Second lockdown ‘not inevitable’, says Robert Jenrick
Ministers are doing “everything we can to avoid a full national lockdown”, housing secretary Robert Jenrick said this morning.
Speaking to Sky News after France and Germany both ordered new coronavirus lockdowns last night, Jenrick said that a second set of full restrictions was not “inevitable”.
He added that the government believes it can control the virus with tough local measures, though warned it was too early to say whether the new three tier system was working.
His comments came after the publication of a study showing that nearly 100,000 people were catching the virus in the UK everyday.
The latest official estimates now show that coronavirus is now spreading fastest in the London.
The ‘R rate’ — the rate of spread of infection — has catapulted to a best estimate of 2.9 in the capital, the highest rate in the country.
The latest figures were compiled by Imperial College London and Ipsos Mori on behalf of the government.
Scientists have urged officials to implement more stringent restrictions now in order to counter the spread of the virus.
Wales has already been moved into a “firebreak” lockdown, but Jenrick said avoiding a second national lockdown would limit damage to people’s livelihoods and the economy.