England’s latest national lockdown could be extended if the virus is not brought under control within the next month, a senior Cabinet minister has admitted.
Michael Gove said if the R rate is not successfully brought below 1 by the end of the proposed lockdown period – December 2 – the Government will be forced to extend restrictions.
When pressed about whether the harsh measures could continue into December, the Duchy of Lancaster said ‘we will always take the decision in the national interest’ based on scientific evidence.
He told Sky News’s Sophy Ridge on Sunday: ‘We are going to review it on December 2 but we are always driven by what the data shows.
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‘On the basis of what we’ve been told, we believe all the measures we are putting into place will reduce the rate below 1. That’s the point at which you actually see a decline in the spread of the virus rather than its maintenance or increase.’
But when asked directly if the nation could be facing more than a month of lockdown if the reinfection rate is not brought down, he finally responded: ‘Yes.’
When Ms Ridge pressed ‘so it could be extended?’, the Cabinet minister responded: ‘Yes.’
On whether it would be extended nationally, Gove replied: ‘Well we want to be in a position where – and I believe that this is likely to be the case – we have an approach where, if we bring down the rate of infection sufficiently, we can reduce measures nationally and also reduce measures regionally.’
His comments come after the prime minister announced England will go into its second lockdown of this year on Thursday, with all non-essential shops, pubs restaurants, and gyms forced to close.
Schools, nurseries, universities and essential shops, such as supermarkets and pharmacies, will be permitted to stay open.
The public have been once again ordered to ‘stay at home’, with households banned from mixing indoors or in a private garden.
People must work from home where possible and an international travel has been imposed, other than if a person must travel for work purposes.
This is a breaking news story, more to follow…
source https://metro.co.uk/2020/11/01/national-lockdown-could-be-extended-into-december-13515883/