MATT Hancock has today refused to rule out another national lockdown in England as he admitted he was “very worried” about the second new South African strain of the virus.
The Health Secretary said earlier that nothing was off the table as the Government mull new measures to try and crack down on the case numbers – which have reached record highs in the past week.
Labour’s boss, Sir Keir Starmer, has demanded fresh restrictions within 24 hours – including a return to the Stay at Home message for everyone – and schools to be closed as a last resort.
He said yesterday: “Bring in those national restrictions now, that has to be the first step to control the virus.”
The PM has vowed to do “whatever it takes” to tackle the spread – which spreads far more quickly than the old one.
And officials are worried too about another new strain of the virus which has come from South Africa – which spreads even faster than that.
Mr Hancock was asked today: “In terms of the national lockdown called for, that isn’t within the Government thinking right now, is it?”
Mr Hancock replied: “Well we don’t rule anything out.
“We have shown repeatedly we will look at the public health advice and will take [it[ in terms of what is needed to contorl the spread of the disease.
“This new variant is much easier to catch.
“The old Tier 3 was able to contain the old variant, that is proving increasingly difficult in all parts of the country.”
He told Sky News: “Some of the Tier 3 areas are seeing sharp rises in cases.
“Each week we look at all the areas of the country to check they are in the right Tier.
“It’s a very difficult situation.”
He said it was “down to people’s behaviour” whether Tier 4 was working or not.
“It is critical that everybody in the country does everything they can do to reduce the spread of the virus.”
It came as:
- An 82-year-old man became the first person to get the Oxford AstraZeneca jab this morning as the new vaccine was rolled out to hospitals
- Boris Johnson has told primary kids to return to schools today if they are open – but thousands of places have stayed shut in Tier 4 areas across the country
- Hospitals across the country are filling up with more Covid patients – with now a quarter more people needing treatment there than in the first wave
Mr Hancock stressed schools were safe and there was no additional risk to teachers from catching the bug at school than from elsewhere.
He added: “It is also clear that the proportion of teachers who catch coronavirus is no higher than the rest of the population.
“So there is clear public health advice behind the position that we have taken and that is what people should follow because, of course, education is very important as well, especially for people’s long-term health.”
JAB HOPE
Dialysis patient Brian Pinker, 82, has become the first person to be vaccinated with the new Oxford/AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine after being given the jab at Oxford University Hospital, NHS England said today.
The Health Secretary hailed the good news this morning, and said NHS England would dish out as many as were being produced.
