BORIS Johnson left manufacturers unimpressed last night after making light of the lack of available ventilator equipment in the UK as the coronavirus spreads.
Ventilators are critical in the care of some people suffering coronavirus, and there is concern that the NHS will face a shortage of the life-saving equipment as need increases.
A recent report from the Imperial College Covid-19 response team also warned that, under the UK Government's current plan to curb the spread of the pandemic, the health system will be "overwhelmed many times over".
In a conference call with over 60 businesses last night, Johnson and Michael Gove asked manufacturers to step up to help deal with the shortage.
However, according to POLITICO, Johnson joked that the initiative to build more ventilators could be known as "Operation Last Gasp".
One participant speaking with POLITICO journalist Charlie Cooper said “He couldn’t help but act the clown, even though he was a on call with serious CEOs from goodness knows how many companies.”
READ MORE: Letting vulnerable bear brunt of crisis will be Boris’s undoing
55 people in the UK have died as a result of Covid-19 as of Tuesday morning.
Downing Street did not comment.
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