Boris stable in ICU; new study says UK could be worst-hit in Europe
LONDON: British foreign secretary Dominic Raab is deputising for Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who was again described on Wednesday as being “stable” and in “good spirits” in ICU, but there were concerns that Raab may be in office, but not quite in power.
Health minister Edward Argar said Johnson is in St Thomas’ Hospital for close monitoring and added that he was “comfortable, he’s stable, he’s in good spirits”. Johnson was not on ventilator and was said to be breathing unassisted.
A Downing Street spokesperson said, “The prime minister remains clinically stable and is responding to treatment. He continues to be cared for in intensive care at St Thomas’ Hospital. He is in good spirits.”
However, questions swirled in Westminster over the arrangement at the top of the government in Johnson’s absence. He has asked Raab to deputise “where necessary”, but the UK’S unwritten constitution is unclear on the extent of Raab’s powers.
The UK is now in the third week of a lockdown imposed on
March 23, with over 6,100 deaths and at least 55,200 cases.
Britain could see as many as 66,000 Covid-19 deaths during the first wave of the current pandemic, new research showed on Tuesday, making the outbreak there by far the deadliest in Europe.
Modelling conducted by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) at the University of Washington’s School of Medicine showed that approximately 151,680 people were likely to die from the virus across the continent.
Neil Ferguson, the epidemiologist closely advising the UK government on dealing with the pandemic, however, disputed the new analysis that the UK will become the worst European country hit by the virus.