There are no plans to beef up guidance to the public on wearing face masks amid a surge in flu cases.
Keir Starmer has insisted advice regarding hand washing and ventilation is already in place and people should use their ‘common sense’.
It comes after the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) wrote in a blog last week that ‘masks continue to be a useful tool in limiting the spread of respiratory viruses in some situations’.
It said: ‘Wearing a well-fitting mask when unwell can reduce the number of particles containing viruses that are released from the mouth and nose of someone who is infected with a respiratory infection.’
A YouGov poll of 5,221 people on Thursday found three in five (61 percent) would be fairly or very willing to wear a face mask to prevent the spread of flu this year.
A third (33per cent) said they would be not very, or not at all, willing to do so.
But Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said she worried about a mandate being put in place urging people to return to wearing face masks, saying she was ‘still slightly traumatised’ by Covid.
Asked on Thursday whether the Government needs to advise people to wear face masks on public transport, the Prime Minister told broadcasters on a visit to Norfolk: ‘I think as far as the flu is concerned, there’s a winter plan in place, and I had a briefing on that the day before last in terms of the robustness of the plan.
Commuters taking precaution and wearing face masks at London’s Waterloo Station on Wednesday
‘I want to thank all the NHS staff who always step up during the winter period to deal with flu or whatever else. We do need to take precautions.
‘There’s no difference in the guidance, so we’re not changing guidance on face masks.
‘But the usual things about ventilation, washing hands and just being careful when you’re around people who are vulnerable is the guidance. It’s common sense, and I think most people would want to behave in that way.’
