Letter submitted to The Times, 6 June 2020:
Nearly a month ago,
the Government announced it was establishing a Joint Biosecurity Centre (JBC),
which ministers have indicated several times in the daily Number 10 media
briefings, is to be charged with delivering an important analytical function in
the fight against Covid19. But something odd is going on with this new body.
We know, thanks to your
political editor’s exclusive reporting
(“Virus monitoring
centre has a changing role and leadership,” June3) that the JBS is already on
its second director.
Matthew Parris on
Saturday (“Johnson has been tested and found wanting,: Jun6) added further to
the JBC mystery in citing the Health and Social Care Secretary, Matt Hancock,
himself has indicated it has in fact yet to come into formal existence, even
though it has been cited as discussing high- policy matters with England’s
chief medical officer over Covid19 alert levels.
Three weeks ago, on May 20, Green Party MP, Caroline
Lucas submitted two written Parliamentary questions to tease out some details of the
new JBC,
asking Mr Hancock:
when a permanent director to the new Joint Biosecurity
Centre will be appointed; whether that organisation will be (a) staffed by
civil servants and (b) informed by a standing team of experts; how many staff
have been appointed to date; when wider membership and staffing will be
announced; what the annual budget for the JBC will be; from which departmental
budget or budgets the resources will be provided from; what principles of
transparency the centre will operate under; what (c) information and (d)
analysis the centre will publish; 49643&
Despite ministers being
required to answer within four working days ( including the recent recess), no
answer has yet been provided.
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