Inquiry Recommendations

Hikûmetên Keyaniya Yekbûyî, Skotland, Wales û Irelandrlanda Bakur divê her yek hejmara strukturên bi berpirsiyariya amadekarî û avakirina berxwedêriyê li hember acîlên sivîl ên tevahî pergalê hêsan bikin û kêm bikin.

Divê strukturên bingehîn ev bin:

• komîteyek wezaretê ya yekane ya di asta kabîneyê de an jî hevwateya wezaretê (di nav de wezîrê payebilind yê berpirsiyarê tenduristî û lênihêrîna civakî jî tê de) ku ji bo her hukûmetê berpirsiyarê amadehiya acîl a sivîl a tevahî pergalê û berxwedêriya her hukûmetê ye, ku bi rêkûpêk dicive û ji hêla serok an cîgirê serokê saziya têkildar ve tê rêvebirin. rêvebir; û
• grûpek yek-wezaretî ya karbidestên payebilind di her hukûmetê de (ku bi rêkûpêk radigihîne komîta wezîran a di asta kabîneyê de an jî komîta wezîran a hevwate) ji bo çavdêrîkirin û pêkanîna siyaseta li ser amadehiya acîl a sivîl û berxwedanê.

Divê ev yek di nav 12 mehan de ji weşandina vê Raporê were kirin.

Di nav 6 mehan de ji damezrandina koma karbidestên payebilind, divê ew vekolînek biqedîne da ku jimara strukturên ku berpirsiyarê amadehiya acîl a sivîl û berxwedêriya tevahî pergalê ne hêsan bike û kêm bike.

Dûv re, di nav 24 mehan de ji weşandina vê Raporê, divê komîteya wezîran grûp û komîteyên bindest an piştgirîdar ên ku ji bo amadehiya acîl a sivîl a tevahî pergalê û berxwedêriyê berpirsiyar in, mentiqî û rêkûpêk bike. Her kom û komîteyên ku ji bo piştgirîkirina vê avahiya bingehîn hatine girtin an hatine afirandin, divê xwediyê armancek zelal bin û divê bi rêkûpêk derbarê pêşkeftin û temamkirina karên ku ji wan re hatine destnîşankirin rapor bikin.

Divê hukûmeta Keyaniya Yekbûyî û rêveberiyên veqetandî bi hev re li ser pêşxistina nêzîkatiyek nû ji bo nirxandina xetereyê bixebitin ku ji pêbaweriya li ser yek senaryoyên herî xirab ên maqûl dûr dikeve ber bi nêzîkatiyek ku:

• Rêjeyek berfireh a senaryoyên ku ji xetereyên cihêreng û rêza her celeb xetereyê temsîl dikin dinirxîne;
• pêşîlêgirtin û kêmkirina rewşa awarte ji bilî mijûlbûna bi encamên wê re;
• analîzek bêkêmasî ya awayên ku bandorên hevgirtî yên xetereyên cûda dibe ku acîl tevlihev bikin an xirabtir bikin peyda dike;
• rîskên demdirêj ji bilî xetereyên demkurt dinirxîne û difikire ka ew çawa dikarin bi hev re têkilî daynin;
• nirxandina bandora her xetereyê li ser mirovên xizan dike; û
• kapasîteya û şiyanên Brîtanyayê digre ber çavan.

Bi kirina vê yekê, divê hukûmeta Keyaniya Yekbûyî û rêveberiyên veqetandî nirxandinên xetereyê bikin ku rewş û taybetmendiyên taybetî yên Îngilîstan, Wales, Skotland, Irelandrlanda Bakur û Keyaniya Yekbûyî bi tevahî nîşan dide.

Divê hukûmeta Keyaniya Yekbûyî û rêveberiyên veqetandî bi hev re stratejiyek acîl a sivîl a tevahî-pergala Keyaniya Yekbûyî (ku pandemîk jî tê de) destnîşan bikin da ku pêşî li her rewşên awarte bigirin û her weha kêm bikin, kontrol bikin û bandorên wê jî kêm bikin.

Bi kêmanî, stratejî divê:

• adaptable be;
• beşên ku ji bo her potansiyela rewşa awarte ya sîvîl a tev-pergalê têne veqetandin - ji bo nimûne, yek li ser pandemiyan bi ravekirina zelal a rol û berpirsiyariyên hukûmeta Keyaniya Yekbûyî, rêveberiyên veqetandî û dezgehên/derhêneriyên wan û her weha bersivdêrên herêmî;
• ji bo her cûre rewşa awarte cûrbecûr senaryoyên potansiyel bifikirin;
• pirsgirêkên sereke nas bike û rêzek bersivên potansiyel destnîşan bike;
• nas bike ka stratejî dê çawa were sepandin da ku pê ewle bibe ku bersivên potansiyel bi şert û mercên taybetî yên awarte re têkildar in;
• nirxandinek di dema kurt, navîn û dirêj de, li ser bingeha modela çapkirî, bandorên potansiyel ên tenduristî, civakî û aborî yên rewşa awarte û bersivên potansiyel ên rewşa awarte li ser gel û, bi taybetî, li ser mirovên xedar; û
• nirxandinek binesaziyê, teknolojî û jêhatîbûnên ku Brîtanya hewce dike ku bi bandor bersivê bide rewşa awarte û çawa dibe ku ew hewcedarî ji bo senaryoyên cihê biguhezin.

