Industry leaders condemned Boris Johnson’s “irresponsible” decision to lift the blockade United Kingdom Although Covid-19 infections continue to surge.
At a press conference on Downing Street, Mr. Johnson admitted that the pandemic was “not over yet” and called on people to proceed with caution.
At the same time, he said that postponing the relaxation of restrictions until the fall may lead to reopening after school is over for summer vacation and people spend more time indoors as the weather gets colder.
However, Dr. Chaand Nagpaul, Chairman of the BMA Board of Directors, stated that the advancement continued on July 19 and the government violated its commitment to be led by data and its impact on the NHS.
He said that removing restrictions when a large part of the population is still not fully vaccinated will “re-control” the virus, increase infections and hospitalization, and put more lives at risk.
He said: “The government’s decision to advance the plan to remove the remaining Covid-19 restrictions on July 19 is irresponsible and frankly dangerous.”
“The BMA has repeatedly warned that the rapid increase in infection rates and Covid-related hospitalization continue to have a serious impact on the NHS, not only pushing employees to the brink of collapse, but also extending the already long waiting time for selective care.
“The Prime Minister has repeatedly emphasized the importance of slow and cautious practices, but in reality, the government has acted cautiously by repealing all regulations in one fell swoop-this can have devastating consequences.”
The latest daily official data shows that as of 9 am on Monday, there are 34,471 new laboratory confirmed cases of infection in the UK, and the number of cases continues to surge.
According to the current model, it is not expected to reach the peak before mid-August, when 1,000 to 2,000 people may be hospitalized every day, and the daily death toll is expected to reach 100 to 200.
Professor Adam Finn, a member of the Government’s Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunization (JCVI), said there is “considerable uncertainty” as to how the disease will develop in the coming weeks.
“I sympathize with the political message that this situation cannot last forever, but on the other hand, we really don’t want the situation to become so bad that we have to re-implement restrictions. This is a very delicate balancing act. That’s right,” he said.
“The more you let the elf out of the bottle, the harder it is to put it back, despite the great uncertainty.”
However, Paul Hunter, a professor of medicine at the University of East Anglia, said that there is “sufficient evidence” that can significantly reduce the risk of death and the incidence of serious diseases.
He said: “Although the hospitalization rate is currently rising rapidly, we can expect that in the next week or two, these conditions will slow down significantly.”
“This does not mean that there are no risks in relaxing the restrictions. But I think leaving step 4 (lifting the lockdown) before the fall will bring greater risks.”
The government’s decision means that starting next Monday, social distancing rules will end, and wearing masks will no longer be mandatory, although nightclubs and other places are urged to require “Covid certification” as a condition of entry.
In Scotland, Chief Minister Nicola Sturgeon will announce on Tuesday whether the restrictions can be relaxed nationwide on July 19.
Before she issued a statement to the recalled Scottish Parliament, Ms. Sturgeon said last week that as cases in Scotland are at record levels, any relaxation requires caution and caution.
The Welsh government is expected to formulate the next steps on Wednesday.
