Sajid Javid was jeered today (14 September) when he set out the government's "Plan B" for dealing with the coronavirus pandemic this winter.
In a statement to Parliament, the Health Secretary reiterated that vaccines were the first line of defence and said he hopes the Government can stick to Plan A, which would see the Government remove more of its powers but retain some it deems “essential” for responding to the pandemic.
But the cabinet member, who was raised in Bristol, also set out the contingency measures the Government could use to curb the spread of Covid as the cold weather hits.
READ MORE: All the key points from Boris Johnson's Covid winter plan announcement
This includes the possible introduction of vaccine passports, encouraging people to work from home or making face coverings mandatory in certain settings.
And some MP's met his mention of face masks with shouts, the Mail reported.
Javid defended the Government decision to refuse to rule out further measures and said that having a "Plan B" is the right thing to do.
Mr Javid said: "Any responsible government must prepare for all eventualities," adding that he was determined to "protect the progress" that had been made.
"The plan shows how we'll give this nation the best possible chance of living with Covid without the need for stringent social and economic restrictions," the cabinet minister said.
But former minister Sir Desmond Swayne, who was among those protesting when Mr Javid mentioned mandatory face coverings, urged the Government to review the 1984 Public Health Act used to “take away our liberties”.
"He retains all the powers of the 1984 Public Health Act, which we used to take away our liberties without parliamentary prior authority," Sir Desmond said.
"Will he undertake to review and give us a new Public Health Act?"
Get the best stories about the things you love most curated by us and delivered to your inbox every day. Choose what you love here.
Mr Javid replied: "We keep all rules and acts under review at all times."
And Conservative Steve Baker said: "(He) amongst other things is keeping Covid-status certification in reserve, he's leaving mass asymptomatic testing in place together with contact tracing… the public health powers are still there of course allowing him to lock us down at the stroke of his pen without prior votes or any formal way of justifying the proportionality of those powers.
"So when can we expect all of these things to be dealt with so that we can all have the certainty that will come from knowing that we're living with an endemic disease, living with the disease thanks to the vaccine in the way that we live with the endemic disease flu so that we can all get on with our lives."
Mr Javid replied: "I know (he) may not agree with every measure that the Government is keeping in place… I hope he agrees that at least those measures are the right measures and the kind of things that need to be done as we live with Covid-19."
Javid's appearance before Parliament was followed by a briefing from Prime Minister Boris Johnson in which the measures for a "Plan B" were announced to the public again.
We want to hear your thoughts on this story, so please log in and leave your comment below.
