Highlights
- London and southeast England are below strict lockdown
- The lockdown will stay till the virus vaccine is completely rolled out: UK
- Health Secretary stated the predicament was “deadly serious”
London, United Kingdom:
Britain’s overall health minister warned Sunday that a strict lockdown imposed on London and southeast England could final for months simply because a new strain of the coronavirus was “out of control”.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced Saturday that millions have to cancel Christmas plans and remain at dwelling from Sunday morning simply because the new strain was spreading far more promptly.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock warned that the strict measures that have an effect on practically a third of England’s population could remain in spot till the virus vaccine is completely rolled out.
“We acted very quickly and decisively,” Hancock told Sky News, justifying the “stay at home” order, ban on household gatherings more than Christmas and closure of non-necessary shops.
“Unfortunately the new strain was out of control. We have got to get it under control.”
Around 16.4 million individuals entered the strictest “tier four” measures from Sunday, or 31 % of England’s population.
They are not permitted to hold household gatherings for Christmas, whilst in the rest of the nation a restricted quantity of households are permitted to mix on Christmas Day only, rather than the 5 days initially proposed.
Hancock stated the predicament was “deadly serious”.
“It’s going to be very difficult to keep it under control until we have the vaccine rolled out,” he stated, adding: “This is what we face over the next couple of months.”
The UK hopes to attain a figure of half a million vaccinations more than the weekend, the overall health minister stated.
London’s Metropolitan Police stated it would take action against these who “make reckless decisions that risk lives”.
Other UK regions also tightened their anti-virus measures in response.
Wales introduced a strict lockdown from Sunday, whilst Scotland banned travel to and from other UK regions for Christmas and announced it will double its police presence along the English border.
Both Scotland and Northern Ireland are to enter fresh lockdowns on December 26. Northern Ireland was to introduce further measures on Sunday.
Scientists initial found the new variant in a patient in September, Susan Hopkins of Public Health England told Sky News.
She stated that scientists in November discovered the new strain was behind a cluster of situations in Kent which spread into London and Essex and informed the government on December 11.
Public Health England then once again notified the government on Friday when modelling revealed the complete seriousness of the new strain, she stated.
She confirmed the figure offered by Johnson that the new virus strain could be 70 % more transmissible whilst saying this was an initial figure.
“I think 70 percent looks like a good number to land on at the moment,” she stated.
The virus has been discovered in all regions of England but in smaller numbers, Hopkins stated.
Hancock stated situations had also been identified in Australia and Europe.
Patrick Vallance, the government’s chief scientific adviser, stated on Saturday that the new strain contained 23 variations, like to the way the virus binds to human cells and enters cells.
Simon Clarke, Associate Professor in Cellular Microbiology at the University of Reading, told AFP that the mutations have an effect on the “spike protein” that studs the virus and is targeted by vaccines.
“If we look at the changes that those mutations make to the spike protein, which is target for the vaccine, then we don’t think they are sufficient enough to change the effectiveness of the vaccine,” he stated.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan told Sky News that London now has the very same quantity of hospital patients with the virus as in the course of the peak of the initial wave in April. Cases have also grown quickly amongst these aged 10 to 19, he stated.
PM ‘scared’
The grave predicament prompted widespread criticism of the prime minister for promising final week not to “cancel Christmas.”
“Not much was understood about this mutant virus. But that uncertainty should have been enough for the PM to see that then was the time to call off Christmas,” wrote The Sunday Mirror weekly.
Opposition Labour Party leader Keir Starmer accused Johnson of becoming scared of taking unpopular choices.
London’s Oxford Street is normally packed with Christmas shoppers but was practically deserted on Sunday.
Some passers-by stated they backed the measures.
“It was necessary to do it before and making wild promises hasn’t helped the situation at all,” stated David, a 59-year-old working in insurance coverage.
But Richard Charles, a 32-year-old service market worker, known as the move overly rushed.
“It shouldn’t be some sort of diktat that happens overnight,” he stated.
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