How the UK entered and emerged from the national lockdown
On March 23 Boris Johnson The UK has been put into severe police lockdown Measures In the fight against the Coronavirus outbreak.
The prime minister ordered people only to leave their homes as part of a “very limited items” list, banned gatherings and ordered unnecessary stores to close.
Johnson announced his strategy for Phase 2 on Sunday, May 10, specifying a gradual easing of restrictions, rather than an all-out lifting of the lockdown. However, Reaction to his speech It was fierce, with many accusing the prime minister of confusing British public opinion.
On May 11, Johnson published his “roadmap” to exit the lockdown, devising a three-stage strategy to gradually lift the current restrictions.
Mr. Johnson later announced on Thursday May 28 that Five tests to facilitate closure , Confirming that Gatherings of up to six people It can happen in outdoor spaces starting Monday June 1.
On June 23 – exactly three months after the country was locked down – Johnson hailed the beginning of the end of Britain’s “national hibernation”.
The Prime Minister allowed families and friends to mingle indoors and even go on vacation together from Saturday 4 July. This day, which became known as Great Saturday, And it has also seen the reopening of bars, restaurants and hairdressers, as the two-meter social distancing rule was reduced to one meter.
But Chris Whitty, the chief medical officer, warned that many of the new social distancing measures should remain in place “until this time next year” because the Coronavirus vaccine remains elusive.
On Friday, July 17, Johnson slapped down his campaign Roadmap to end the lockdownThis allowed the remaining recreational facilities to reopen and the resumption of all beauty treatments from August 1. Mr Johnson also relaxed the official guidance advising people ‘Work from home if you can’ In an effort to bring back the economy.
The government is keen to avoid another blanket lockdown. However, preventing a national lockdown will depend on Whether there is a second wave of the virus or not And how effective would the government respond if the infection rate rose rapidly in multiple regions of the UK.
As of Monday, September 14, gatherings of more than six people are banned in England. The government has introduced these drastic new measures to combat the spike in coronavirus infection rates.
On September 22, the prime minister It announced a set of new measures This includes a 10 p.m. curfew in bars and restaurants, a 15-person ceiling for weddings and a return to work at home for office workers, which will likely remain in effect until March, a year after the lockdown began.
