约翰逊的办公室周六晚些时候表示,政府计划在英格兰恢复使用三级本地化限制系统,根据疫情的严重程度,各地区面临不同的措施。约翰逊的办公室在一份声明中说,预计更多的社区将被置于两个最高病毒警报类别。
政府从11月5日开始对英格兰进行为期四周的封锁。根据声明,内阁定于周日讨论这些计划,首相计划在周一向议会提供细节。
约翰逊的办公室还证实,假设监管机构批准了一种针对该病毒的疫苗,将于下月开始一项全国性的新冠肺炎疫苗接种计划。政府还将增加大规模测试,以努力抑制病毒,直到疫苗可以推出。
约翰逊在10月31日公开宣布了英国的封锁健康官员们警告说,随着冬季流感季节的临近,新确诊的冠状病毒感染呈指数增长,有可能淹没国家卫生服务机构。封锁关闭了非必要的业务,禁止了大多数社交聚会,但学校仍然开放。
英国各地新发现的新冠肺炎病例开始下降,过去7天的阳性检测数量比前一周下降了13.8%。在过去的7天里,报告了约2861例COVID相关死亡,比一周前减少了17例。感染率仍然很高,每10万人中有244例。
卫生部长马特·汉考克星期五告诉记者,封锁成功地减缓了病毒的传播,但他强调,人们需要继续遵守规则,以减少病例。
政府的副首席医疗官乔纳森·范-塔姆教授警告说,一种只需要“几秒钟”传播的病毒可能会很快失去所取得的成果。
他说,人们应该“保持对这种病毒的压力,并尽可能多地将其推到(封锁期)结束时”。
政府的科学咨询小组SAGE预计将于周一发布报告,显示早期的三级战略不够强大,并建议在回归时实施更严格的限制。
在该系统下,“中等”警戒级别要求餐馆和酒吧在晚上10点关闭,并禁止居民以6人以上的群体混合。“高”级别防止人们聚集在室内,与不在家的人在一起,或扩大“支持泡沫”。
在处于“非常高”警戒状态的地区,酒吧和酒吧只能保持开放,只有在有丰盛的一餐的情况下才提供酒精饮料。人们被建议不要进出这些地区。
UK leader to end England's national lockdown on Dec. 2
Johnson’s office said late Saturday that the government plans to return to using a three-tiered system of localized restrictions in England, with areas facing different measures based on the severity of their outbreaks. More communities are expected to be placed in the two highest virus alert categories, Johnson’s office said in a statement.
The government put England under a four-week lockdown that started Nov. 5. The Cabinet is scheduled to discuss the plans Sunday, and the prime minister is aiming to give Parliament the details on Monday, according to the statement.
Johnson’s office also confirmed plans to begin a nationwide COVID-19 vaccination program next month, assuming regulators approve a vaccine against the virus. The government also will increase mass testing in an effort to suppress the virus until vaccines can be rolled out.
Johnson announced the lockdown in England on Oct. 31 after public healthofficials warned that an exponential rise in new confirmed coronavirus infections was threatening to overwhelm the National Health Service as the winter flu season approached. The lockdown closed non-essential business and banned most social gatherings, but schools remain open.
New known cases of COVID-19 have started to drop across the U.K., with the number of positive tests during the past seven days falling 13.8% from the week before. Some 2,861 COVID-related deaths were reported over the last 7-day period, 17 fewer than a week earlier. The infection rate remains high at 244 cases for every 100,000 people.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock told reporters Friday that the lockdown has been successful in slowing the spread of the virus, though he stressed that people needed to keep following the rules to keep cases down.
Professor Jonathan Van-Tam, the government’s deputy chief medical officer, warned that gains could be quickly lost to a virus that takes “just seconds” to spread.
People should “keep up the pressure on this virus and push down on it as much as we can right to the end of the period (of lockdown),” he said.
The government’s scientific advisory group, known as SAGE, is expected to publish reports on Monday showing that the earlier three-tiered strategy wasn’t strong enough and recommending tougher restrictions when it returns.
Under that system, a “medium” alert level requires restaurants and pubs to close at 10 p.m. and prohibits residents from mixing in groups larger than six. The “high” level prevents people from gathering indoors with anyone not in their household or extended “support bubble."
In areas put under a “very high” alert, pubs and bars only can remain open and serve alcohol only if it comes with a hearty meal. People are advised not to travel in or out of those areas.