Selectively lifting lockdown measures could lead to resentment and anger among left-behind groups, an ‘alternative SAGE’ panel of experts warned today.
Boris Johnson is expected on Thursday to announce the UK’s lockdown has been renewed before using an address to the nation on Sunday to set out how he intends to ease restrictions.
Decisions on the timing of the loosening of social distancing rules will be informed by advice provided by the government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE).
But SAGE is increasingly under fire not only over its approach to transparency but also over the advice it is providing.
Sir David King, the former government chief scientific adviser, has set up his own ‘independent’ panel of experts – an ‘alternative SAGE’ – which met for the first time today via video call.
He said the group was necessary because he feared government experts are deferring to ministers and are not ‘speaking their minds’.
During the meeting the new committee raised concerns about the prospect of selective lifting of restrictions amid fears some groups like the over-70s could be left isolated from the rest of the nation.
It came as SAGE today finally bowed to growing pressure and published a partial list of its members.
Sir David King, a former Government chief scientific adviser, said his alternative SAGE panel is necessary because of fears the government’s advisers are deferring to ministers
Susan Michie, professor of health psychology and director of the Centre for Behaviour Change at University College London, said there was a risk of the government’s exit strategy causing division as she addressed Sir David’s panel.
She said the public’s adherence to restrictions had been surprising but that so far there had been a sense of collective solidarity.
Prof Michie said: ‘Going forward, in terms of lifting the lockdown it’s going to be a very different situation because in the lockdown similar measures were being carried out across the whole population, by and large.
‘But what we’re going to be seeing is different measures for different sections of the population and so this has the potential for undermining the collective solidarity that has been so important for trust, for adherence, for helping each other, and if it’s not handled well, risks potential division between groups, risks perceived inequality and injustice and unfairness, which can lead to resentment and anger and people getting alienated from the collective and what’s being asked of them.
‘Really a lot of thought needs to be given to how this is going to be managed and managed in such a way that all sections of the population are being looked after and their needs are being met.’
She added that if specific groups such as the over-70s are asked to stay in lockdown while others are not, the message would have to be much more ‘nuanced’.
Prof Michie also said the government must ensure those who are forced to self-isolate, as a result of coming into contact with someone who is infected with the disease, are provided with adequate financial support.
Downing Street was asked today whether the over-70s could be treated differently to the rest of the population when lockdown is eased. The PM’s spokesman would not be drawn but said the approach taken would be guided by the latest scientific advice.
Sir David’s new 12-strong committee of academics will investigate seven key points relating to the outbreak, including how successful testing and tracing can be achieved, and what social distancing measures will be needed in future.
The committee will share its findings and workings with the public by streaming meetings live on YouTube.
Sir David said his ‘independent’ SAGE panel was needed because of his concerns that the real SAGE experts are deferring to ministers.
Asked if that meant they were not free to speak their minds, Sir David told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: ‘I believe that’s the case, yes.
‘I think there’s a very big difference between the situation today and the situation as it was in 2010-11, that is quite simply the permission to speak in the public domain has been changed.
‘I think the main point I’m making is that an independent science advisory group really needs to be dominated by people whose income is not determined by the fact they are working for the government.’
It came as SAGE’s membership was finally made public after names were previously withheld on security and independence grounds.
The government has released the names of 50 experts across many fields who have advised the government during the current crisis.
Each was asked for permission to publish their name with just two experts refusing to be publicly identified.
Membership of the committee has been under intense scrutiny after it emerged that Boris Johnson’s top aide Dominic Cummings attended a SAGE meeting.
Downing Street said he had done so in order to be kept informed of the latest scientific information but committee sources claimed he had been ‘more than a bystander’.
The row sparked concerns about just how impartial SAGE’s advice to ministers actually is.
The names on the list include well-known figures who have been involved in the daily press conferences, including Sage chairman Sir Patrick Vallance, Chief Medical Officer Professor Chris Whitty and his deputies Dr Jenny Harries and Professor Jonathan Van Tam, and Public Health England medical director Professor Yvonne Doyle.
Others present are epidemiologist Professor Neil Ferguson and Dr Demis Hassabis, the chief executive of Google’s DeepMind subsidiary, which works on AI, who is a member in a ‘personal capacity as a data scientist’.