Responding to Covid-19 and the Coronavirus Act 2020

Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee Closed Inquiry
Opened: 15 May 2020 Closed: 9 Mar 2021 Parliament page
The Coronavirus Act 2020 was emergency legislation passed by Parliament on 25 March, to provide the Government with the powers it wanted to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic in the UK. PACAC has launched this inquiry to scrutinise the constitutional and public administration aspects of the Act, with the goal of … Read more
13 Recommendations
11 Conclusions
1 Report
4 Oral sessions
11 Letters
4 Events
Activity timeline 17 events
9 Dec
2020
Report published
6 Oct
2020
Correspondence
22 Sep
2020
Correspondence
10 Sep
2020
Report published
2 Sep
2020
Correspondence
2 Sep
2020
Correspondence
2 Sep
2020
Correspondence
23 Jul
2020
Oral evidence
21 Jul
2020
Correspondence
14 Jul
2020
Oral evidence
7 Jul
2020
Correspondence
23 Jun
2020
Oral evidence
Oral evidence sessions 4 sessions
23 Jul 2020
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Responding to Covid-19 and the Coronavirus Act 2020
Dame Una O’Brien DCB Dr Alister Stark Emma Norris · Institute for Government Jason Beer QC Sir Robert Francis · HealthWatch England The Rt Hon. the Baroness Prashar CBE The Rt Hon. the Lord Butler of Brockwell KG GCB CVO
14 Jul 2020
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Responding to Covid-19 and the Coronavirus Act 2020
Clara Swinson · Department for Health and Social Care Edward Argar MP · Department of Health and Social Care Katharine Hammond · Cabinet Office Rt Hon Penny Mordaunt MP · Cabinet Office
23 Jun 2020
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Responding to Covid-19 and the Coronavirus Act 2020
Gordon Lyons MLA · Northern Ireland Assembly Jeremy Miles MS · Welsh Government Michael Russell MSP · Scottish Parliament
16 Jun 2020
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Responding to Covid-19 and the Coronavirus Act 2020
Dr. Ronan Cormacain · (self-employed) Professor Aileen McHarg · Durham University Raphael Hogarth · Institute for Government
Title HC No. Published Items Response
Fourth Report - Parliamentary Scrutiny of the Government’s handl… HC 377 10 Sep 2020 24 Responded
Recommendations & Conclusions
4 results
Clear
5 Recommendation Rejected
Fourth Report - Parliamentary Scru…
The Government’s desire to find alternatives, such as bespoke primary legislation, to using the emergency...
The Government’s desire to find alternatives, such as bespoke primary legislation, to using the emergency provisions of the Civil Contingency Act 2004 is understandable. Bespoke primary legislation has the advantage of going through the stages of Parliamentary scrutiny. However, the … Read more
Government Response
The government defends its decision not to use the Civil Contingencies Act for COVID-19, stating that the Coronavirus Act allowed for prior parliamentary scrutiny and provided sufficient safeguards, implicitly rejecting the recommendation for its future use as a stop-gap or for new equivalent safeguards.
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10 Conclusion Rejected
Fourth Report - Parliamentary Scru…
The use of the urgent procedure has not always been justified, particularly when the Government...
The use of the urgent procedure has not always been justified, particularly when the Government has announced that measures will be introduced some weeks in advance. Examples of this are provided by the regulations mandating the use of face coverings … Read more
Government Response
The government defends its use of the urgent procedure due to the rapid nature of the pandemic, stating it cannot delay urgent regulations. It notes it will consult Parliament and hold votes wherever possible but is confident it acted lawfully and rationally in its use of the procedure.
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12 Recommendation Rejected
Fourth Report - Parliamentary Scru…
The Committee strongly welcomes the Government’s publication of draft legislation for implementing future local lockdowns...
The Committee strongly welcomes the Government’s publication of draft legislation for implementing future local lockdowns similar to those in Greater Manchester or Leicester. This is a welcome improvement in transparency and facilitates parliamentary scrutiny of measures that may need to … Read more
Government Response
The government states that the transition to a Tiers structure replaced the need for the specific draft legislation mentioned, rendering the recommendation to increase awareness of it no longer applicable. They highlight other general efforts for parliamentary engagement.
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13 Recommendation Rejected
Fourth Report - Parliamentary Scru…
The six-monthly Parliamentary reviews offer an opportunity for the House to debate the relevant temporary...
The six-monthly Parliamentary reviews offer an opportunity for the House to debate the relevant temporary provisions within the Coronavirus Act 2020 but they do not allow the House to individually vote on whether specific provisions should continue or be repealed. … Read more
Government Response
The government rejected the recommendation for additional thematic debates, arguing that the existing system of scrutiny, including numerous debates, oral statements, and committee oversight, provides sufficient opportunities for Parliament to examine the Coronavirus Act.
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Government Response AI assessment · 24 of 13 classified
Accepted 13
Accepted in Part 2
Acknowledged 5
Rejected 4
Total 13 recs + 11 conclusions
Correspondence 11 letters
6 Oct 2020 To committee Letter from the Rt Hon Matt Hancock MP, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on renewal of provisions in the Coronavirus Act 2020, dated 29.9.20
Parliament page
22 Sep 2020 From committee Letter to the Rt Hon Michael Gove MP on debate on renewal of provisions in the Coronavirus Act 2020, dated 17.9.20
Parliament page
2 Sep 2020 To committee Letter from Edward Argar MP, Minister of State for Health on follow-up evidence after 14.7.20 oral evidence session, dated 26.8.20
Parliament page
2 Sep 2020 To committee Letter from the Paymaster General Rt Hon Penny Mordaunt MP on follow-up evidence after 14.7.20 oral evidence session, dated 21.8.20
Parliament page
2 Sep 2020 To committee Letter from Gordon Lyons MLA, Junior Minister, Executive Office, Northern Ireland on follow-up evidence after 23.6.20 oral evidence session, dated 3.8.20
Parliament page
21 Jul 2020 To committee Letter from Michael Russell MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Constitution, Europe and External Affairs on civil contingency planning and preparedness, dated 17.7.20
Parliament page
7 Jul 2020 To committee Letter from Ed Humpherson, Director General for Regulation, Office for Statistics Regulation on Covid-19 statistics, dated 1.7.20
Parliament page
16 Jun 2020 To committee Letter from Chloe Smith MP, Minister of State on Boundary review and electoral data and annual canvass 2020, dated 9.6.20
Parliament page
9 Jun 2020 Correspondence with Rt Hon Mark Drakeford MP regarding invitation to give oral evidence on Coronavirus, dated 2.6.20
Parliament page
9 Jun 2020 Correspondence with Rt Hon Nicola Sturgeon MSP regarding invitation to give oral evidence on Coronavirus, dated 2.6.20
Parliament page
9 Jun 2020 Correspondence with Rt Hon Arlene Foster MLA regarding invitation to give oral evidence on Coronavirus, dated 2.6.20
Parliament page