On Tuesday, the House of Commons considered a motion to renew the temporary provisions of the Coronavirus Act 2020. Richard took part in the debate.
Speaking later that evening, Richard Fuller, MP for North East Bedfordshire, said:
The debate on the final six monthly renewal of the Coronavirus Act resulted in no division in large part because the Government had removed most of the extraordinary powers contained in the Act prior to the vote.
Yet again opposition was weakened by the absence of any pressure from the Labour front bench. As Mark Harper, leader of the Covid Recovery Group of MPs (of which I am a member) said: “Labour have been mostly AWOL when it comes to scrutinizing the Government on COVID”.
I made my own, similar, contribution in the debate and also pointed out to the new Secretary of State that the continuation of extraordinary powers – including lockdowns – gives NHS leaders more leeway to restrict our freedoms to “protect the NHS” than is likely to be wise or effective.
Richard's contribution can be watched here. Richard's previous comments and contributions to debates on the Coronavirus Act can be read here and here.
