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Two-thirds of the public blame government policy for contributing to Britain’s Covid death toll

TWO-THIRDS of the public think government policy has directly contributed to Britain’s shocking 123,000 death toll from the coronavirus.

A massive 66 per cent of people believe the Covid-19 death toll would have been lower if the government had acted differently, according to a poll carried out by campaign groups Keep Our NHS Public and We Own It.

One cause highlighted was the government’s obsession with handing hundreds of millions of pounds in public cash to the private sector to implement countermeasures, such as the failed test and trace system.

Britain is suffering one of the highest Covid-19 death rates in the world per head of population.

Dr John Puntis, co-chairman of Keep Our NHS Public, said that the 123,000 deaths from Covid-19 are a “tragic legacy” this government will leave behind. 

He said: “So many of these lives could have been saved had the government acted differently, and made better decisions — locking down earlier and favouring the public sector over private involvement.

“The results of this survey highlight the devastating truth, that the majority of the British public blame government policy choices for increasing the number of victims from this dreadful disease. 

“This is why our People’s Covid Inquiry is now so vitally needed, to learn the lessons from the numerous mistakes made, hold the government to account, and save lives as a result.”

The inquiry, which is being chaired by human rights barrister Michael Mansfield QC, is due to present its findings to the government after the hearings end in June. Its next session will be on Wednesday, March 10.

We Own It campaigns officer Pascale Robinson said: “From start to finish, the government has put the interests of private profit above public health – and the public understand this. 

"The root of this is the insidious ideology of privatisation.

“The successful rollout of the vaccination programme has been delivered thanks to the brilliant work of our fantastic NHS and primary care services. 

“The government should replicate that in the other aspects of the pandemic response by kicking the private companies out for good.”

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