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The UK faces another national lockdown “in no time” unless people comply with the new COVID-19 restrictions, a government adviser told Sky News.
Peter Openshaw, professor of experimental medicine at Imperial College London, told Sophy Ridge on Sunday that the public “must act fast” to stop the spread of coronavirus.
He said: “I think everyone agrees that we really need to act very fast now to prevent this from growing exponentially and that’s the main point, is that we have to act fast because it is much more difficult to get this kind of thing under control if it is delayed. even a few days.
“This is potentially going to be quite dangerous right now at this particular time.”
Professor Peter Openshaw warned that Britain must act now to avoid a second lockdown.
Professor Openshaw, an expert in respiratory medicine, highlighted the importance of data suggesting the The virus’s reproduction rate (R) has increased to 1.7.
When asked about the new “rule of six” and whether the government needs to consider more restrictions, including more work from home or curfews, he said “it would cause us pain and suffering to return to some degree of confinement.”
He added: “But if we don’t do this now we are going to be back on hard lock in no time, that’s the only way we have at the moment to control this, but there are other things on the horizon.”
“We have to act fast. This is not a game. We shouldn’t be trying match as hard as we can in the run-up to Monday’s close.
“We should all think about what we can do to stop the spread.”
When asked when he thinks a vaccine might be available, he said he is hopeful there will be one for the winter of 2021/22.
Professor Openshaw said: “I think we will probably have positive results from at least one of these vaccine trials by Christmas.”
“That means that with a rapid expansion we could have a rapid vaccine schedule for the next nine months.”
Attorney General Robert Buckland said another national shutdown remains a “nuclear option.”
But he told Sky News that the government wants to take a “series of measures”, including local restrictions and improved testing, to avoid a second shutdown.
Buckland was questioned about the “rule of six” that will limit how many people can meet in England from tomorrow.
Attorney General Robert Buckland says another blockade is still a ‘nuclear option’
He said that “while social occasions are important”, “they must come second” so Britain can prioritize schools, universities and the economy.
The minister added: “With the good sense of the British people we can strike a balance.”
