Martin McKee

@martinmckee.bsky.social

12K followers 660 following 1.1K posts

Prof of European Public Health LSHTM
Co-Director European Observatory on Health Systems & Policy
Member Independent SAGE
Past President BMA & EUPHA
Committed to 🇬🇧 rejoining 🇪🇺

https://www.lshtm.ac.uk/aboutus/people/mckee.martin .. more

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Clifford Martin McKee, CBE, is professor of European public health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

Source: Wikipedia

Public Health 40%

Medicine 24%

Posts Replies Media Videos

Reposted by Martin McKee

Institute for Government @instituteforgovernment.org.uk · 16h

EVENT | Are public inquiries a good way for government to learn lessons?

Join us to discuss the lessons from the second Covid Inquiry report and what it means for how future governments approach crisis management.

www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/event/govern...

Martin McKee @martinmckee.bsky.social · 1d

Looking for Christmas presents? My colleague Nick Black has just published his second medical novel/biography, this time on Thomas Wakely, founder of the Lancet. Highly recommended

amzn.eu/d/dthy3Q7

Bare-knuckle Surgeon

Bare-knuckle Surgeon eBook : Black, Nick: Amazon.co.uk: Kindle Store

amzn.eu

Martin McKee @martinmckee.bsky.social · 1d

Brexit may not explain all of UK’s woes but, directly or indirectly, it explains a lot of them. Yet ministers still delude themselves (assuming they aren’t just lying) that they can “Make Brexit work”👇

Otto English @ottoenglish.bsky.social · 1d

Over at the Daily Telegraph, they're scratching their heads as to why the former mining and steel producinv city of Gliwice in Poland is now 45% more prosperous than Darlington... and why it has new shiny infrastructure... without mentioning EU funds for urban and regional development...

Martin McKee @martinmckee.bsky.social · 1d

Yes, it’s about government decision making. She’s getting enough (entirely unjustified) criticism so no need to invite more by straying from remit. It’s an enormous task as it is (I reckon I’ve watched about 1/3 of hearings and read a fraction of evidence) so I’m hugely impressed by what she’s done

Reposted by Martin McKee, Steve Peers, Wolfgang Huber

Otto English @ottoenglish.bsky.social · 1d

Martin McKee @martinmckee.bsky.social · 1d

Spot on analysis by Martin Wolf in @financialtimes.com on what is wrong with British economy and how successive governments have made it worse. Brexit disaster, failed regional policies, now attacks on universities. And inevitably, Farage features prominently, not in a good way

Martin McKee @martinmckee.bsky.social · 2d

That’s not its remit. See

covid19.public-inquiry.uk/wp-content/u...

covid19.public-inquiry.uk

Martin McKee @martinmckee.bsky.social · 2d

As we also wrote at the time

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...

Are Populist Leaders Creating the Conditions for the Spread of COVID-19? Comment on "A Scoping Review of Populist Radical Right Parties’ Influence on Welfare Policy and its Implications for Population Health in Europe"

Do populist leaders contribute to the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)? While all governments have struggled to respond to the pandemic, it is now becoming clear that some political leaders have performed much better than others. Among ...

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Martin McKee @martinmckee.bsky.social · 2d

And here (plus quite a few others) and see also my evidence to module 7 of the Inquiry

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32766544/

The resilience of Taiwan's health system to address the COVID-19 pandemic - PubMed

The resilience of Taiwan's health system to address the COVID-19 pandemic

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Martin McKee @martinmckee.bsky.social · 2d

And here

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32425281/

12 Lessons learned from the management of the coronavirus pandemic - PubMed

The Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 has spread rapidly since the first cases hit Wuhan, China at the end of 2019, and has now landed in almost every part of the world. By mid-February 2020, China, South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, and - to some extent - Japan began to contain and control the spread of the viru …

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Martin McKee @martinmckee.bsky.social · 2d

We did that too

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32979936/

Lessons learnt from easing COVID-19 restrictions: an analysis of countries and regions in Asia Pacific and Europe - PubMed

The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented global crisis. Many countries have implemented restrictions on population movement to slow the spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 and prevent health systems from becoming overwhelmed; some have instituted full or partial lockdowns. How …

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Martin McKee @martinmckee.bsky.social · 2d

Indeed, as we did (and these are just 2 of our early published papers with Italian colleagues, which take time to appear in print). We heard their warnings very clearly but U.K. government didn’t.

