Boris Johnson has warned that he is ready to impose tighter coronavirus restrictions, as he admitted it was too early to know if the latest controls were having an impact.
In a televised press conference from 10 Downing Street, the prime minster said that defeating the disease will require the people of the UK to show “collective forbearance, common sense and willingness to make sacrifices for the safety of others”.
But he insisted that he did not believe the British people want to “throw in the sponge” by returning to their normal lives and letting the virus rip through the community.
With the latest figures showing daily infections in the UK close to the highest recorded at 7,108, with 71 deaths on Tuesday, Mr Johnson made clear that further restrictions to social and economic activity cannot be ruled out.
“If the evidence requires it, we will not hesitate to take further measures that would, I’m afraid, be more costly than the ones we have got in effect now,” he said.
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However, he cautioned against thinking that the danger from Covid-19 was greater now than at the height of the first wave in April and May. Although recorded infection rates are higher now, it was likely that more than 100,000 people caught it each day in the spring, with the vast majority not being detected.
The PM acknowledged that there was so far no clear evidence of an impact from his “rule of six” limit on the size of social gatherings, introduced a fortnight ago, or the 10pm curfew on pubs and restaurants imposed last week.
“I wish I could tell you tonight that the impact of this package has already begun to appear,” he said. “But it will take time to feed through.”
Rejecting calls to allow a return to normal life and rely on “herd immunity” to eventually provide protection, Mr Johnson said: “I know some people will think we should give up and let the virus take its course despite the huge loss of life that would potentially entail.
“I have to say I profoundly disagree. I don’t think that is what the British people want. I don’t think they want to throw in the sponge. They want to fight and defeat this virus and that is what we are going to do.”
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer called for an urgent review into the operation of local lockdowns, after it emerged that only Luton has been able to leave regionalised restrictions by getting infection numbers under control.
“When (the government) have introduced restrictions we have supported them, so we’ll look at whatever they put forward,” said Starmer.
“But it has to be part of a coherent strategy and I don’t see that strategy at the moment.
“There are 48 areas in local restrictions, and only one area – Luton – has come out of restrictions. So there needs to be an urgent review as to whether these local lockdowns are working in the way intended.”
Chief medical officer for England Professor Chris Whitty warned that the number of coronavirus patients in hospitals and intensive care is increasing.
He told the Downing Street press conference there was a “significant rise” in test positivity in the northeast and northwest of England, and the Yorkshire and Humber region.
And he said hospitalisation is rising, particularly in hotspots, though the figures remain “in a much lower level than at the beginning of April”.
But he said that despite the reopening of schools in early September, infection rates among school age children “are really not changing very much”.
Professor Whitty added: “We are pointing out that the direction of travel for both hospitals and intensive care is going in the wrong direction, particularly in these areas that have seen rapid increases in cases.”
The prime minister said he wanted to avoid another national lockdown.
“What we are not doing at the moment is going back to the situation we were in in March,” he said during the briefing at Downing Street.
“And, I really don’t want to do this.
“I don’t want to go back to a national lockdown where the overall guidance is stay at home, that is not what we are saying.
“We want to keep the economy moving.
“We want to keep young people, pupils in education.
“But the only way we can do that is if we all follow the guidance and depress the virus.”
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