UK closes schools as coronavirus deaths rise

Britain announced Wednesday it
would be closing schools in the coming days to stem the spread of coronavirus,
as the death toll topped 100 and Londoners braced for tougher measures to
tackle the outbreak.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson
had held off following the lead of other European countries in shutting
schools, because of the impact it would have on the workforce.

But as the outbreak spreads and
the death toll reached 104, up from 71 in a day, he said schools would be
closed indefinitely later this week.

“After schools shut their
gates from Friday afternoon, they will remain closed,” he told his daily
news conference, without giving a date for their re-opening.

Exceptions will be made for key
workers — including healthcare staff, police and delivery drivers — and for
the most vulnerable children.

Johnson earlier this week
advised people to work from home and avoid unnecessary social contact and
travel, warning the infection rate was starting to spike.

On Wednesday he said this was
having an effect but repeated advice for people with symptoms to self-isolate
for between one and two weeks, depending on circumstances. 

“Everyone must follow the
advice to protect themselves and their families, but also, more importantly to
protect the wider public,” he said.

Johnson added that “we
will not hesitate to bring forward further and faster measures.”

Speculation is rife that London
in particular could soon be subject to more draconian measures, as the capital
records the most number of cases.

“We know London is ahead
of the rest of us so we may see more stringent measures than even those that we
have announced so far being taken,” Scottish First Minister Nicola
Sturgeon said in Edinburgh earlier.

The government will on Thursday
introduce legislation giving it emergency powers to deal with the outbreak,
including to close premises and restrict gatherings.

– Parliamentary
hotspot –

Lawmakers were earlier told to
stay away from Johnson’s weekly question time in parliament amid warnings that
Westminster is a particularly infectious area.

Some 25 MPs, including a cabinet
minister, are already thought to have isolated themselves. 

“There’s a lot of COVID-19
in Westminster,” tweeted epidemiologist Professor Neil Ferguson, a
government adviser, as he announced that he had also developed symptoms.

MPs will gather on Thursday
however to debate new emergency legislation to deal with the coronavirus
outbreak, which ministers hope to push through within days.

The government says its powers
will only be used when “absolutely necessary” and the bill has
support from opposition parties.

But some MPs voiced concern at
the sweeping nature and duration of the proposals, and the effect on civil
liberties. 

– Rent support
–

Johnson’s government has come
under pressure to do more to tackle the outbreak of COVID-19, given the tough
lockdowns imposed in other European countries.

But he insisted all action was
driven by the science, adding: “We’re going to do the right measures at
the right time.”

So far Britain has around 2,600
cases, but chief scientific adviser Patrick Vallance this week warned that
55,000 Britons could have the virus at a “reasonable” estimate.

The new social distancing
advice sparked warnings that many businesses, particularly in the hospitality
industry, could go bust.

The FTSE 100 slumped again
Wednesday, dropping as much as 5.0 percent in morning trade, while the pound
hit its lowest level since 1985 against the dollar, touching $1.1828.

Finance minister Rishi Sunak on
Tuesday announced a package of support for businesses, including
government-backed loans of at least £330 billion ($395 billion, 360
billion euros).

On Wednesday, Johnson also
promised legislation to protect individuals unable to pay their rent because of
job losses caused by the crisis to avoid evictions. 

In other developments:

– the government said it was
working to increase the number of people in hospital being tested for COVID-19
to 25,000 a day and ensure frontline health workers get the protective kit they
need.

– Johnson said there was a
“massive effort” to build enough ventilators to treat the worst-hit
patients, after concern about a shortage. 

– Supermarkets, whose supplies
have been hit by panic-buying, said they would safeguard supplies for the
elderly and most vulnerable, including dedicated opening times only for older
customers.

– the 50th Glastonbury music
festival became the latest casualty of the outbreak, with this year’s event
pushed back to next year.

Article source: https://www.samaa.tv/global/2020/03/uk-closes-schools-as-coronavirus-deaths-rise/