LONDON (Reuters) – British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Saturday imposed tighter coronavirus controls on millions of people in England and drastically reduced plans to ease restrictions over Christmas, trying to curb a new, more infectious strain of the virus .
The number of cases in England has risen in the last two weeks due to a variant of the virus that scientists said is up to 70% more communicable. Johnson said the government needed to take urgent action.
“It’s with a very heavy heart that I have to tell you that we can’t continue with Christmas as planned,” Johnson said at a news conference. “I sincerely believe there is no open alternative.”
London and the south-east of England, about a third of the English population, are currently at the highest level of a three-level rule system, but will now be at a new level 4 level.
People in this category will have to stay at home, except for essential reasons such as work, and will close non-essential trade as well as leisure and indoor entertainment. The social mix will be limited to meeting another person in an outdoor space.
Johnson had said on Friday that he hoped England would not need a third blockade after Christmas.
He had also resisted calls to change plans to ease restrictions for five days during the holiday season and allow three separate homes to meet inside. He said Wednesday it would be “frankly inhumane” to ban Christmas.
However, those who are now at level 4 will not be able to mingle with others during Christmas. And everyone else will now only be allowed to see friends and family for a day.
The new rules will take effect from Saturday at midnight.
Like other European countries, Britain is struggling to contain the virus. Johnson’s action comes after concern about the increase in cases, caused by the new infectious strain of the virus – VUI202012 / 01.
It is the infection rate that worries the government and its advisers.
“There is no evidence to suggest that it is more lethal or causes more serious illness,” Johnson said. “Likewise, there is no evidence to suggest that the vaccine is less effective against the new variant.”
English medical director Chris Whitty said authorities had alerted the World Health Organization and continued to analyze available data to improve their understanding of the new strain.
Britain reported 27,052 new cases of COVID-19 and 534 deaths on Saturday. The “R” reproduction number is estimated to be between 1.1 and 1.2, which means that the number of cases increases rapidly.
“Not acting decisively now will mean more suffering,” Jeremy Farrar, director of the Wellcome Trust and a member of the government’s Scientific Advisory Group (SAGE), said on Twitter.
Britain has been one of the most affected European countries: with more than 67,000 coronavirus-related deaths and more than 2 million reported cases.
Additional reports by Elizabeth Piper and William Schomberg; Edited by Catherine Evans and Frances Kerry