6.7% and 3.9% respectively. 

The required isolation period for people that have tested positive for Coronavirus will increase from 7 to 10 days. This announcement comes after the Prime Minister warned yesterday of signs of a second wave of Coronavirus across Europe. 

Britain has also re-imposed a 14-day quarantine period on people arriving from Spain. In an Interview with Sky news Matt Hancock said that “I am worried about a second wave. I think you can see a second wave starting to roll across Europe, and we’ve got to do everything we can to prevent it from reaching these shores, and to tackle it.”

Daily Update 28/07/2020

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The total deaths as a result of Coronavirus now stands at 45.874, an increase of 119 as of today. 

The National Institute for Economics and Social Research has published a study which shows that UK unemployment could rise to 10% when the government ends the furlough scheme. According to NIESR’s research, many of the jobs that will be lost if the government were to end the Furlough scheme in November could be protected if the scheme were to continue until next year. 

The National Food Strategy has drawn attention to the connection between poor diet and food poverty in a recent report. In the report the agency state that “one of the miserable legacies of Covid-19 is likely to be a dramatic increase in unemployment and poverty and therefore hunger.” NFS suggest that in order to combat the harmful effects of Coronavirus fuelled food poverty more people should be made eligible for free school meals. Currently 1.5 million children are entitled to free school meals, the agency suggests increasing that number to 2.8 million. According to the study on 1% of packed lunches have meet nutritional standards. 

Training courses available in a virtual classroom

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As it is not currently possible to present training courses in a traditional face-to-face classroom setting, the Learning and Development Team have made some courses available online in a virtual classroom.

You can view details of the available courses here: https://parliament.learningpool.com/course/view.php?id=1590

Titles available include:

  • Courageous Conversations
  • Handling Challenging Situations
  • Prospering in Turbulent Times
  • Supporting Teams Facing Pressure & Uncertainty
  • Being an Effective Remote Worker
  • Managing Remote Workers
  • Time and Task Management
  • Effective Casework Interviewing Skills for Remote Working
  • Introduction to Welfare Benefits
  • Universal Credit Overview
  • Personal Independence Payment
  • Homelessness Law for Caseworkers (England)
  • Employment Law and COVID-19 – FAQs for caseworkers
  • Protection from eviction and COVID-19 – understanding the law in England and Wales for caseworkers
  • Mindfulness Programme
  • Conversations with Vulnerable People
  • Refugee Resettlement to the UK: How does it work?

NEW: Labour Women’s Parliamentary Staff Network

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The newly-formed Labour Women’s Parliamentary Staff Network (LWPSN) has been set up to connect Labour women staffers.

Please see here for details and information on how to join:

Labour Women’s Parliamentary Staff Network (LWPSN)
https://w4mp.org/library/2010-guide-to-working-for-an-mp-for-new-staff/groups-which-staff-can-join/representation/labour-womens-parliamentary-staff-network/

 

Check out other groups staff can join here:
https://w4mp.org/library/2010-guide-to-working-for-an-mp-for-new-staff/groups-which-staff-can-join/

Daily Update 24/07/2020

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The total deaths as a result of Coronavirus now stand at 45,677, an increase of 123 as of today. 

The number of people infected by Coronavirus in the UK has stopped decreasing. There are currently 2,000 people infected with the virus who are not in hospitals or care homes, according to the ONS. This data is based on the 114,674 swab tests carried in the six weeks leading up to July 19. The R number, which measures the rate of infections, also remains unchanged between 0.7-0.9. 

Boris Johnson has urged everyone to get a flu vaccine to prevent the NHS from being overwhelmed in the event of a second wave. 

Daily Update 23/07/2020

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The total death toll as a result of Coronavirus now stands at 45, 554, an increase of 53 as of today. 

Face masks will be mandatory in shops across England from tomorrow. Although shoppers will be required to wear face masks, they will not be compulsory for staff.