Stratejî divê herî kêm her sê salan carekê ji nû ve were nirxandin da ku pê ewle bibe ku ew nûve û bandorker e, dersên ku di navbera ji nû ve nirxandinan de hatine derxistin têxe nav xwe.

Hikûmeta Keyaniya Yekbûyî, ku bi rêveberiyên veqetandî re dixebite, divê mekanîzmayên ji bo berhevkirina biwext, analîzkirin, parvekirina ewledar û karanîna daneyên pêbawer ji bo agahdarkirina bersivên acîl, beriya pandemiyên pêşerojê saz bike. Divê pergalên daneyê di temrînên pandemîk de werin ceribandin.

Divê hukûmeta Keyaniya Yekbûyî di heman demê de pirfirehtir projeyên lêkolînê ku amade ne ku di bûyerek pandemîkek pêşerojê de dest pê bikin komîsyon bike. Dibe ku ev lêkolînên 'hibernated' an lêkolînên heyî yên ku hatine sêwirandin ku bi lez ji derketinek nû re werin adaptekirin bin. Divê bi hevkarên navneteweyî re xebatek çêtir were teşwîq kirin. Ev divê projeyên ji bo:

• belavbûna vîrusek nû fam bikin;
• pîvandina bandorkeriya cûrbecûr tedbîrên tenduristiya gelemperî; û
• nas bikin ka kîjan komên mirovên xeternak ji hêla pandemîk ve herî dijwar têne xistin û çima.

Divê hukûmeta Keyaniya Yekbûyî û rêveberiyên veqetandî bi hev re bi kêmanî her sê salan carekê tetbîqatek bersivdayina pandemîk a li seranserê Keyaniya Yekbûyî pêk bînin.

Divê temrîn:

• Di hemî qonaxan de, ji derûdora destpêkê heya pêlên pirjimar ên çend salan, bersiva li seranserê Keyaniya Yekbûyî, xaç-hikûmetê, neteweyî û herêmî li ser pandemîkek biceribînin;
• navberek berfireh a kesên ku di amadekarî û bersiva pandemîk de beşdar in; û
• Bifikirin ku di bûyera pandemiyê de dê çawa ji cûrbecûr mirovên xizan re bibin alîkar.

Ji bo hemî tetbîqatên awarte yên sivîl, hukûmetên Keyaniya Yekbûyî, Skotland, Wales û Irelandrlanda Bakur divê her yek (heya ku sedemên ewlehiya neteweyî nebin ku wiya nekin):

• di nav sê mehan de piştî encamdana temrînê, raporek tetbîqatê ku têde, ders û pêşniyaran berhev dike, biweşîne;
• di nav şeş mehan de piştî encamdana tetbîqatê, planek çalakiyê biweşîne ku tê de gavên taybetî yên ku dê ji bo bersivdana encamên raporê bêne avêtin, û ji hêla kîjan sazî ve têne avêtin; û
• raporên werzîşê, planên çalakiyê, û plansaziyên acîl û rêbernameyên ji seranserê Keyaniya Yekbûyî di arşîvek serhêl a yekane, li seranserê Keyaniya Yekbûyî de, ku ji hemî kesên ku di amadebûna acîl, berxwedan û bersivdayînê de beşdar in, bihêlin.

Hikûmetên Keyaniya Yekbûyî, Skotland, Wales û Irelandrlanda Bakur divê her yek ji meclîsên xwe yên têkildar re herî kêm her sê salan carekê raporên li ser amadekarî û berxwedaniya awarte ya sivîl a tevahî pergalê amade bikin û biweşînin.

Di raporan de herî kêm divê:

• metirsiyên ku her hukûmetê destnîşan kiriye, dibe ku bibe sedema acîlên sivîl ên tevahî pergalê;
• Pêşniyarên ku ji her hikûmetê re hatine kirin ji bo kêmkirina wan xetereyan, û gelo ev pêşniyar hatine pejirandin an red kirin;
• analîzek lêçûn-fêdeyê ku lêçûnên aborî û civakî yên qebûlkirina xetereyan li hember girtina tevdîrên ji bo kêmkirina xetereyan destnîşan dike;
• kî dibe ku ji metirsiyan re xeternak be û ji bo kêmkirina wan xetereyan çi gav têne avêtin;
• plansaziyek ku ji bo bicihanîna pêşnîyarên ku hatine qebûl kirin deman destnîşan dike; û
• nûvekirinek li ser pêşkeftina ku li ser bicîhanîna pêşnîyarên berê hatine qebûl kirin.

