13 Oct 2020

WHO says lockdowns are last resort

From Morning Report, 7:08 am on 13 October 2020

A senior official at the World Health Organization (WHO) says lockdowns should be the last resort to control Covid-19.

On the face of it, that's a startling reversal in advice from the world's top health body.

WHO's special envoy on COVID-19, Dr David Nabarro, told a British magazine the organisation now believes lockdowns should only be used to buy authorities time to set up the systems that allow society to live with the virus.

WHO spokesperson, Dr Margaret Harris, told RNZ's Corin Dann how the WHO's advice should be interpreted.