9th October, 2020
By Agency Reporter
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is billed to make a statement to parliament on Monday about potential new lockdown restrictions.
The move comes amid a rapidly accelerating second wave of the coronavirus outbreak and rising opposition against lockdown measures.
The average daily number of COVID-19 cases in England has doubled in a week, a survey showed on Friday.
Hwoever, government options are limited as the previous lockdown has wrought some of the worst economic damage on the country in at least a century.
“The rising incidence in parts of the country mean that it is very likely that certain local areas will face further restrictions,” Edward Lister, a senior aide to the prime minister, said in a letter to lawmakers.
“The government is hoping to finalise these details as soon as possible. This pace is imperative if we are to control the spread of the virus.”
The United Kingdom already has the highest official COVID-19 death toll in Europe – 42,679 – while it is borrowing record amounts to pump emergency money through the damaged economy.
As Johnson grapples with both COVID-19 and dissent in party ranks, the economic damage was laid bare on Friday.
Gross domestic product rose in August by 2.1% from July, official data showed, not even half the median forecast in a Reuters poll of economists.