Shoppers walk down Oxford Street amid the coronavirus outbreak in London.
London:
London will move to the highest level of coronavirus restrictions due to concerns about the increase in the number of infections, the Health Minister announced on Monday.
The change from the British capital to “Level 3” from 0001 GMT on Wednesday means that theaters, pubs, restaurants and other entertainment venues will have to close, except for take away food.
People are not supposed to socialize with anyone outside their home, but they can gather in groups of up to six in public places outside.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said London had seen a “sharp increase” in daily cases and hospital admissions, and there was public health concern about a new strain of the coronavirus.
“This action is absolutely essential, not only to keep people safe, but because we have seen that early action can prevent further damage and long-term problems in the future,” he told parliament.
In some areas, cases are doubling every seven days, he said, warning: “It only takes a few duplications for the NHS (National Health Service) to be overwhelmed.”
Scientists have identified a “new variant” of the virus in southern England that may be causing infections to spread faster, Hancock added.
But he said: “There is currently nothing to suggest that it is more likely to cause severe cases and the latest clinical advice is that it is highly unlikely that it will not respond to a vaccine.”
London is currently at “Level 2”, which means that nonessential shops and services can be opened, but it currently has one of the highest infection rates in the country.
Level 3 or “very high alert” means that while bars, pubs and cafes can only offer takeaway food and drink, shops and hairdressers can remain open, as can schools.
However, several London boroughs will send the children home from Tuesday as a precautionary measure, after the government said last week it was concerned about the rising number of cases among high school-age children.
Testing of students ages 11 to 18 began Monday in the hardest hit areas.
The move to stricter measures is a further blow for companies that have already been hit by repeated restrictions this year and in the run-up to Christmas, normally their busiest time.
Parts of Essex, Kent and Hertfordshire counties, which border London, will also be located on Level 3.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan called the increase in cases “deeply concerning” but warned Prime Minister Boris Johnson that the move would be “catastrophic” for pubs, bars and art venues.
On Friday, the “R number” in London indicating how many other people someone will infect with the virus was between 0.9 and 1.1, according to the government website.
More than 201,000 cases have been registered in the capital and more than 7,000 people have died in the hospital.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is posted from a syndicated channel.)
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