New and strict Covid measures go into effect in Britain

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In Great Britain, a series of strict measures have come into force to try to stop the spread of a new strain of Covid-19.

London and much of south-east England, as well as all of Wales, have entered a new set of Level Four restrictions. Movement to and from these areas has been restricted and travel abroad for all but work reasons is effectively prohibited.

Scotland has also banned all travel to and from the country from other parts of the UK.

Meanwhile, a government spokesman here has said there are no changes to the government’s travel advice to Britain, following recently announced restrictions there.

The British prime minister effectively canceled Christmas for nearly 18 million people in London, the south-east and the east of England, as the region was put under a new two-week lockdown starting today.

Boris Johnson said people should “raise a glass to those who are not there”, knowing that celebrating Christmas apart this year means there will be “a better chance that they will be there next year.”

Under the new Tier 4 rules, non-essential stores, as well as gyms, movie theaters, casinos, and hair salons, must remain closed and people are limited to meeting another person from another household in a public outdoor space .

Those on Level 4 were told not to travel outside the region, while those outside were warned not to visit.

In the rest of England, Christmas relaxation has been drastically reduced, and households have been allowed to meet for just one day, on Christmas Day itself, rather than the five days previously planned.

Scotland and Wales are also restricting Christmas “bubbles” to a single day, while Northern Irishmen have been asked to consider forming a bubble for Christmas Day only.

Wales has also mirrored Level 4 restrictions in England by bringing alert level four measures forward to today, while Scotland has said its travel ban with the rest of the UK will now remain in effect throughout the holiday period.

At a 10th press conference yesterday, Johnson said he was taking the measurements “regretfully,” but scientific evidence, suggesting that the new strain was up to 70% more transmissible than the original variant, had left him no choice. . .

“Without action, the evidence suggests that infections would increase, hospitals would be overwhelmed and many thousands more would lose their lives,” he said.

“Yes, Christmas this year will be different, very different. We are sacrificing the opportunity to see our loved ones this Christmas to have a better chance to protect their lives, so that we can see them next Christmas.”

The announcements sparked a rush to London train stations and as of 7pm yesterday, there were no tickets available online from various London stations, including Paddington, Kings Cross and Euston.

Images posted on social media showed large crowds at St Pancras station waiting to board the trains to Leeds.

The announcements were a blow to many businesses, particularly retailers hoping to rebound some pre-Christmas sales at the end of a torrid year in which they had faced repeated closure orders.

There was also anger among some Conservative MPs after weeks of growing discontent over the return of increasingly stringent controls.

Mark Harper, the leader of the Covid Recovery Group of Tory MPs, demanded the repeal of Parliament so that MPs could debate and vote on the changes for England.

“Since the three-tier system and initial Christmas family rules were expressly authorized by the House of Commons, these changes must also be put to a vote in the House of Commons as soon as possible, even if it means a repeal of the House of Commons. Camera”. he said.

However, the chairman of the board of the British Medical Association, Dr Chaand Nagpaul, welcomed the announcement that he said would save lives and help health services cope with “incredible demand”.

The dramatic move came after scientists from the New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threat Advisory Group (Nervtag) concluded that the mutant strain identified by Public Health laboratories in England at Porton Down was spreading more rapidly.

The prime minister was briefed on the group’s findings in a meeting with the Covid O Committee ministers on Friday night, and the cabinet approved the new regulations in a conference call yesterday.

The United Kingdom also informed the World Health Organization of its findings.

Sir Patrick Vallance, the government’s chief scientific adviser, said the new variant, known as VUI 202012/01, was thought to have originated in London or Kent in September.

In November, it accounted for 28% of new infections in the region, and by early December, it had risen to 60%.

“This new variant is not only fast moving but is becoming the dominant variant,” he said.

However, he said there is no evidence that it causes a more serious disease than the parent virus, while the scientists’ “working assumption” was that the vaccines that had been developed should be able to treat it.

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