- Robert Dingwall from Nervtag said the rule is not backed by scientific evidence
- The sociology professor warned evidence supports a one-metre gap but not two
- He said that government’s advice for a two-metre distance was a ‘rule of thumb’
- Nervtag feeds into Sage, which is spearheading the government’s Covid-19 fight
James Gant – Daily Mail April 26, 2020
Social distancing orders for people to keep two metres apart to stop the spread of coronavirus is not based on any scientific research, a government adviser has said.
Robert Dingwall, from the New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group (Nervtag), said the rule was ‘conjured up out of nowhere’.
The sociology professor at Nottingham Trent University said scientific evidence supports a one-metre gap, but the two-metre advice was a ‘rule of thumb’.
Nervtag feeds into the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage), which is spearheading the government’s pandemic response.
Sage has faced fierce criticism after it was revealed Boris Johnson’s chief adviser Dominic Cummings has been sitting in on meetings.
Mr Dingwall told Radio 4’s Today: ‘We cannot sustain [social distancing measures] without causing serious damage to society, to the economy and to the physical and mental health of the population.
‘I think it will be much harder to get compliance with some of the measures that really do not have an evidence base. I mean the two-metre rule was conjured up out of nowhere.’
He added: ‘Well there is a certain amount of scientific evidence for a one-metre distance which comes out of indoor studies in clinical and experimental settings.
‘There’s never been a scientific basis for two metres, it’s kind of a rule of thumb. But it’s not like there is a whole kind of rigorous scientific literature that it is founded upon.’
The government put the UK on lockdown on March 23 and enforced social distancing to try to combat the spread of the virus which has killed nearly 20,000.
Guidance on its website says: ‘If you meet others when you are outdoors (for example, on a walk) ensure that you stay at least 2 metres away.’
Robert Dingwall, from the New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group (Nervtag), said the rule was ‘conjured up out of nowhere’…….Yet another waste of OUR money on a pointless QUANGO!!..WHY??? Time to kill opff ALL of these NONSENSE Quango’s and overseas ‘aid’ and spend the money where it is NEEDED! In the UK
They need. 2 metre space so that the facial recognition cameras can work effectively. It’s the same principle as putting two QR codes together, you’re camera cannot get a fix on one of them.