Hikûmetên Keyaniya Yekbûyî, Skotland, Wales û Irelandrlanda Bakur her yek divê karanîna tîmên sor di Karûbarê Sivîl de destnîşan bikin da ku prensîb, delîl, polîtîka û şîretên têkildarî amadekarî û berxwedêriya li hember acîlên sivîl ên tevahî pergalê bişopînin û bişopînin. Tîmên sor divê ji derveyî hikûmetê û Karûbarên Sivîl werin birin.

Divê hukûmeta Keyaniya Yekbûyî, bi şêwirdarîya bi rêveberiyên desteserkirî re, saziyek serbixwe ya zagonî ji bo amadehiya acîl a sivîl a tevahî pergalê û berxwedanê ava bike.

Divê saziya nû ji bo van berpirsiyariyan were dayîn:

• pêşkêşkirina şîretên serbixwe û stratejîk ji hukûmeta Keyaniya Yekbûyî û rêveberiyên birêkûpêk re li ser plansaziya wan, amadebûn û avakirina berxwedêriya li hember rewşên awarte yên sivîl ên tevahî pergalê;
• şêwirdarî bi sektora dilxwazî, civak û pargîdaniya civakî re li ser astek neteweyî û herêmî û rêvebirên tenduristiya giştî li ser parastina mirovên xedar di rewşên acîl ên sivîl ên tevahî pergalê de;
• nirxandina rewşa plansaziyê, amadekarî û berxwedêriya tevaya pergalê ya awarte ya sivîl li seranserê Keyaniya Yekbûyî; û
• pêşniyarên li ser kapasîteya û şiyanên ku dê ji bo amadekarî û avakirina berxwedêriya li hember acilên sîvîl ên tevaya pergalê hewce bike.

Wek tedbîrek demkî, divê desteya nû li ser bingeheke neqanûnî di nav 12 mehan de piştî vê Raporê were damezrandin, da ku ew dest bi karê xwe bike berî ku yasa were derxistin.

The Department of Health (Northern Ireland) should reconstitute the role of the Chief Medical Officer for Northern Ireland as an independent advisory role. The Chief Medical Officer for Northern Ireland should not have managerial responsibilities within the Department of Health (Northern Ireland).

The Government Office for Science (GO-Science) should develop and maintain a register of experts across the four nations of the UK who would be willing to participate in scientific advisory groups, covering a broad range of potential civil emergencies.

During a whole-system civil emergency, the UK government and devolved administrations should each routinely publish technical advice on scientific, economic and social matters at the earliest opportunity, as well as the minutes of expert advisory groups – except where there are good reasons that prevent publication, such as commercial confidentiality, personal safety or national security, or because legal advice privilege applies.

The Government Office for Science (GO-Science), the Scottish Government, the Welsh Government and the Department of Health (Northern Ireland) should each develop standard terms of appointment for all participants in scientific advisory groups. These terms should include:

• clarity around the nature of an individual’s role and the extent of their responsibility, as well as the likely time commitment;
• payment where their time commitment means that they have to spend time away from their substantive role;
• access to support services; and access to advice on personal and online security, with procedures for escalating specific concerns.

The UK government should bring into force in England section 1 of the Equality Act 2010, implementing the socio-economic duty.

The Northern Ireland Assembly and Northern Ireland Executive should consider an equivalent provision within section 75 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998.

The UK government should introduce legislation to place child rights impact assessments on a statutory footing in England.

The Northern Ireland Executive should consider an equivalent provision.

The UK government, Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland Executive should each agree a framework that identifies people who would be most at risk of becoming infected by and dying from a disease and those who are most likely to be negatively impacted by any steps taken to respond to a future pandemic. The framework should set out the specific steps that could be taken to mitigate the risks to these people.

Equality impact assessments should form part of this framework. Where they cannot be undertaken in a national crisis, they should be reinstated as soon as possible.

Each government should agree and publish in its response to this Report how it will ensure that this framework is embedded into emergency decision-making and who will be responsible for ensuring these issues remain under consideration throughout a national crisis.

