Monumental mistakes' made over handling of Covid, says Labour
January 27, 2021, 12:07 pm

Monumental mistakes' made over handling of Covid, says Labour

Jonathan Ashworth said he did not accept Boris Johnson had done everything he could.

Shadow health secretary says ‘litany of errors’ led to UK having fifth-highest death toll in world

Labour has accused the government of “monumental mistakes” in its handling of the pandemic, as ministers continued to insist they did everything they could to try prevent more than 100,000 deaths from the virus.

The shadow health secretary, Jonathan Ashworth, said a “litany of errors” had led to the UK having the fifth-highest death toll in the world and the highest death rate relative to its population.

“I just don’t believe that the government did do everything we could,” he told the BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

“We all accept these are challenging times for any government. This is a virus which has swept across the world with speed and severity and it continues to spread ferociously … But monumental mistakes have been made, we have had a litany of errors in the last 12 months, and he didn’t have to make these mistakes.

“It’s just horrendous on every front … I’m sorry, I’m really sorry, I just do not believe that Boris Johnson did everything we could, I just can’t accept that.”

Sky News repeatedly challenged the communities secretary, Robert Jenrick, over Johnson’s assertion on Tuesday that the government had done everything it could to try to prevent Covid deaths.

“It feels that the prime minister is gaslighting the entire nation at the moment,” said the presenter Niall Paterson.

Jenrick responded: “That’s extremely unfair. The prime minister has said that he takes personal responsibility for steps that have been taken. Nobody has worked harder than the prime minister.”

https://twitter.com/SkyNews/status/1354333214622572545

He added: “There were no easy answers, there was no textbook as to how to respond to this, but on each occasion we followed the best available advice and took the decisions that were right for the country.”

Presented with a series of widely accepted mistakes in the government handling of the virus including a slowness to lockdown, shortages of personal protective equipment, guidance on masks, the failure to protect care homes and the lack of border checks, Jenrick said: “There are things which we could and would have done differently with the benefit of hindsight.”

He added: “We took the decisions that we could at the time, on the basis of the information that was available to us and we did everything that we could to protect people’s lives.”

On the changing rules in the run-up to Christmas, Jenrick said: “As soon as we learned about the Kent variant, we did take very swift action. That information was presented to the prime minister on a Friday, by the Saturday, he was addressing the country, changing people’s bands, limiting the ability to come together over the Christmas period and locking down large parts of the country, including the capital city.”

Jenrick’s comments came as it was confirmed that Johnson was planning to publish a document by mid-February in which the government’s plans for lifting the lockdown would be set out.

At Tuesday’s Downing Street press conference, the prime minister said: “What I will be doing in the course of the next few days and weeks is setting out in more detail as soon as we can, when and how we want to get things open again.”

A government source confirmed Johnson was expected to do so in a document that spelled out the criteria for lifting the restrictions and would suggest the order in which different sectors could reopen.

The health secretary, Matt Hancock, will update the Commons on the latest developments in the pandemic later on Wednesday.

He has previously set out four criteria for loosening lockdown rules: the absence of any dangerous new variants, the success of the vaccine programme, falling hospital numbers and a falling number of deaths.

Ministers have repeatedly said schools will be the first thing to reopen and have suggested restrictions are likely to be lifted at different rates in different parts of the country, depending on the prevalence of the virus.

Jenrick also confirmed that the home secretary, Priti Patel, would be making a statement in parliament later on Wednesday about tougher rules for those arriving in the UK. Patel is expected to require travellers from Brazil and South Africa to quarantine in hotels to stop the spread of new variants from those countries.

