COVID-19: Johnson refuses to rule out lockdown, says facing 'considerable new pressures'

UK PM Boris Johnson on December 24 refused to rule out another national lockdown as country’s death toll from COVID-19 rose by 574, with a further 39,036 cases. While speaking at a Downing Street press conference, Johnson said that England was facing “considerable new pressure” from the mutant strain, which has led to harsher restrictions across the south-east of the country. When asked if he could rule out a national lockdown after Christmas, the UK PM said that it has been very tough over the last few weeks and it will continue to be difficult. 

Johnson said, “Obviously we face very considerable new pressures, particularly from the new variant and the speed with which that’s been spreading … You will have seen what has been announced over the last day or so about that and, much as I regret that, I do think it is necessary for us to grip this virus now, to stop it running out of control in January. Because we need to buy ourselves time to get the vaccine into as many arms of the elderly and vulnerable as we can”. 

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He added, “So, it’s tough tiering, community testing and rolling out the vaccine, and we’re going to continue with that approach.” He added: “I know that it’s been very, very tough over the last few weeks and, I must tell people, it will continue to be difficult”. 

According to the analysis by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), almost half of all new COVID-19 cases in England could be the new variant of the deadly virus. On December 24, the United Kingdom recorded 744 deaths, the highest number in one day since April. The latest figures also show nearly 2,143 patients were admitted to hospital on Thursday. 

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New variant likely to increase death toll

Meanwhile, recent research by the Centre for Mathematical Modelling of Infectious Diseases at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical medicine, revealed that the new variant of the coronavirus strain is likely to cause more hospitalisation and spike the death toll in 2021 as it is 56 per cent more transmissible. SARS-CoV-2 variant named VOC 202012/01 that emerged in southeast England in November 2020 "appears to be rapidly spreading towards fixation," the new study said. However, there is no scientific evidence yet whether the disease COVID-19 is expected to get more severe for those that contract the new variant as the WHO has collaborated with health experts worldwide to get more information about the new mutated strain. 

The UK identified a second ‘more transmissible’ COVID-19 variant linked to South Africa which was spreading at a dangerous rate despite the tiering system put in place, UK health secretary Matt Hancock announced. At least two cases in London and North West England who were diagnosed positive to the coronavirus second new variant were put under quarantine. Both the patients had travelled from South Africa over the last few weeks. Scientists have found 17 mutations of the first variant of the fast-evolving genome. 

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