Professor Neil Ferguson has resigned from his position as a government adviser on coronavirus after admitting an “error of judgement”
Neil Ferguson, the British epidemiologist whose advice to the prime minister helped to put in place the current UK lockdown measures, has said he regretted “undermining” his own messages on social distancing.
The Telegraph reported that a woman he was apparently in a relationship with, visited him at his house despite the lockdown measures in place. Antonia Staats had reportedly visited his home at least twice during the lockdown.
Modelling by Professor Neil Ferguson, on the virus’s transmission, suggested that 250,000 people within the UK could die from COVID-19 without the implementation of drastic action.
This modelling from Ferguson led the Prime Minister to announce on the 23rd of March that he was imposing nationwide restrictions on daily life, with the goal of stopping the spread of the coronavirus.
Under the government’s lockdown measures people were told to leave their house as little as possible and to stay home to protect the NHS, with those in relationships who live apart later being told that they should “ideally” be staying in their own homes.
In a statement, Prof Ferguson said:
“I accept I made an error of judgement and took the wrong course of action.”
“I have therefore stepped back from my involvement in Sage (Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies).”
“I acted in the belief that I was immune, having tested positive for coronavirus and completely isolated myself for almost two weeks after developing symptoms.”
“I deeply regret any undermining of the clear messages around the continued need for social distancing.”
James Brokenshire, Minister of State for Security, said that he was “sad to see this development”, but that Ferguson had “taken the right course of action” by resigning from the role.
The Security Minister also stressed the importance of “ensuring there is a clarity of message on upholding the rules and requirements on social distancing and just why that matters so much in terms of protecting our NHS and saving lives”.
“We have a range of experts that will continue to support ministers,”
This news comes after the UK had its lowest daily death-rate since the end of March in the 24 hours between 9am on Sunday and 9am on Monday, with a total of 288 more deaths due to COVID-19, bringing the total number of coronavirus-related deaths in the country to 28,734.
The President of the academy of medical sciences, Sir Robert Lechler, has said that he did not think Professor Ferguson’s resignation from the advisory role would “have any material impact” on the work conducted by Sage, which is continuing to advise the government on the COVID-19 pandemic. He said that Ferguson had made “an important contribution” but that Sage would “continue to provide valuable input”.
