A pre-recorded speech from UK Prime Minister Johnson being broadcast now
- coronavirus is the biggest threat UK has faced for decades
- “Without huge national effort to halt the growth of this virus, there’ll come a moment when no health service in the world could possibly cope; because there won’t be enough ventilators, enough intensive care beds, enough doctors, enough nurses”
Says people should remain at home, only go out for essentials, medical reasons
- critical thing is to stop the disease spreading between households
- people will only be allowed to shop for basic necessities
- people only allowed one form of exercise a day alone or with members of your household
- people allowed out for any medical need, or to provide care or to help a vulnerable person
- people can travel to and from work, but only where this is absolutely necessary and cannot be done from home
- people should not be meeting friends or family who live outside their home
- police will have the powers to enforce rules, including through fines and dispersing gatherings
Without a huge national effort, will come a moment when no health service in the world could possibly cope
- says if too many people become seriously unwell at one time, the health service will be unable to handle it
More:
- closing immediately all shops selling non-essential goods,including clothing and electronic stores and other premises including libraries, playgrounds and outdoor gyms, and places of worship
- will stop all gathering of more than two people, except people you live with
- we’ll stop all social events, including weddings, baptisms and other ceremonies, but excluding funerals
- restrictions will be kept under constant review
- we will look again at restrictions in three weeks
- we will relax restrictions if the evidence shows we are able to
- says the way ahead is hard, and it is still true that many lives will sadly be lost