The Government’s Chief Medical Officer Professor Chris Whitty has warned MPs that “all the modelling” suggests another wave of coronavirus in 2021.
Appearing in front of the House of Commons Science Committee along with Sir Partick Vallance, he told MP’s
“Because it is such as common virus,even if you have a relatively small proportion of people still remaining vulnerable, that still equates to a very large number”
“All the modelling suggests at some point we will get a surge in the virus. We hope it doesn’t happen soon – it might happen later in the summer if we open up gradually, or if there is a seasonal effect it might happen over the next autumn and winter.”
Whitty also told the committee that a “significant minority do go on to get significant disease” even after they have been vaccinated and said that Government modelling of a further 30,000 deaths reflects “a surge at some point
Whitty also said that while it was “difficult” to work out who is likely to die, the “vast majority” of future coronavirus deaths will be among those who are elderly or have pre-existing health conditions.
He added that the spread of coronavirus is largely driven by “much younger adults who have not yet been vaccinated”, he said, meaning that a “wave of transmission” would result if lockdown was lifted “too quickly” and warned people who “think this is all over” to look at a rise in cases in Europe:
“People should remember that things can turn bad very fast if you don’t keep a close eye on what’s going on”
