U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Sunday that tougher lockdown restrictions could be on the way.
Amidst a rise in coronavirus cases in the U.K., Johnson floated the possibility that stricter lockdown measures were on the way, during an interview on BBC One’s “Andrew Marr Show.” However, Johnson stressed the importance of children continuing to go to school when they can, Reuters reported.
In December, the U.K. announced that it had detected a new mutant strain of the coronavirus that could spread more easily. Professor Chris Whitty, chief medical officer for England announced in a statement that while there was “no current evidence to suggest the new strain causes a higher mortality rate,” it was still “more vital than ever that the public continue to take action in their area to reduce transmission” of the virus. (RELATED: Here’s Everything We Know About The New Coronavirus Strain In The UK)
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Sunday tougher lockdown restrictions were probably on the way as COVID-19 cases keep rising, but that schools were safe and children should continue to attend where permitted. | @Reuters https://t.co/GK5gXvkL1W
— Inquirer (@inquirerdotnet) January 3, 2021
On Dec. 19, Johnson announced stricter restrictions would be put in place during the Christmas holidays in response to the new coronavirus strain.
“It may be that we need to do things in the next few weeks that will be tougher in many parts of the country. I’m fully, fully reconciled to that,” Johnson added, speaking on the possibility of tougher restrictions.
However, Johnson said that he was sticking with his previous statement that everything would be better by spring, as he wished that “tens of millions” would get the vaccine in the months to come.
This comes as the U.K. has reported 2,607,542 coronavirus cases, and 74,682 coronavirus related deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.