UK lawmakers to renew govt's contentious COVID-19 powers

British lawmakers were set Wednesday to renew government’s sweeping powers to impose emergency restrictions to curb coronavirus pandemic, though many slammed way Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Conservative ministration has used m.

Legislators are increasingly unhappy about government’s handling of pandemic, which has seen Britain go from a national lockdown imposed in March to a patchwork of local measures of varying stringency. Britain's official virus death toll has passed 42,000 — highest in Europe — and country is seeing a second spike in new cases.

But re is little lawmakers can do about government's response because of powers that Parliament granted government six months ago in Coronavirus Act.

Lindsay Hoyle, impartial Speaker of House of Commons, said government h treated lawmakers with “contempt,” with new laws being brought in without scrutiny and measures sometimes published just hours before taking effect. That created travel chaos for Britons on holiday this summer, as many h to rush home in middle of ir vacations when government changed its quarantine rules.

“I am looking to government to remedy a situation I regard as completely unsatisfactory,” Hoyle said.

powers in act must be renewed every six months, and Health Secretary Matt Hancock said it was too soon to lift m w.

“This act is still needed to keep people safe,” Hancock told lawmakers. He said law contained “extraordinary measures, but y remain temporary, time-limited and proportional to threat we face.”

Johnson’s Conservative government has faced growing criticism from its own lawmakers, who feel restrictions on daily life brought in to slow spre of virus are stifling ecomy. Dozens of Conservative legislators h threatened to rebel against measures, but were assud by a government promise that Parliament will get a vote on future “significant” national measures.

On or side of political spectrum, opposition Labour Party accuses government of botching battle against virus and failing to protect lives.

“We have ended up with one of highest death rates in world and on verge of one of deepest recessions,” said Labour home-affairs spokesman Nick Thomas-Symonds.

“Things cant go on as y are,” he said, al though he ded that Labour would t vote against renewing powers.

number of new hospitalizations for COVID-19 and virus deaths in Britain are rising again, although both remain far below ir springtime peak. re were 7,108 new infections reported Wednesday and 71 virus-related deaths, same number of deaths confirmed day before.

Johnson said it was too soon to say wher restrictions introduced in recent weeks were working. government has barred people across country from meeting in groups of more than six and banned millions of residents in rrn England from mixing with people y don’t live with.

“I wish I could tell you tonight that impact of this pack has alrey begun to appear, but it will take time to feed through,” prime minister said at a televised news conference.

Johnson said tougher measures could be coming, if numbers don't start to decline.

“If evidence requires it, we will t hesitate to take furr measures that would, I’m afraid, be more costly than ones we have put into effect w,” he said.

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