Boris Johnson has said the NHS would be “in an even worse position” if the UK government did not take containment measures during the coronavirus pandemic, to firmly defend his three-year position as prime minister. he.
In his final speech, Johnson defended his record as prime minister on Thursday, arguing that he had not “evaded big decisions” on issues such as climate change or social care, when he announced £700 million funding for the Sizewell C. nuclear power plant in Suffolk, England.
Challenged over his handling of the pandemic, which has been the subject of a public inquiry, Johnson said the health service would be “overwhelmed” without action to reduce the spread of Covid-19.
He told reporters: “People are saying that too much lockdown has caused the current problems in the NHS. “I’m afraid to say the opposite, in which case if we didn’t lock down the problems we’re facing right now in the NHS would be even worse.”
Rishi Sunak, the Conservative leadership candidate and former prime minister, this month sharply criticized the government’s handling of the pandemic. He told The Spectator magazine that there were too few considerations to make when deciding whether to close, including the impact on children.
Johnson’s successor, who will be announced next week after voting in the Tory leadership race ends on Friday, will confront a beleaguered health service.
In addition to popular vacancies in health and social care, around 6.7 million people are waiting for non-emergency hospital treatment – the highest number in the NHS’s history.
As well as defending his record, Johnson confirmed that the government would invest £700m to take a 20% stake in French energy group EDF’s new nuclear project at Sizewell on the country’s east coast. English – from one current allocation is £1.7 billion was done last year.
Johnson, who has made reducing the UK’s carbon footprint and increasing energy independence a priority during his time in office, issued a cautionary note to colleagues, including Liz Truss, head of leadership. Tory director, about restarting mining.
He said that while he “doesn’t object to this intellectually or morally,” he was “not clear” that extracting shale gas would be easy and would not lead to environmental damage. as opposed to cheap wind energy.
During the final discussion of the leadership race on Wednesday, Truss said she would ease the cost of living crisis by reducing the tax burden and increasing domestic energy supply.
But she declined to name further specific measures she would take as prime minister, saying: “I don’t judge everything inside and out. . . I am not sitting here writing about Budgets or financial events”.
Johnson also warned on Thursday that rising energy bills would mean “a very difficult winter” for households, but said his successor would be able to add to the 37-year support package. existing government pounds.
Johnson said he was “proud” of the administration’s work, adding that the administration had consistently taken a long-term approach to policy issues.
“At every stage over the last three years, what we’ve tried to do is put in what this country is going to need in the long run, to try to see what future generations will need for our prosperity. for their productivity and quality of life.”