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...

How the Italian NHS Is Fighting Against the COVID-19 Emergency

An official website of the United States government

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Reposted by Stephan Lewandowsky, Alastair H. Leyland, Elizabeth Stokoe , and 3 more Stephan Lewandowsky, Alastair H. Leyland, Elizabeth Stokoe, Martin Paul Eve, Ruairidh Milne, Christina Pagel

Martin McKee @martinmckee.bsky.social · 2d

Powerful piece by @drrachelclarke.com on the COVID inquiry. Those who say it’s easy to be wise in hindsight are being utterly disingenuous. Many of us spoke out at the time, and it’s in the public record.
@independentsage.bsky.social

observer.co.uk/news/nationa...

I’ll never forget the horror of the Covid wards | The Observer

observer.co.uk

Martin McKee @martinmckee.bsky.social · 3d

Frankly mystified by this moaning by companies in Northern Ireland that they can’t get cars made in GB. Do they really think no-one in the EU makes cars? And all they have to do is drive them across the border.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Brexit: New models from Vauxhall, Renault, Citroen, Peugeot and Jaguar Land Rover 'may not be sold in NI'

From January new cars registered in Northern Ireland will have to have an

www.bbc.co.uk

Reposted by Martin McKee

Covid-19 Bereaved Families For Justice UK @cbffjuk.bsky.social · 4d

We are calling for all taxpayer-funded support for Boris Johnson, as a former PM, to be withdrawn.

Bereaved families should not be expected to fund the lifestyle of the man whose decisions led to the deaths of our loved ones.

Sign our petition: www.change.org/STOPFUNDINGJ...

Sign the Petition

End Publicly Funded Privileges For Boris Johnson Following Covid Inquiry

www.change.org

Reposted by Nicola J. Cooper

Martin McKee @martinmckee.bsky.social · 4d

So much of the UK’s steady decline post war can be explained by how easy it is for some people to fail upwards. Some spectacular examples with COVID and Brexit - often the same people in both. And easily identifiable by the frequency of their appearance on BBC Radio 4 Today programme

Reposted by Martin McKee, Gerald Friedman

Rachel Maddow @maddow.bsky.social · 5d

www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

Martin McKee @martinmckee.bsky.social · 5d

At least 20,000. We estimated a higher figure, but accept that small differences in models can give different results. It was a lot

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35421094/

Estimating the effects of lockdown timing on COVID-19 cases and deaths in England: A counterfactual modelling study - PubMed

Our modelling supports the claim that the relatively late introduction of social distancing and lockdown measures likely increased the scale, severity, and duration of the first wave of COVID-19 in England. Our results highlight the importance of acting swiftly to minimise the spread of an infectiou …

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Reposted by John Drury, Elizabeth Stokoe, Christina Pagel

Martin McKee @martinmckee.bsky.social · 5d

8/ Obviously it's easy to be wise after the event, but everything we said at the time is on our web site for others to judge
independentsage.org

Independent SAGE – Independent scientific advice on the COVID-19 crisis, for the UK government and public.

Independent SAGE: Independent scientific advice on the COVID-19 crisis, for the UK government and public.

independentsage.org

Reposted by Martin McKee

Sushipink @sushipink.bsky.social · 5d

Thanks again to you & all @independentsage.bsky.social-i don't know if it's possible to measure how many lives you saved, but when the call came you all answered it, and provided such a vital beacon for so many at such a dark time. Thank you all @chrischirp.bsky.social @profstevegriffin.bsky.social

Martin McKee @martinmckee.bsky.social · 5d

7/Data and Preparedness
Inquiry: Improve real-time, equality-disaggregated data; strengthen modelling capacity; pre-design dashboards and taskforce structures.
IS: Repeatedly highlighted data gaps (ethnicity, disability); called for transparent modelling and scenario planning.