The European Union’s head negotiate Michel Barnier has said that there has been no progress on the most essential aspects of the UK’s Brexit negotiations with the bloc. The main sources of disagreement, according to Barnier, are negotiations over a possible level playing field for state aid workers rights as well as British access to fishing waters. 

POST – Rapid response content on COVID-19

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The Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology (POST) has recent published several new reports relating to COVID-19.  If you’d like to sign up to the POST email newsletter, please go here: https://mailchi.mp/email.parliament.uk/post

COVID-19, children and schools
Children who have COVID-19 are much less likely to develop severe symptoms and much less likely to die from the disease than peple in older age groups. In this article we look at the latest evidence on transmission in children and what that may mean for the re-opening of schools in autumn. We have also produced a timeline of the scientific advice that was provided since February 2020 and the subsequent policy announcements on schools.

Read more on COVID-19 and schools

Child and adolescent mental health during COVID-19
Strained family relationships, reduced social contact and academic stress have mental health impacts on children and adolescents. In 2018/19 over 350,000 young people accessed NHS mental health services just in England. Child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) have been reduced during the pandemic. They are likely to be under strain to meet increased demand.

Read more on children’s mental health

COVID-19 in children: July update
In our July update we look at the latest data on COVID-19 prevalence in the UK by age and sex. We explain the possible clinical outcomes for children and review evidence exploring confounding risk factors, such as underlying medical conditions and demographics. We also look at the latest data on how COVID-19 affects pregnancy.

Read more on COVID-19 and children

Effects of COVID-19 on the food supply system
COVID-19 has exposed vulnerabilities in the UK food system. Panic buying and the slow reaction of retailers exposed how cost-efficient and streamlined supply chains struggled to adapt to unforeseen shocks. Problems also arose from the closure of parts of the catering sector and the lack of agility in redistributing supplies from this sector to retail outlets or the food donation/charity sector.

Read more on COVID-19 and food supply chains

COVID-19 vaccines: July update on research
As of 6 July 2020, WHO figures showed almost 150 vaccine candidates in development across the world, 19 of which were being tested in humans. In the past few weeks, vaccine candidates have been rapidly progressing through the first two phases of clinical trials (Phase 1 and Phase 2). These trials test safety and if they stimulate an immune response in people.

Read more on COVID-19 vaccines

COVID-19 therapies
This article was updated on 1 May and again on 6 July. Since its original publication on 17 April, the number of COVID-19 clinical trials has increased from 524 to 2,378. There is currently no cure for COVID-19. Researchers are testing existing drugs to see if they act against SARS-CoV-2 or alleviate the symptoms of the disease. Initial positive findings show promise of Dexamethasone and Remdesivir. But negative findings are valuable because they allow researchers to focus on other drugs; there is good evidence that hydroxychloroquine does not offer any benefits to treat COVID-19 patients.

Read more on COVID-19 therapies

COVID-19: July update on face masks and face coverings for the general public
There is some weak evidence that face masks and coverings can reduce transmission of the virus in some specific circumstances, particularly poorly ventilated and crowded indoor spaces. Policy on using face coverings differs across the UK. This article includes a timeline of face mask policies in the UK and the available scientific advice from 6 April up to 3 July.

Read more on face covering guidance for the general public

Contact tracing apps for COVID-19
This article was updated on 14 May with information on the UK’s contact tracing app. It was updated again on 3 July after the UK Government announced that it would be trialling an app released by Apple and Google instead of the NHSX app which was trialled on the Isle of Wight.The release of this UK app is now not expected until the autumn at the earliest.

Read more on contact tracing apps

Daily Update 20/07/2020

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The total deaths as a result of Coronavirus now stand at 45,312, an increase of 11 as of today. 

Britain has a signed deals to purchase three prospective vaccines to help combat Coronavirus. The government has purchased 30 million doses of a possible Coronavirus vaccine from the pharmaceutical companies BioNtech and Pfizer; acquired 100 million doses of the Oxford University vaccine being produced by AstraZeneca; and 60 million doses of a vaccine produced by Valneva.