Boris Johnson hits England with a complete blockade as the NHS faces a deep coveted crisis

Photographer: Simon Dawson / Bloomberg

Boris Johnson imposed a third coronavirus blockade across England, closing schools and ordering the public to stay home, amid warnings that the National Health Service is at risk of being overwhelmed.

Emergency measures will begin immediately and last at least until February 15, potentially devastating for retail and hospitality, which threaten to push the economy into a double-dip recession as doctors try to control the pandemic.

In a televised speech to the nation, the prime minister insisted he had no choice but to shut down all social activities, education and non-essential travel in the face of a sudden and severe rise in infections. He took similar steps to the rest of the UK, he said.

The government now plans to launch a vaccination program, reaching 13.9 million vulnerable people and carers by mid-February so that restrictions can begin to be lifted.

“Our hospitals are under more pressure from Covid than at any time since the start of the pandemic,” Johnson told the broadcast. “With most of the country already under extreme measures, it is clear that we need to do more to control this new variant while our vaccines are deployed.”

Police fines

Police will have legal powers to use fines and dispersal orders to enforce the rules. It will be recalled that Parliament will debate the measures on Wednesday, but the regulation will become law on Tuesday, officials said.

The prime minister was forced to act after data showed new infections rising by more than 50,000 a day and more people in hospital than at the peak of the virus in April.

On January 4, there were 26,626 patients To the hospital with Covid-19, a 30% increase in a week, which the government blames for an increase in infections from a new strain of the virus that is spreading faster.

Johnson’s Third Covid Lockdown Rules for England

Everyone should stay home unless they are doctors or other key workers who cannot work from home People can only leave home to buy essential supplies or exercise, ideally only once a day All primary and secondary schools and colleges will close from Tuesday and move to online teaching; exams will not continue as normal this summer; the nurseries remain open College students should not return to campus, but study from home Households cannot be mixed for purely social reasons, nowhere All non-essential restaurants, bars and shops will remain closed unless they sell takeaway food. The sale of takeaway alcohol in restaurants is prohibited Essential retailers such as supermarkets and pharmacies will remain open Bubbles of support and care of children: in which households are related Until help each other: you can continue

Johnson resisted pressure from opposition scientists and lawmakers to shut down the entire country in December. He downplayed plans to allow families to mingle over Christmas, but insisted he wanted to avoid national curbs like the ones seen in March, opting to keep a system of regional levels in place.

But medical officials from the UK’s four nations warned on Monday that the health service may not be able to cope without urgent action now. They issued a statement two hours before the prime minister’s announcement, saying the NHS was already “under immense pressure”.

Overwhelmed

“We are not confident that the NHS will be able to handle a continued increase in cases and, without further action, there is a material risk that the NHS in several areas will be overwhelmed over the next 21 days,” they said in a statement. national alert now the level is at the highest level five. “Cases are rising almost everywhere.”

Scotland previously announced a closure from midnight. “We are now in a race between the vaccine and the virus,” Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon said as he ordered the Scots to stay home and schools remain closed.

Johnson has made keeping schools open for face-to-face learning a priority for his government, but scientists warned last month that they should close to stop the spread of the virus. Although children rarely suffer from the disease, they can infect their families after catching it from their friends.

It is a far cry from the government’s optimism in early December, when vaccines were described as the “scientific cavalry” that came to the rescue.

On Monday, the prime minister insisted he wanted to vaccinate about 14 million elderly and vulnerable people and their carers, including front-line doctors, by mid-February.

“If we can vaccinate all of these groups, we will have eliminated a large number of people from the path of the virus,” Johnson said. “And, of course, this will allow us to end many of the restrictions we have endured for so long.”

But there will be a “time lag” between vaccinating patients and pressure on NHS relief, Johnson said, adding that he is “cautious about the timing.”

The government’s dilemma has been to try to balance attempts to stop the spread of the virus against the need to keep businesses and businesses open to protect the economy, which has already suffered its deepest recession since the Great Frost of 1709. .

A double-dip recession seems increasingly inevitable as a result of the new blockade. Prior to Johnson’s announcement, most economists expected the UK economy to grow somewhat this quarter.

Four weeks of school closures could cost up to 3% of GDP, according to a tweet from Ludovic Subran, chief economist at Allianz SE. Bloomberg Economics estimates that up to 6% of European labor supply could be affected by the narrowing of childcare options.

– With the assistance of Alex Morales, Lucy Meakin and Joe Mayes

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