Martin McKee @martinmckee.bsky.social · 5d

6/Governance
Inquiry: Recommends standing 4-nations forum; clear transition from COBR to long-term structures; inclusive, accountable decision-making; address toxic culture in govt.
IS: Called for collaborative, respectful four-nations approach; criticised politicisation and lack of coordination.

Reposted by John Drury, Christina Pagel

Martin McKee @martinmckee.bsky.social · 5d

5/Social & Economic Harms
Inquiry: Critiques unclear messaging (Stay Alert); recommends transparent, accessible campaigns; integrate behavioural science.
IS: Advocated clear, consistent messaging; criticised confusing slogans; promoted behavioural insights and ventilation messaging early.

Martin McKee @martinmckee.bsky.social · 5d

4/Scientific advice
Inquiry: Broaden SAGE participation; maintain UK-wide expert register; include devolved reps from outset; provide feedback loops to advisory groups.
IS: Criticised narrow networks and lack of diversity; called for multidisciplinary input and devolved engagement.

Reposted by Christina Pagel

Martin McKee @martinmckee.bsky.social · 5d

3/Early action
Inquiry: Criticises “too little, too late”; recommends acting earlier and harder even with imperfect evidence; formal contingency plans for leadership continuity.
IS: Urged early lockdowns, circuit breakers, and strong NPIs; warned against delays and optimism bias.

Martin McKee @martinmckee.bsky.social · 5d

2/Transparency
Inquiry: Calls for publication of scientific, economic, social advice; clear communication that science informs but does not dictate policy; accessible formats
IS: Formed in response to lack of transparency; advocated publication of SAGE minutes, membership, & modelling assumptions.

Reposted by Brigitte Nerlich, John Drury, Nicola J. Cooper , and 5 more Brigitte Nerlich, John Drury, Nicola J. Cooper, Scott L. Greer, Dina Balabanova, Elizabeth Stokoe, Ruairidh Milne, Christina Pagel

Martin McKee @martinmckee.bsky.social · 5d

1/ How does the COVID Inquiry's Module 2 report align with what we said in @independentsage.bsky.social at the time? A 🧵on Transparency, Early & Decisive Action, Scientific Advice, Integration of Social & Economic Harms, Communication and Behavioural Science, Governance, Data and Preparedness

Martin McKee @martinmckee.bsky.social · 6d

Why do the names Ribbentrop, Molotov, and Chamberlain keep coming into my mind?

www.theguardian.com/world/2025/n...

US and Russian officials draft plan to end Ukraine war based on capitulation from Kyiv

It is unclear if Trump administration backs deal that would mean Kyiv giving up territory and slashing size of military

www.theguardian.com

Reposted by Martin McKee

Alexander Clarkson @aphclarkson.bsky.social · 6d

🤷‍♀️

Martin McKee @martinmckee.bsky.social · 7d

Might it have been an idea for UK Labour to wait a few days for Danish local election results before adopting an even more extreme version of their migration policy? If Copenhagen is anything to go by, London could see a major surge by Greens. People chose to live in diverse cities for a reason

Europe Elects @europeelects.bsky.social · 7d

Denmark, Preliminary final election result:

Local election

A (S&D): 23.2% (-5.2)
V (RE): 17.9% (-3.3)
C (EPP): 12.7% (-2.5)
F (Greens/EFA): 11.1% (+3.5)
Ø (LEFT): 7.1% (-0.2)
O (PfE): 5.9% (+1.8)
I (EPP): 5.5% (+4.3)
B (RE): 5.4% (-0.2)
...

+/- vs. 2021 election result

➤ europeelects.eu/denmark

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