Sue Gray Report: MP Richard Bacon's NHS comments a 'heinous insult' to staff

A Tory MP's claim that NHS staff were "letting their hair down" during the pandemic has been labelled a "gross" insult by health representatives.

Richard Bacon made the remarks in the wake of the Sue Gray report.

"I bet if you tried hard enough you could find some people letting their hair down who were working 24/7 in the NHS," the South Norfolk MP said.

Mr Bacon has since said he was "very sorry" if he gave the impression he was "intending to insult anyone".

Unison had called on the MP to withdraw the comment and apologise.

Mr Bacon said: "I pointed out that NHS workers were in some cases working 24/7 and I was certainly not intending to insult anyone, so I'm very sorry if anyone got that impression.

"NHS workers worked extremely hard throughout the pandemic.

"We should be very grateful to all the people in the public service, in the NHS and also civil servants across government including in Downing Street who worked extremely long hours to secure supplies of personal protective equipment, to deliver the furlough programme in record time and protect millions of jobs, to create the world's first Covid vaccine programme and also to deliver a booster vaccine with astonishing speed."

On Wednesday, he told BBC Look East the prime minister should not be "condemned" after Ms Gray's 48-page report highlighted the extent of lockdown parties at Downing Street.

"The fact that [Mr Johnson] goes round thanking his staff for working very, very hard, 18 hours a day, to try and keep the show on the road when we were in a global pandemic is not, I think, a crime," he said.

"And I don't think it's something he should be condemned for and I certainly don't think it's something he should resign for. I support Boris."

Asked if he was "comfortable" with the revelations around the drinking and partying at Downing Street during lockdown, he replied: "No, of course I'm not but then I think they were working under huge pressure.

"You haven't gone and investigated it but there are one and a half million people who work in the NHS. I bet if you tried hard enough you could find some people letting their hair down who were working 24/7 in the NHS as well.

"We were under extraordinary pressure in a global pandemic where we didn't really know what we were dealing with."

Unison's eastern regional secretary Tim Roberts said the MP would be "hard pushed" to find any NHS staff with the energy to let their hair down "let alone throw BYOB [bring your own bottle] bashes like Mr Bacon's boss".

"Richard Bacon's comments are a heinous insult to the hundreds of NHS workers who died from Covid and all their colleagues who fought physical and mental exhaustion to keep us safe during the darkest days of the pandemic," he said.

"Perhaps Mr Bacon should consider why he became an MP. It can't have been to malign health workers and defend a Prime Minister who can't even follow the rules he makes."

Dr Katie Voigt is a GP in Mr Bacon's constituency, while her husband is a consultant surgeon in Norfolk.

"I can absolutely assure you, neither of us did anything but stick rigidly to the rules throughout the entire pandemic," she told Mr Bacon, in a letter prompted by his comments.

"Not once did we 'let our hair down' and I find this suggestion deeply offensive.

"I too have photos of my colleagues at work - always wearing masks, always distanced and always behaving professionally throughout.

"Not one of them was holding a glass of alcohol - ever.

"I do not believe it is much to expect the same of our leaders.

"I deeply resent any suggestion that NHS workers may have stooped to Downing Street level and I can say with complete honestly this never happened where I work."

Her thoughts were echoed by the Royal College of Nursing, whose regional director Teresa Budrey said staff had been busy saving lives, often without access to proper PPE.

"These insulting comments demonstrate how far removed our political leaders are from the experience of those working on the frontline during the pandemic.

"We invite any MP wanting to know about the experience of frontline nursing staff to meet with us so we can tell them exactly what life is like for the dedicated, skilled and hard-working staff."

The British Medical Association's (BMA) deputy chairman Dr David Wrigley said doctors and their colleagues would be "outraged" by the comparison.

"While the Prime Minister's aides were 'letting their hair down' and messaging that they had 'got away with it', doctors and healthcare workers were giving their all - and for some, their lives - to care for their patients, working hour after hour, and day after day, with little or no respite," he added.

"Many were living away from their own families in order to protect their vulnerable relatives, all so that they could continue to care for their patients.

"We know that colleagues were holding smart phones and tablets in front of dying patients so that their families, who were not allowed to visit, could say good-bye and this has had a profound and ongoing impact on NHS staff and their mental health.

"It is therefore a gross insult to doctors and healthcare staff to compare the flagrant rule-breaking in Downing Street with the diligence, compassion and professionalism of healthcare workers."

Writing on Twitter on Wednesday, shadow health secretary Wes Streeting described the comments as "a grotesque insult to the people who work for the NHS", and called on Mr Bacon to apologise.

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