UK’S Brexit negotiator goes into self-isolation for ‘symptoms’
nLONDON: Britain’s lead negotiator for post-brexit trade talks with the European Union is self-isolating after showing mild symptoms of coronavirus, a spokesman said on Friday - the day after his EU counterpart said he had the virus.
British negotiator David Frost “has been showing mild symptoms and so he is following the guidance to self-isolate”, a spokesman for UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson told reporters.
This comes a day after EU’S chief negotiator Michel Barnier tested positive for Covid-19.
A British government committee warned that social distancing may be needed for “at least most of a year” to curb the spread of the virus, which is now infecting people at a faster pace. It took three months for the first 100,000 cases, but only 12 days for the next 100,000.
Several boroughs in London such as Westminster, Southwark, Lambeth - have become hotbeds of the coronavirus as the Boris Johnson government scrambles to deal with the pandemic.
The latest figures by John Hopkins University put the death toll across the UK at 168, with the number of cases climbing to 3,297.
New UK measures include asking thousands of recently retired doctors and nurses to return to the National Health Service (NHS) to help deal with the crisis.
UK chancellor Rishi Sunak is due to announce more financial support across the economy.
Johnson told cafes, pubs and restaurants across the country to close on Friday night and to stay shut indefinitely to help slow the spread of the coronavirus outbreak.
Though to be clear, they can continue to provide takeout services,” he told reporters at Downing Street.