More evidence that we are in the hands of a dangerously-incompetent government. From today's Guardian:

"The government has missed opportunities to secure at least 16m face masks for NHS staff in the past four weeks, amid growing frustration from companies who say Britain is losing much-needed equipment to other countries.

As ministers faced relentless questions over a shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) in hospitals, suppliers said their offers to deliver UK-standard face masks were being met with silence from the government.

And on another day of chaos over the government’s PPE procurement, a senior civil servant said that its decision to stay out of a joint EU scheme was politically motivated. However he was forced to retract his claim within hours after he was contradicted by the health secretary, Matt Hancock.

Adding to the confusion, Hancock claimed that the UK had now joined the scheme – only for EU sources to note that that had happened recently so Britain would not benefit from the supplies of emergency equipment."