Plans to ease UK lockdown unlikely to be announced this week
Downing Street has quashed suggestions that Boris Johnson will this week outline how the government plans to ease its coronavirus social distancing measures.
Multiple media outlets said this morning that Johnson was drawing up plans for the next stage of the coronavirus lockdown and would set out the next steps by Friday.
However, the Prime Minister’s official spokesman today indicated that it was unlikely any announcement would take place this week.
He said the government was still focussed on 7 May, when the current stage of lockdown is set to be reviewed.
“We set out that we will revenue social distancing measures by 7 May and the government is focussed on that date,” he said.
Cabinet ministers have consistently said the lockdown would only be eased when a series of five tests have been passed.
They are:
- The NHS can cope with the outbreak and will not be overloaded by new Covid-19 patients
- There is a “sustained and consistent” fall in the death rate
- The rate of infection has decreased to “manageable levels”
- Stocks of personal protective equipment (PPE) and coronavirus testing capacity can meet future demand
- The government is confident that easing the lockdown will not cause a second peak of infections
So far, it could be argued that the first four of the tests have been met as daily deaths and infections have begun to fall.
The Prime Minister’s spokesman said Downing Street would provide more information on what criterion must be filled for the fifth test later this week.
The Prime Minister said yesterday that the UK was approaching the end of the “first phase of this conflict”, but warned that lifting the lockdown too early would cause economic damage.
“Let me say directly also to British business, to the shopkeepers, to the entrepreneurs, to the hospitality sector, to everyone on whom our economy depends: I understand your impatience, I share your anxiety,” he said.
“We must also recognise the risk of a second spike, the risk of losing control of that virus and letting the reproduction rate go back over one, because that would mean not only a new wave of death and disease, but also an economic disaster.”
“I refuse to throw away all the effort, and the sacrifice of the British people and to risk a second major outbreak and huge loss of life, and the overwhelming of the NHS.”
Chief medical officer Chris Whitty said last week that some form of social distancing would need to be in place until a vaccine or effective drugs were available for Covid-19.
He said it was very unlikely for that to happen before the end of the year.