London: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will tell people on Tuesday to work from home whenever possible and cut bar and restaurant hours to tackle a second wave of rapidly spreading coronavirus, but the opposition accused him of losing. the control.
With millions across the UK already under some form of COVID-19 restriction, Johnson will toughen up measures in England while pausing before another full lockdown like the one he imposed in March, according to his office and ministers.
Johnson will hold emergency meetings with ministers, address parliament at 1130 GMT and then speak to the nation at 1900 GMT after government scientists warned that the death rate would skyrocket without urgent action.
Just weeks after urging people to start returning to their workplaces, Johnson will now advise them to stay home if they can, according to his office and ministers. It will also order all pubs, bars, restaurants and other hospitality venues in England to begin closing at 10pm starting Thursday.
“There is going to be a shift in emphasis. If it is possible for people to work from home, we will encourage them to do so,” Cabinet office minister Michael Gove told Sky News.
The new curbs will restrict the hospitality sector to table service only, though Gove said he wanted those who couldn’t work from home, such as in manufacturing, construction and retail, to continue working from safe workplaces with COVID.
The schools will also remain open, he said.
SCIENTIFIC WARNING
It was unclear if the measures would be enough to tackle Britain’s second wave, which government scientists warned could reach 50,000 new cases a day by mid-October.
Opposition Labor leader Keir Starmer lashed out at Johnson’s leadership, especially over test failures. “Instead of controlling it, the government has lost control … Our testing system collapsed just when we needed it most,” he said.
The UK already has the highest official death toll from COVID-19 in Europe, and the fifth largest in the world, while it is borrowing record amounts to pump emergency money through the ailing economy.
Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey warned that the “very unfortunate” escalation of COVID-19 cases threatened the economic outlook and said the central bank was carefully looking at how it could further support the economy.
Bar operator JD Wetherspoon said it could cut 400 to 450 jobs at sites at six airports, including London’s Heathrow and Gatwick, due to the large drop in passengers.
This story was published from a news agency feed with no changes to the text. Only the title has been changed.
.
