Sign up here for our daily coronavirus newsletter on what you need to know, and subscribe to our Covid-19 podcast for the latest news and analysis.
More than 1 million people in England now have coronavirus, the British government said, as medics race to vaccinate the most vulnerable against the rapidly spreading disease.
Rocket cases of the new virus strain mean that one in 50 people in England now has Covid-19, while one in 30 in London is infected, official results have shown.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson released the statistics when he vowed to speed up the government’s vaccination program, eventually lifting the latest exclusion. He said 23% of all 80s in England had received a dose of Covid-19 vaccine, which means some of those at greatest risk are starting to get the protection they need.
By mid-February, Johnson had pledged to vaccinate nearly 14 million people at the highest risk and underscore caregivers. He said 1.3 million people across the UK have already received the first of two shots.
But he indicated that there were still many months of restrictions ahead, saying that the current plans to end England’s national exclusion in mid-February were a big reservation, as many as possible. Chris Whitty, chief of the English medical officer, said the following winter measures could take place, adding: “We must not spoil ourselves, it just disappears with spring.”
Invisible Shield
The prime minister spoke at a news conference on Tuesday, a day after he placed the country in its third national exclusion since the pandemic began. The rest of Europe is also crumbling under the strain of an emerging pandemic, with Germany is fighting high infection rates and is having trouble introducing vaccines.
The new national restrictions in the UK threaten to push the economy into a double recession, which should lead Johnson’s government to announce another package emergency support for businesses worth more than $ 6.6 billion.
“You all want to be sure that we in government are now using every second of this closure to place the invisible shield around the elderly and vulnerable in the form of vaccination, and thus put an end to this crisis,” Johnson said. . said. “Yes, it’s a big effort. It is the largest vaccination program in the history of this country. ”
Read more about the Treasury’s latest aid package.
He defends his decision to order the country to stay home again, pointing out the latest infection rates record levels of coronavirus in the population. “The number of patients in hospitals in England is now 40% higher than at the first peak in April,” he said. “When everyone looks at the position, people overwhelmingly understand that we have no choice.”
The figure of one in 50 people infected is an estimate based on a mass test aimed at finding people who have infections but have no symptoms. This is significantly higher than the infection rate implied by the national totals, out of all positive test results, which mostly rely on people to look for tests when they show symptoms.
Passenger testing
British officials are discussing what is more needed to protect the UK from the pandemic, including possible new restrictions on ports and airports for non-essential travel. At the press conference, Johnson said that a new test regime will be introduced. “We will take measures to ensure that we test people who come to this country and prevent the virus from being re-admitted,” he said.
The closure followed warnings from government medical advisers that the National Health Service can be overwhelmed within the next three weeks unless urgent action is taken.
At Tuesday’s press conference, Whitty said the “hopeIs the new closure enough to bring the pandemic under control. ‘If people are really strong and at the same time sticking to the rules, the NHS is vaccinating as fast as possible, then we are hope is the closure enough? But we must all do it. ”
– With the help of Joe Mayes, Stuart Biggs, Emily Ashton and David Goodman