UK could start easing virus lockdown next week, says PM
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Wednesday he could get started to help ease a nationwide coronavirus lockdown in a few days, but warned he'd do nothing that could risk a fresh surge of cases.
He was speaking your day after Britain overtook Italy to become the worst-hit country in Europe, with more than 32,000 deaths linked to Covid-19 -- behind only the United States in the global rankings.
Johnson said that "every death is a tragedy", calling the statistics "appalling", but said there is not yet enough data to create international comparisons.
In particular, he said he "bitterly regrets" the deaths in care homes, which stand at more than 6,000, but added that there had been a "palpable improvement" in the last few days.
The wider death rate is coming down, six weeks following the government imposed stay-at-home orders to stem the rate of infection, and the lockdown measures are up for review on Thursday.
Speaking in parliament for the very first time since he himself was hospitalised with coronavirus, Johnson said the federal government would review the info and he would lay out the next steps on Sunday.
"We'll want if we are able to to get going with a few of these measures on Monday. I believe it would be a very important thing if people had a concept of what's coming," he said.
However, the federal government has previously stressed that measures would only be lifted gradually.
Johnson repeated on Wednesday: "It would be an economic disaster because of this country if we were to pursue a relaxation of the measures now in such a way as to trigger another spike."
It was the very first time Johnson had appeared at his weekly prime minister's question time (PMQs) inside your home of Commons since March 25 -- two days later he announced he previously tested positive for coronavirus.
The 55-year-old was later admitted to hospital, spending three nights in intensive care.
He returned to work the other day, but missed PMQs on April 29 after his partner Carrie Symonds gave birth to their first child together.
Quizzing the premier for the very first time, new opposition Labour leader Keir Starmer, who was simply elected on April 4, highlighted Britain's death toll.
Medical ministry says 29,427 persons with coronavirus have died up to now, although broader official data puts the number above 32,000 -- including 107 healthcare personnel and 29 care staff.
"Can the prime minister reveal how on earth achieved it come to this?" Starmer asked in the largely empty chamber, where most MPs joined by videolink.
Johnson replied: "Every death is a tragedy and he's to draw attention to the appalling statistics, not simply in this country but around the world."
He unveiled a fresh goal to attain 200,000 coronavirus tests a day by the end of May, double the 100,000 target reached only the other day.
The government is currently trialling a "track-and-trace" system using a dedicated phone iphone app that it hopes will be able to identify localised outbreaks of coronavirus.
"A fantastic testing regime will be absolutely critical to our long-term monetary recovery," Johnson said.
Starmer has accusation the federal government of being too slow to react to the outbreak, but Johnson said his focus now was suppressing the condition.
However, he admitted his own "frustration" about the continued difficulties in getting protective equipment to healthcare staff.
Separately, among the top scientists advising the federal government on the coronavirus outbreak resigned on Tuesday after breaking lockdown rules.
Professor Neil Ferguson, an epidemiologist at Imperial College of London, said he previously made an "error of judgement" after media reports that he previously allowed his married lover to go to him at home. -- AFP
