HAPPY APRIL FOOLS DAY and welcome to my regular South West Surrey update No 122. Nothing about spaghetti growing on trees or my wife being Japanese in this email I’m afraid (but like many politicians I have found my real life gaffes put April foolery to shame). I can, however, report the latest stats: so far we have had a total of 4,345,788 positive cases of COVID-19 with sadly 126,713 confirmed deaths in the UK. There have been 5,782 confirmed cases in Waverley and sadly 243 confirmed deaths, with an estimated 45 active cases in Waverley. All data is accurate as of 11am this morning.

 ROUGHLY 57% OF ALL ADULTS across the UK have now received their first dose – a fantastic achievement which has led to a 35% fall in deaths in the last week alone. Deaths are now in fact below the five year average for the second week in a row which is extraordinary mid-pandemic. Following the positive news from Scotland about the AZ vaccine, the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed that the Pfizer and Moderna coronavirus vaccines are 90% effective at preventing infections. The study examined around 4,000 health care workers and CDC Director, Dr Rochelle Walensky, stated: ‘this study is tremendously encouraging. These findings underscore the importance of getting both of the recommended doses of the vaccine in order to get the greatest level of protection against COVID-19, especially as our concerns about variants escalate.’ In the last seven days: coronavirus cases ⬇️7.9%, hospital admissions ⬇️22.1%, and deaths ⬇️35%.

THE CASE FOR EEYORE? Daily cases still seem to be stuck around the 5,000 mark with the ONS survey is reporting a levelling off of community cases at around 160,000 in England and a slight uptick in the number of cases in the 35-49 age group. Daily hospitalisations seem to have plateaued too at 3-400 new admissions a day.

VACCINE GOOD NEWS The ONS is reporting that 90% of 70+ year olds in England have received at least one dose. Analysis by Public Health England states that the vaccination programme prevented 6,000 deaths in the over 70s up to the end of February. Also from the ONS more than half of people in England (54%) and Wales (50.5%) now have antibodies - a stunning result also largely thanks to the vaccine rollout. The figures are slightly lower for Northern Ireland (49%) and Scotland (43%). If you are in the small minority of over 50s who hasn’t yet booked your vaccination, please do! Arrange your appointment here.

VACCINE BAD NEWS Germany has once again flip flopped on the AZ jab, banning its use for the under 60s. I sense a lot of DPhil research projects in the next few years called ‘Can the precautionary principle kill?’ As the UK's independent regulator has said, when people are called forward, they should get the jab. In the UK we have a different issue though with uptake from some minority ethnic communities remaining worryingly low. The lowest vaccination rates were from people identifying as Black African (59%) and Black Caribbean (69%). Fewer people from Bangladeshi (73%) and Pakistani (74.0%) backgrounds have also been vaccinated. Thank you to Sir Lenny Henry and others for a new campaign to try and address this.

GLOBAL PANDEMIC TREATY Finally on COVID-19 related news world leaders including Boris Johnson and the WHO have come together to call for a new global treaty to better prepare us for future pandemics. The mad dash for PPE at the start of the pandemic and recent vaccine wars show why we need this. But we also need more transparency when new pathogens arise - not least from China. Even the WHO has criticised China for a lack of data meaning they cannot rule out the virus originating from a research lab in Wuhan.

The key number to remember for anyone with pandemic-related difficulties remains 0300 200 1008 the Surrey Helpline run by Surrey County Council (Mon-Fri 9 am to 5 pm).

WHAT’S GOING ON IN WESTMINSTER

ZERO EMISSION BUSES will be rolled out across England to help achieve the net zero target by 2050. Announced on Tuesday, the scheme is backed by £120m funding. The Transport Secretary Grant Shapps commented: ‘the launch of the scheme today means we’re giving businesses and local authorities the tools to help deliver the 4,000 zero-emission buses we said we would introduce, which will dramatically improve air quality in towns and cities across the country, helping us achieve our net-zero ambition.’ Surrey County Council has already pledged electric buses for Farnham so hopefully this will mean we have them everywhere.

WHAT’S GOING ON IN SOUTH WEST SURREY

WAVERLEY COUNCIL’S Environmental Services department has produced a document with reopening guidance for hospitality businesses, based on government advice. Useful support materials can be found here as we all count down the days to our first pint (in pub gardens only) on 12th April.

FREE LATERAL FLOW TESTING available for all employers with 10+ employees so you can get staff tested twice a week. However, you must book by 12 April 2021. Here is the link for asymptomatic testing for households and bubbles of school and nursery pupils, as well as staff. If you’re unsure whether you are eligible for COVID-19 testing, you can find out here.

LITTER-PICKING volunteers are always needed to keep our South West Surrey constituency clean - and recently it feels like there has been a litter pandemic on top of the other one. If you would like to help, please get in touch with [email protected] to receive a picker and a jacket. The more the merrier - and thank you.

See my list of local groups working to support vulnerable residents here.

THE ECONOMY AND JOBS

ELECTRIC VEHICLES German car maker Volkswagen has changed its name to ‘Voltswagen’ for the American market to reinforce its commitment to sell one million electric vehicles globally by 2025. Scott Keogh, president and chief executive of Voltswagen of America, stated: "we might be changing out our K for a T, but what we aren't changing is this brand's commitment to making best-in-class vehicles for drivers and people everywhere.’ Well no actually…it turned out to be some sort of early April Fools Day joke and has now been denied by the company.

UK GDP INCREASED BY 1.3% in Quarter 4 (October to December) 2020, according to new ONS statistics. But they still think it went down a whopping 9.8% during 2020. However given the success of our vaccination programme there are hopes that it 2021 we will change from being the fastest contracting economy in Europe to the fastest growing.

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON

HAPPY EASTER, SWS Hope you have a wonderful break, filled with chocolate and sunshine. Monday is a Bank Holiday so my next newsletter will be on the 8^th April, but please do e-mail me at [email protected] if you have any urgent questions.

AND FINALLY, here is a grizzly bear ‘running’ on a treadmill because why not. He really is doing the bear minimum…

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Promoted by Sean Donovan-Smith on behalf of Jeremy Hunt MP and South West Surrey Conservatives, all at 2 Royal Parade, Tilford Road, Hindhead, Surrey GU26 6TD.