Of all the things UK authorities may have learned from the (authoritarian) way they handled the Covid pandemic – it’s disheartening to see that making things even worse, should another similar phenomenon occur, is the “lesson learned.”
A Covid Inquiry report appears to serve the purpose of advocating for more efficient and therefore widespread mass digital and data surveillance.
The report, resulting from a public inquiry, suggests that future events of the scale Covid – health, or otherwise – will, in the UK, require some sort of public debate – but more importantly, they will require “large scale (surveillance) digital platforms to be established.”
The purpose of mentioning a “public debate” here would be to rubber-stamp such future activity ahead of time, the results of Baroness Heather Hallett’s inquiry suggest.
So at least one lesson has actually been learned – don’t try to impose draconian, radical measures on an entire population without even the pretense of consent. It might come back to haunt you.
But, UK’s chief medical officer Chris Whitty’s statements feature prominently in the report – this apparently medical professional comes across as a data expert who says data is “absolutely essential.”
“Any future strategy for whole-system civil emergencies, including for pandemics, will need to be based upon the establishment of large-scale digital platforms,” the report said.
What exactly the UK’s authorities are preparing for is anybody’s guess, but pandemics and their likes are singled out.
And they will definitely need those large-scale digital platforms, the inquiry found.
Yet whatever “whole-system civil emergency” may be, the report wants that public debate underway, and it, of course, resulting in consent – ASAP.
The report is aware that now before such emergencies occur, there are some safeguards regarding how the authorities can use mass-scale data they hanker for – but the point here is to put the building blocks in place for when the government decides the emergency is happening.
And this is what the government will need: “A reliable feed of live data for decision-makers from the very earliest moments of a crisis, (as) this will enable those decision-makers to have a firmer grip as events unfold.”
Never forget, that George Orwell didn’t appear out of thin air. He may not have been born in the UK, but was certainly raised there.
Speaking of, and in terms of how the Covid restrictive measures adventure went there, the report notes that “(…) despite England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland being at risk of the same health emergency, the data and health systems were so different that they were a barrier to effective preparedness.”
Hallett’s recommendation is – centralization. As the report put it, “the creation of a single, independent statutory body responsible for overseeing national emergency preparedness.”
