“The height of absurdity,” Johnson called the idea of a second lockdown ten days ago. Yet England will be locked again on Thursday.
–
“This is the price of government incompetence.” Labor leader Keir Starmer had no difficulty in sabotaging Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s corona policy on Sunday. Starmer has argued for a second lockdown in England for some time, after experts had already defended that option on September 21 to stop the rise in the number of infections. According to them, there had to be a lockdown of several weeks, cafes and restaurants had to be closed, anyone who can work from home and higher education had to be done digitally.
But Starmer was confronted by Johnson in parliament ten days ago. ‘This is the height of absurdity. He wants to turn off the lights with a full national lockdown, ‘the prime minister said. “He can’t say how much damage this would do to the economy and the mental health of the population!” Johnson defended his policy with confidence: “The local and regional approach is common sense.”
Confronted with the rapidly deteriorating figures, he decided on Saturday anyway. From Thursday, and certainly until December 2, everyone has to stay at home, unless ‘for specific reasons’. All shops selling non-essential products will close, as will cafes, restaurants, swimming pools and gyms. Even holidays in the UK and abroad are taboo.
Maybe still lockdown after December 2
“Nobody wants to take such measures,” admitted Johnson, who emphasized that schools and universities will remain open and that football will continue in the Premier League. Chris Whitty, Johnson’s top medical adviser who warned in mid-October that the regional approach would not be enough, left the prime minister little choice. Without intervention, there will be more hospitalizations than in the first wave and a medical and moral disaster for the National Health Service threatens. Cabinet Affairs Minister Michael Gove even admitted yesterday that the lockdown could last longer.
“These measures are necessary,” said Keir Starmer. Everyone sees the numbers, the rate of infection, the number of admissions, and tragically, the number of deaths. That is why we already called for a lockdown three weeks ago. Then that option was rejected and even made fun of by the government, which is now doing exactly what we proposed. Only now the lockdown will take longer, be tougher and come with a human toll. ‘ Joe Anderson, the Labor Mayor of Liverpool, said that the number of people killed thousands of people needlessly.
Johnson has been criticized from his own Conservative parliamentary group for locking up the country. “This is a terrible blow to the population,” said ex-party leader Iain Duncan Smith. Just as the economy is picking up again, he says the prime minister is bowing to his scientific advisers. “It is difficult to give credit to scientists who speak of a deadly pandemic when there is no excess mortality compared to the normal five-year average,” said Desmond Swayne.
– .
