[ad_1]
LONDON: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will hold a press conference on COVID-19 on Wednesday (September 30) as he deals with a second wave of the rapidly spreading COVID-19 outbreak and mounting anger on his own. party by the restrictions imposed on citizens.
Britain, which has the worst official death toll in Europe, reported 7,143 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday, the highest number to date, and 71 deaths, the worst daily death toll since July.
Johnson, who has had to apologize after confusing local shutdown rules, faces mounting anger within his own Conservative Party over the most severe restrictions in peacetime history that are destroying swaths of the economy.
LEE: 1 million deaths from COVID-19 ‘an agonizing milestone’: UN chief
“The price we will not pay is that we will not give up parliamentary democracy and the rule of law to combat this virus; these things are too important,” said Steve Baker, a prominent rebel lawmaker for the party.
“We need the pre-approval of measures, important measures at the national level and indeed at the regional level that take away people’s freedoms,” Baker told the BBC before a debate in the House of Commons on the COVID-19 measures of Johnson.
Large swaths of the UK and tens of millions of citizens are subject to local restrictions introduced to try to curb the second wave of COVID-19 infections. The country has reported more than 42,072 deaths from the virus, the fifth highest number of deaths in the world.
As Johnson grapples with COVID-19 and dissent in the party ranks, the economic damage was exposed: The UK economy contracted by a record 19.8 percent in the second quarter of 2020, more than any other. major advanced economy.
The UK is borrowing more than at any time since World War II, while unemployment is on the rise and some companies have complained that Johnson’s restrictions are killing their livelihoods.
READ: 10 arrested when police break up London anti-blockade rally
Johnson, who became seriously ill earlier this year with COVID-19, says the virus must be controlled otherwise death and the economic damage it will inflict will be much more serious.
But a series of government missteps, lack of compliance and growing fatigue with regulations have led to growing concern – and even some confusion – about COVID-19 restrictions.
CHECK THIS: Our comprehensive coverage of the coronavirus outbreak and its developments
Download our app or subscribe to our Telegram channel for the latest updates on the coronavirus outbreak: https://cna.asia/telegram
