Boris Johnson disagrees for a UK-wide lockdown despite calls from advisors

via abc.net.au

Boris Johnson, British Prime Minister, has resisted calls for a short lockout of "circuit breakers" across England but says he has not rejected anything.

The UK Government has opted for a three-tier system of local actions this week in a rapidly increasing situation.

The area of Liverpool has become the first highest category in the country and may have required months of closure for bars, gyms, and other companies.

Mr. Johnson said that, in response to opposition leader sir Keir Starmer's request for temporary national lockdown, he would stick to that localized approach.

"The whole point is to seize this moment now to avoid the misery of another national lockdown," Mr Johnson told Parliament.

"We're going to do it — and I rule out nothing, of course, in combating the virus — but we are going to do it with the local, the regional approach that can drive down and will drive down the virus if it is properly implemented."

Critics of the British government say that a sharp national lockdown could do more than spread the economic burden fairly.

Sir Keir asked for a lockdown of 2 to 3 weeks, a recommendation this week supported by a study by a number of scientific advisers from Mr. Johnson who identified that this could save thousands of lives.

"Time for breaks is always optimal," the paper co-author of the government-wide pandemic modeling subgroup Graham Medley, a member of the government's Scientific Consultative Group on Emergences, and Matt Keeling, said.

"There are no good epidemiological reasons to delay the break."

Manchester refuses to call to the highest alert level

The Regional Government of Manchester on Wednesday refused to take the risk of coronavirus to the highest level by stating that infection and hospitalizations in the city were much lower than those in Liverpool.

The UK Government also indicated that it did not offer sufficient financial assistance to mitigate the economic impact of such a move.

"If the government continues to implement its current strategic approach, we believe that much of winter will be left in the north of England trapped in areas of Tier 3, with every damage to it," the Combined Authority for Greater Manchester said.

In Liverpool on Tuesday night, revelers were dancing and tingling in the streets as pubs closed before the tough new restrictions.

Social media showed the pictures of a police car, including a video, slowly moving around the crowd when party members hit the side of the car.

Mayor Joe Anderson of Liverpool wrote on Twitter: "These pictures disgrace our city, and it is unacceptable to attack our valiant police.

"These are 300 people in the hospital and 30 people dead weekly, our health service is cracking. This is why we are taking measures in level 3, "he said.

The UK has the tightest restrictions on Northern Ireland


The comment was made on Wednesday when Northern Ireland launched the strictest COVID-19 limitation in Britain, which slowed down the spread of the virus by closing schools, pubs, and restaurants.

The restrictions are for schools for two weeks and for pubs and restaurants for four weeks, although the services can continue to be taken away.

The announcement came after the talks in the power-sharing government from Tuesday night to Wednesday morning between the political parties in the area.

Prime Minister Arlene Foster told politicians at Belfast's Regional Assembly "this is not the time for a great deal of politics.

"Solutions now are the time."

England has the deadliest outbreak in Europe, with more than 43,000 deaths confirmed, and the highest infectious rate for Northern Ireland in the UK.

Since the beginning, the pandemic in Northern Ireland, in Wales, 960 in England, and 755 in Scotland, has recorded 1,156 cases of COVID-19 per 100,000 people.

 

Publish : 2020-10-14 15:56:00

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