The Northern Ireland Executive and UK government (in consultation with the Irish government where necessary) should review the structures and delegated powers of government in Northern Ireland to consider:

• the empowerment of the First Minister and deputy First Minister jointly to direct the work of other ministers and departments during an emergency;

• the empowerment of the Head of the Northern Ireland Civil Service in relation to the allocation of civil servants to departments or to civil contingency structures during an emergency; and

• how decisions that would usually be subject to ministerial approval would be taken should an emergency occur during the suspension of power-sharing arrangements.

The UK government and devolved administrations should set out in future pandemic preparedness strategies (see the Inquiry’s Module 1 Report, Recommendation 4) how decision-making will work in a future pandemic.

This should include provision for COBR to be used as the initial response structure and set out how the UK government and devolved administrations will transition from managing a pandemic through COBR to managing it through separate arrangements in each nation when it becomes clear that the  emergency will be longer-term.

It should include provision for longer-term decision-making structures in the UK government which consist of:

• a strategy group to set the overall approach to each stage of the pandemic and take decisions on major interventions (eg entering and exiting lockdown); and

• an operational group to take decisions on the implementation of the agreed strategy throughout the pandemic.

The design of these structures should include an outline of decision-making procedures for each group.

The strategy should make express provision for the involvement of the UK Cabinet in the decision-making of the strategy and operational groups.

It should also provide that longer-term decision-making should be conducted primarily by the UK, Scottish and Welsh Cabinets and the Northern Ireland

Executive.

Decision-making groups in each nation should include a minister with responsibility for representing the interests of vulnerable groups. In the UK government, the Minister for Women and Equalities may be the most appropriate minister in this regard.

The UK government and the devolved administrations should each establish formal arrangements for covering the roles of Prime Minister and First Minister (and in Northern Ireland, deputy First Minister) as applicable during a whole-system civil emergency, should the incumbent be unable to undertake their duties for any reason.

The response to a future whole-system civil emergency should be coordinated via central taskforces in each of the UK, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, with responsibility for the commissioning and synthesis of advice, coordination of a single data picture and facilitation of decision-making processes. In preparation, the UK government and the devolved administrations should each design the operating procedures for these taskforces, including, but not limited to, identifying the key roles needed to run the taskforces and how those roles would be appointed.

The UK government should also identify the role of its taskforce in supporting decision-making procedures within the strategy and operational decision-making structures.

These arrangements should be incorporated into future pandemic preparedness strategies (see the Inquiry’s Module 1 Report, Recommendation 4).

The Executive Office should amend the Ministerial Code to impose a duty of confidentiality on ministers that prohibits the disclosure of the individual views of ministers expressed during meetings of the Northern Ireland Executive Committee.

The UK government and the devolved administrations should each develop action plans for how government communications will be made more accessible during a pandemic.

As a minimum, these should include making provision for the translation of government press conferences into British Sign Language (and Irish Sign Language in Northern Ireland) and the translation of key announcements into the most frequently spoken languages in the UK.

The UK government and devolved administrations should ensure that the draft affirmative procedure is the standard process for enacting substantial and wide- ranging powers in a civil emergency, such as a pandemic, under primary public health legislation.

Any departure from this procedure should be the exception, with clear criteria and safeguards in place to prevent the bypassing of parliamentary scrutiny. These safeguards should include:

• ‘sunset clauses’ for regulations made using the made affirmative procedure, specifying a clear expiration date, typically within two months; and

• a duty on ministers to report to their respective legislatures every two months on the exercise of emergency powers.

The UK government should undertake a review of the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 to assess its potential role in managing future civil emergencies, including pandemics, and whether it could be employed as an interim emergency framework until more specific legislation with appropriate parliamentary safeguards is passed.

The review should:

• examine the conditions under which the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 may be invoked in a public health emergency;

• consider any adjustments to the Act’s safeguards, such as the triple lock test or time limits, that would make it more adaptable to pandemics; and

• produce clear guidance on the Act’s application for use in civil emergencies, including pandemics, to support its use as an emergency measure in advance of specific legislation – such as a dedicated pandemic bill – being passed.

The UK government, Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland Executive should develop an online portal for use in future civil emergencies, where members of the public can access information on the legal restrictions that apply in their area and any associated guidance.

This portal should be easily accessible and its content should be written in straightforward and unambiguous language.

The UK government should invite the devolved administrations, as a matter of standard practice, to nominate relevant ministers and officials to attend COBR meetings in the event of relevant whole-system civil emergencies that have the potential to have UK-wide effects.

While intergovernmental relations should be facilitated through COBR in the initial months of any future pandemic, the UK government and devolved administrations should ensure that a specific four-nations structure, concerning pandemic response, is stood up at the same time as the transition away from COBR to nation-specific decision-making structures. This should meet regularly during a pandemic and be attended by all heads of government.

Arrangements for these four-nations meetings should be incorporated into future pandemic preparedness strategies (see the Inquiry’s Module 1 Report, Recommendation 4).