[ad_1]
Boris Johnson’s chief scientific adviser has admitted that Britain does not have the coronavirus under control, as 71 more deaths raised the country’s official death toll from the virus to 42,143. Some 7,108 new cases were also confirmed in the UK on Tuesday.
At a press conference in Downing Street, Sir Patrick Vallance said that epidemics were doubling or halving.
“When things double, you see exponential growth and clearly there is rapid growth in some areas. And unfortunately, as we’ve seen, not only are cases increasing, but we’re already seeing an increase in deaths. So things are going in the wrong direction, ”he said.
“It’s very clear that rates are still going up and we don’t have this under control at the moment.”
Nearly a quarter of the British population is under some form of local coronavirus restrictions beyond national rules limiting social gatherings and pub and restaurant opening hours. But Johnson said more action could be taken as the number of people admitted to hospitals and intensive care units continues to rise.
“We will keep all measures under review. We really don’t want to get into the national stay-at-home blockade that we saw in March. That is not what we want to do. We believe that we can defeat it by other means, but we have to be attentive to what is happening and we will do it, “he said.
“We know that we can eliminate the virus because we did it before. We greatly reduced the number of deaths and greatly reduced transmission. “
Revolt avoided
Previously, the government prevented a conservative revolt by engaging with MPs demanding a vote on all future coronavirus restrictions. Health Secretary Matt Hancock told MPs that they will be given a vote when major measures are introduced nationwide against the coronavirus.
“For meaningful national measures, with effect throughout England or the whole of the UK, we will consult Parliament; Whenever possible, we will vote before such regulations take effect. But of course, responding to the virus means that the government must act quickly when necessary and we cannot delay the urgent regulations that are needed to control the virus and save lives, ”he said.
Graham Brady, chairman of the 1922 Committee and leader of the secondary rebellion, said Hancock had demonstrated “a genuine understanding of what has gone wrong in the past and a real promise of transparency and compromise in the future.”
Hancock’s concession came after Commons chair Lindsay Hoyle accused the government of treating parliament with contempt for the coronavirus.
“The way the government has exercised its powers to make secondary legislation during this crisis has been totally unsatisfactory. Too often, important statutory instruments have been published within hours of their entry into force, and some explanations of why important measures have entered into force before they can be brought before this House have not been convincing; this shows a total disregard for the House, ”he said.
“The government must make greater efforts to prepare measures more quickly, so that this House can debate and decide on the most significant measures as soon as possible.”
[ad_2]