Boris Johnson arrives in England with a total blockade while the NHS faces a deep crisis in Covid

Photographer: Simon Dawson / Bloomberg

Boris Johnson imposed a third coronavirus blockade across England, closing schools and ordering the public to stay at home amid dire warnings that the National Health Service is in danger of being overwhelmed.

Emergency measures will begin immediately and last at least until February 15, potentially devastating the retail and hospitality businesses and threatening to push the economy into a double-dip recession as doctors try to control the pandemic.

In a speech broadcast on television to the nation, the prime minister insisted that he had no option but to end all non-essential social activities, education and travel in the face of a sudden and severe increase in infections. Similar steps are being taken in the rest of the UK, he said.

The government now plans to speed up a vaccination program, reaching 13.9 million vulnerable people and caregivers by mid-February, so that restrictions can begin to be lifted.

“Our hospitals are under more pressure from Covid than at any time since the pandemic began,” Johnson said in the broadcast. “With most of the country already under extreme measures, it is clear that we need to do more to bring this new variant under control while our vaccines are launched.”

Police fines

The police will have legal powers to use fines and dispersal orders to enforce the rules. Parliament will be called on to discuss measures on Wednesday, but regulations are expected to become law on Tuesday, officials said.

The prime minister was forced to act after data showed new infections surpassing 50,000 a day and more people in the hospital than at the first virus spike in April.

On January 4, there were 26,626 patients at the hospital with Covid-19, an increase of 30% in one week, which the government attributes to the increase in infections of a new strain of the virus of faster spread.

Johnson’s third Covid blocking rule for England

Everyone should stay at home, unless they are doctors or other important professionals who cannot work at home People can only leave the house to buy essential supplies or exercise, preferably only once a day All primary and secondary schools and colleges will close from Tuesday and move on to online teaching; exams will not run normally this summer; daycare centers stay open College students should not return to campus, but study at home Families cannot mix for purely social reasons, anywhere All restaurants, bars and non-essential stores will remain closed, except where they sell take-out food. Drinks to take away in restaurants forbidden Essential retailers, such as supermarkets and pharmacies, will remain open Bubbles of support and child care – where families connect up until help each other – can continue

Johnson resisted pressure from opposition scientists and lawmakers to block the entire country in December. He cut plans to allow families to mingle at Christmas, but insisted he wanted to avoid countrywide restrictions like those seen in March, opting to maintain a regional level system in place.

But government medical heads for the UK’s four nations warned on Monday that the health service may not be able to handle the situation without urgent action now. They issued a statement two hours before the prime minister’s announcement, saying the NHS is already “under immense pressure”.

Overloaded

“We are not confident that the NHS can handle a sustained increase in cases and, without further action, there is a material risk that the NHS in several areas will be overwhelmed in the next 21 days,” they said in a statement that informed the national alert. level is now at the top five level. “Cases are increasing almost everywhere.”

Scotland previously announced a blockade starting at midnight. “We are now in a race between the vaccine and the virus,” said Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon when ordering the Scots to stay at home and schools to close.

Johnson made keeping schools open for face-to-face learning a priority for his government, but scientists warned last month that they would have to shut down to prevent the virus from spreading. Although children rarely suffer much from the disease, they can infect their families after being infected by friends.

It is a far cry from the government’s optimism in early December, when the arrival of vaccines was described as the “scientific cavalry” coming to its rescue.

On Monday, the prime minister insisted that he wanted to vaccinate about 14 million older, vulnerable people and their caregivers, including first-line doctors, by mid-February.

“If we are successful in vaccinating all of these groups, we will have removed a large number of people from the path of the virus,” said Johnson. “And, of course, this will allow us to lift many of the restrictions that we have endured for so long.”

But there will be a “time lag” between vaccinating patients and putting pressure on NHS flexibility, Johnson said, adding that he is “cautious about the schedule ahead.”

The government’s dilemma has been trying to balance attempts to stop the virus from spreading with the need to keep stores and businesses open to protect the economy, which has already suffered its deepest recession since the Great Frost in 1709.

A double-dip recession seems increasingly inevitable as a result of the new blockade. Before Johnson’s announcement, most economists had expected the UK economy to achieve some growth this quarter.

Four weeks of school closings can cost up to 3% of GDP, according to a tweet from Ludovic Subran, chief economist at Allianz SE. Bloomberg Economics estimates that up to 6% of Europe’s labor supply may be affected by narrowing childcare options.

– With the help of Alex Morales, Lucy Meakin and Joe Mayes

(Adds vaccination target, details, comments)