Boris Johnson is expected to announce tomorrow that England will be forced to shut pubs and restaurants from 10pm every night as the coronavirus alert level is upgraded to four.
All four of Britain’s chief medical officers says that the COVID-19 alert level should be upgraded from level three to level four – meaning the transmission of the virus is high or rising exponentially.
As part of new measures, Prime Minister is said to be placing a nighttime curfew on the hospitality industry and enforce patrols to make sure venues are obeying the ‘Rule of Six’.
It’s not yet clear when the new rules will come in, or how long they will last for.
Sir Patrick Vallance, the UK’s Chief Scientific Adviser, this morning warned that without immediate without action there will be 50,000 new daily cases of coronavirus by October.
The COVID-19 alert level was at three but will be upgraded to four in due course. It means the rate of transmission is high or rising exponentially.
In a statement, the chief medical officers of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland said: “After a period of lower COVID cases and deaths, the number of cases are now rising rapidly and probably exponentially in significant parts of all four nations.
“If we are to avoid significant excess deaths and exceptional pressure in the NHS and other health services over the autumn and winter everyone has to follow the social distancing guidance, wear face coverings correctly and wash their hands regularly.
“We know this will be a concerning news for many people; please follow the rules, look after each other and together we will get through this.”
