UK Health Minister says 'normality could return' by 2021 if vaccine succeeds

In a televised address with UK’s broadcaster ITV on September 20, UK’s Health Minister Matt Hancock said that UK can aim for a pre coronavirus functionality presumably by next summer, 2021, in case an effective vaccine was rolled out and administered to a majority population by the year-end. Speaking in a live-streamed address, Hancock said that he was, in fact, talking about the first bit of next year, “if all goes well”, adding a clause. Further, he indicated that there might still be a chance that a safe and effective vaccine might be made well ahead of Christmas. “We’ve got to roll it out,” he said on-air, adding, that the most vulnerable population were the first-in-line to get the shots.

Warning the UK citizens about the fresh spike in the trend, UK’s health minister said in an interview that Britain had to control its coronavirus upsurge to make things work as normal as it can by Christmas. He urged the alarming need to be able to curb the rising infections, saying, the more cases of COVID-19 could be controlled as of now, the easier things will turn out in the “very challenging” winters ahead. Hancock further warned that British might have to resort to stricter measures and widespread lockdowns if the situation spiralled out of control, drawing a comparison with the onslaught of cases in March that had near-near-collapsed the country’s healthcare systems. 

Read: Hancock: UK National Lockdown Last Line Of Defence

Read: UK At Critical Point In COVID-19 As Cases Continue To Surge, Says Chief Medical Officer

[NHS worker is tested at a drive-through coronavirus testing site in a car park at Chessington World of Adventures, in Chessington, England. Credit: AP]

[People queue up outside a coronavirus testing centre offering walk-in appointments in north London. Credit: AP]

A probable 'nationwide' lockdown

In a separate briefing health minister, Matt Hancock urged the UK to "come together" and cooperate to mitigate the coronavirus crisis. Warning that the new infections were rising in the social settings, Hancock urged people to adhere to the distancing protocols and avoid large assembly.  While the UK announced restrictions on social gatherings in large parts of England, there are rising speculations that the UK PM Boris Johnson might enter the country into lockdown in coming weeks to stem the recent surge of the coronavirus cases, according to recent local media reports. “As I’ve said for several weeks now, that we could expect (and) are now seeing a second wave coming in,” PM Johnson said during a visit to a vaccine manufacturing centre under construction near Oxford. “We are seeing it in France, in Spain, across Europe," he added, in an AP report. 

Read: UK Govt Admits Daily Increase In Coronavirus Cases 'concerning'

Read: English Warned Limits On Gatherings May Last Til Christmas