London — U. K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Sunday outlined his government’s “conditional plan” for reopening British society in the coming months, including the…
London — U. K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Sunday outlined his government’s “conditional plan” for reopening British society in the coming months, including the possible return to school for some young children at the start of June, as he announced some easing of the coronavirus lockdown in England.
In a televised address to the nation, Johnson said this is “not the time, simply, to end the lockdown this week,” but that it was appropriate to encourage people with jobs that cannot be done from home to return to work.
He said it would be “madness” to loosen restrictions so much that a second spike in cases emerges. The U. K. has recorded as of Sunday almost 32,000 virus-related deaths, the most in Europe and the second-highest pandemic toll worldwide. Johnson said that without the lockdown, which has been in place since March 23, half a million people may have lost their lives.
“We must continue to control the virus and save lives,” the prime minister said from an office at 10 Downing Street. “And yet we must also recognize that this campaign against the virus has come at colossal cost to our way of life.”
The lockdown has reduced the transmission of the novel coronavirus in the community, but has come at a heavy economic cost. Johnson, who returned to work only two weeks ago following his hospitalization for COVID-19, has come under increasing pressure to relieve the pressure on the economy.
He said the government would proceed cautiously but that he was able to announce “the first careful steps” in relaxing the lockdown for England. Fuller details will be unveiled in Parliament on Monday.
He said people who can work from home should continue to do so but the ones who can’t, such as those in construction or manufacturing, “should be actively encouraged to go to work” starting this week.
