[ad_1]
Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government has introduced a three-tier alert system to try and contain the disease, with some virus hot spots seeing domestic mixing bans and pub closures.
FILE: A woman wearing a mask as a precaution against the transmission of the new coronavirus walks next to a sign promoting social distancing on a street in Blackpool, Lancashire, on October 16, 2020. Image: AFP.
LONDON – An estimated 28 million people in England, more than half the population, are now living under strict restrictions imposed on Saturday as the country battles a surge in coronavirus cases.
The government of Prime Minister Boris Johnson has introduced a three-tier alert system to try to contain the disease, and in some virus hot spots, domestic mixing and closing pubs are prohibited.
Britain is the worst affected country in Europe, with more than 43,000 deaths out of almost 700,000 cases.
The latest measures prohibit indoor gatherings of people from different homes in the capital, London and other parts of England.
Johnson has for now ruled out imposing a total lockdown in a bid to prevent further damage to the economy, despite calls from his scientific advisers and the opposition Labor Party.
Instead, the government is taking localized measures to push for restrictions across England, where gatherings of more than six people are already banned and pubs and restaurants are required to close at 10pm.
In Northern Ireland, pubs and restaurants were closed on Fridays for a month, while the school holidays were extended to two weeks.
In Wales, people coming from areas with a high prevalence of the virus in other parts of the country have been banned from entry from Friday.
Download the EWN app on your iOS or Android device.
[ad_2]