Asked about the plan, Ashworth told the Today programme: “It’s a mistake because what we now know is 12 months ago, when the government for a few weeks quarantined people returning from Wuhan and had restrictions in place for one or two other countries, we actually seeded the virus in this country from a number of European nations where we hadn’t put any controls in place. And that was why we had such a poor response as a nation because of the failure to put in these border controls 12 months ago.”

source: Matthew Weaver

Levant

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BENEFIT, the Kingdom’s innovator and leading company in Fintech and electronic financial transactions service, held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) at the company’s headquarters in the Seef District.
During the meeting, shareholders approved all items listed on the agenda, including the ratification of the minutes of the previous AGM held on 26 March 2024. The session reviewed and approved the Board’s Annual Report on the company’s activities and financial performance for the fiscal year ended 31 December 2024, and the shareholders expressed their satisfaction with the company’s operational and financial results during the reporting period.
The meeting also reviewed the Independent External Auditor’s Report on the company’s consolidated financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2024. Subsequently, the shareholders approved the audited financial statements for the fiscal year. Based on the Board’s recommendation, the shareholders approved the distribution of a cash dividend equivalent to 10% of the paid-up share capital.
Furthermore, the shareholders endorsed the allocation of a total amount of BD 172,500 as remuneration to the members of the Board for the year ended 31 December 2024, subject to prior clearance by related authorities.
The extension of the current composition of the Board was approved, which includes ten members and one CBB observer, for a further six-month term, expiring in September 2025, pending no objection from the CBB.
The meeting reviewed and approved the Corporate Governance Report for 2024, which affirmed the company’s full compliance with the corporate governance directives issued by the CBB and other applicable regulatory frameworks. The AGM absolved the Board Members of liability for any of their actions during the year ending on 31st December 2024, in accordance with the Commercial Companies Law.
In alignment with regulatory requirements, the session approved the reappointment of Ernst & Young (EY) as the company’s External Auditors for the fiscal year 2025, covering both the parent company and its subsidiaries—Sinnad and Bahrain FinTech Bay. The Board was authorised to determine the external auditors’ professional fees, subject to approval from the CBB, and the meeting concluded with a discussion of any additional issues as per Article (207) of the Commercial Companies Law.
Speaking on the company’s performance, Mr. Mohamed Al Bastaki, Chairman BENEFIT , stated: “In terms of the financial results for 2024, I am pleased to say that the year gone by has also been proved to be a success in delivering tangible results. Growth rate for 2024 was 19 per cent. Revenue for the year was BD 17 M (US$ 45.3 Million) and net profit was 2 Million ($ 5.3 Million).

Mr. Al Bastaki also announced that the Board had formally adopted a new three-year strategic roadmap to commence in 2025. The strategy encompasses a phased international expansion, optimisation of internal operations, enhanced revenue diversification, long-term sustainability initiatives, and the advancement of innovation and digital transformation initiatives across all service lines.
“I extend my sincere appreciation to the CBB for its continued support of BENEFIT and its pivotal role in fostering a stable and progressive regulatory environment for the Kingdom’s banking and financial sector—an environment that has significantly reinforced Bahrain’s standing as a leading financial hub in the region,” said Mr. Al Bastaki. “I would also like to thank our partner banks and valued customers for their trust, and our shareholders for their ongoing encouragement. The achievements of 2024 set a strong precedent, and I am confident they will serve as a foundation for yet another successful and impactful year ahead.”
Chief Executive of BENEFIT; Mr. Abdulwahed AlJanahi commented, “The year 2024 represented another pivotal chapter in BENEFIT ’s evolution. We achieved substantial progress in advancing our digital strategy across multiple sectors, while reinforcing our long-term commitment to the development of Bahrain’s financial services and payments landscape. Throughout the year, we remained firmly aligned with our objective of delivering measurable value to our shareholders, strategic partners, and customers. At the same time, we continued to play an active role in enabling Bahrain’s digital economy by introducing innovative solutions and service enhancements that directly address market needs and future opportunities.”
Mr. AlJanahi affirmed that BENEFIT has successfully developed a robust and well-integrated payment network that connects individuals and businesses across Bahrain, accelerating the adoption of emerging technologies in the banking and financial services sector and reinforcing Bahrain’s position as a growing fintech hub, and added, “Our achievements of the past year reflect a long-term vision to establish a resilient electronic payment infrastructure that supports the Kingdom’s digital economy. Key developments in 2024 included the implementation of central authentication for open banking via BENEFIT Pay”
Mr. AlJanahi concluded by thanking the Board for its strategic direction, the company’s staff for their continued dedication, and the Central Bank of Bahrain, member banks, and shareholders for their valuable partnership and confidence in the company’s long-term vision.