IN A FRESH bid to stem the rise of coronavirus, England is to go into a new lockdown effective from tomorrow, and schools will move to online learning with immediate effect. They are not due to reopen until after half-term.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson addressed the nation at 8pm on Monday, January 4, to announce the changes.
He said that the new strain of coronavirus was thought to 70% more transmittable than the previous strain.
“The government is once again instructing you to stay at home,” he said.
You may only leave home if you cannot work from home, for exercise, medical reasons.
Those who are clinically vulnerable will be asked to shield again.
“Since the pandemic began last year the whole United Kingdom has been engaged in a national fight,” he began, saying that progress had been frustrated by the new variant strain of covid, which was putting pressure on hospitals.
For schools, exams will be cancelled and Mr Johnson promised alternative arrangements would be made.
He ended his address in the same way that he ended his announcement of the first lockdown: stay at home, protect the NHS, save lives.
The new lockdown comes hours after Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced that Scotland would also move into lockdown measures from midnight tonight.
She added that schools would aim to reopen for physical lessons from February 1, and that schools and nurseries will be the first places that the Scottish government wanted to reopen. As part of its preparations, it will look to vaccinate teachers and childcare staff as a priority.
Earlier today, Professor John Edmunds, a member of the government body SAGE, told BBC Radio 4’s PM programme that significant extra measures were needed to help stop the NHS from being overwhelmed from patients with Covid.
“Unfortunately, we are going to have to take some really major additional measures, I can’t see any other way out of it,” he said.
And the UK’s chief medical officers have said that the alert level should move to its highest phase, level 5.
“Cases are rising almost everywhere, in much of the country driven by the new more transmissible variant. We are not confident that the NHS can handle a further sustained rise in cases and without further action there is a material risk of the NHS in several areas being overwhelmed over the next 21 days,” they said.
“Although the NHS is under immense pressure, significant changes have been made so people can still receive lifesaving treatment. It is absolutely critical that people still come forward for emergency care. If you require non-urgent medical attention, please contact your GP or call NHS 111.”
Labour party leader Sir Kier Starmer said that Covid-19 is out of control and the tier system isn’t working. He called on the vaccine roll-out to reach two million people a week this month and double that next month.
He added: “I’m afraid the closure of schools are now inevitable and that needs to be part of the national plan for restrictions. We need measures in place to protect working parents, to enable children to learn at home and a plan to get schools safely reopen.”
The speaker of the House of Commons has asked MPs not to physically come to Westminster for Wednesday’s recall session.
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