The prime minister has denied that official government advice until March 12 was that it was ‘unlikely’ for people in care homes to become infected.

He was asked about new figures which show that 40% of all deaths from Covid-19 have been in care homes.

Sir Keir Starmer opened Prime Minister’s Questions by referring to previous government advice that said ‘there is currently no transmission of Covid-19 in the community’.

He said: ‘In his speech on Sunday the Prime Minister said we need to rapidly reverse the awful epidemic in our care homes, but earlier this year, and until March 12, the Government’s own official advice was, and I’m quoting from it, “it remains very unlikely that people receiving care in a care home will become infected”.

‘Yesterday’s ONS figures show that at least 40% of all deaths from Covid-19 were in care homes.

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‘Does the Prime Minister accept that the Government was too slow to protect people in care homes?’

Mr Johnson replied: “No Mr Speaker it wasn’t true that the advice said that, and actually we brought the lockdown in care homes ahead of the general lockdown.”

‘What we’ve seen is a concerted action plan to tackle what has unquestionably been an appalling epidemic in care homes.’

He added: ‘And a huge exercise in testing is going on, a further £600 million I can announce today for infection control in care homes, and yes it is absolutely true that the number of casualties has been too high but I can tell the House, as I told (Sir Keir) last week and indeed this week, the number of outbreaks is down and the number of fatalities in care homes is now well down.”

Keir Starmer said he was ‘surprised the prime minister queried the advice of his own government up to March 12’.

The Labour leader asked for the Government’s view on the 10,000 ‘unexplained’ excess deaths in care homes in April.

He said: ‘The ONS records the average number of deaths in care homes each month. The last five years the average for April has been just over 8,000.

‘This year the number of deaths in care homes for April was a staggering 26,000 – that’s three times the average – 18,000 additional deaths this April.

‘Using the Government’s figures only 8,000 are recorded as Covid deaths, that leaves 10,000 additional and unexplained care home deaths this April.

‘Now I know the Government must have looked into this so can the Prime Minister give us the Government’s views on these unexplained deaths?’

Mr Johnson responded: ‘Coronavirus is an appalling disease which afflicts some groups far more than others, I think the whole country understands.

“And in particular the elderly, and he’s right to draw attention, as I said, to the tragedy that has been taking place in care homes.

‘The Office of National Statistics is responsible for producing the data that they have, the Government had also produced data which not only shows that there has been, as I said, a terrible epidemic in care homes but since the care homes action plan began we are seeing an appreciable and substantial reduction, not just in the number of outbreaks but also in the number of deaths.’

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