Johnson expected to order lockdown for England as COVID-19 cases top 1 million

London, October 31

Prime Minister Boris Johnson is anticipated to order England again right into a nationwide lockdown because the United Kingdom handed the milestone of 1 million COVID-19 circumstances on Saturday and scientists warned the virus was spreading sooner than their worst predictions.

The United Kingdom, which has the largest official dying toll in Europe from COVID-19, is grappling with greater than 20,000 new coronavirus circumstances a day and scientists have warned the “worst case” situation of 80,000 useless might be exceeded.

As Johnson ready for a swiftly organized information convention in Downing Street after information of the lockdown leaked to native media, the federal government mentioned whole confirmed COVID-19 circumstances had risen 21,915 up to now day to 1,011,660.

The information convention was delayed and was now anticipated to happen at 6:30 p.m. (1830 GMT), a supply mentioned.

Johnson held a cupboard assembly on Saturday after authorities scientists warned the outbreak was going within the flawed path and that motion was wanted to halt the unfold of the virus if households had been to have any hope of gathering at Christmas.

The Times newspaper mentioned Johnson may announce that solely important outlets, nurseries, faculties and universities will stay open in a month-long lockdown. Johnson’s workplace declined to remark.

Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland run their very own pandemic insurance policies.

Johnson was criticised by political opponents for transferring too slowly into the primary nationwide lockdown, which stretched from March 23 to July 4. He fell in poor health with COVID in late March and was hospitalised in early April.

Europe lockdown

The measures will carry England into alignment with France and Germany by imposing nationwide restrictions virtually as extreme as those that drove the worldwide economic system earlier this 12 months into its deepest recession in generations.

A nationwide lockdown would symbolize a dramatic change of coverage for the prime minister, who has been saying for months that it’s going to not be essential.

Two weeks in the past he defended his technique of a patchwork of native restrictions by saying he needed to keep away from the “misery of a national lockdown”. Currently, areas of England are topic to one in every of three tiers of coronavirus restrictions.

Calum Semple, professor of outbreak drugs on the University of Liverpool and member of the federal government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE), mentioned the second wave of COVID-19 was a actuality.

“And, unlike the first wave, where we had a national lockdown which protected huge swathes of society, this outbreak is now running riot across all age groups,” he advised the BBC.

A brand new lockdown would heap extra stress on finance minister Rishi Sunak and the Bank of England to extend their already big help for the UK economic system, the world’s sixth-biggest. The economic system slumped a report 20% within the spring and has been struggling to take care of its restoration.

So far the United Kingdom has reported 46,555 COVID-19 deaths – outlined as these dying inside 28 days of a positive test. A broader measure of these with COVID-19 on their dying certificates places the toll at 58,925. — Reuters