2020 IN REVIEW
AS REVELLERS celebrated the start of a new decade last New Year’s Eve, authorities in China confirmed doctors were treating more than a dozen cases of “pneumonia of unknown cause” in the city of Wuhan.
This unknown virus, which would later be named Covid-19, led to a global crisis in 2020, with more than a million lives lost.
Borders slammed shut, economies plunged and unprecedented peacetime measures were imposed on populations all over the world as global leaders responded to a health crisis which has changed the course of history.
While coronavirus may have dominated 2020, Brexit was back on the cards in early January and the UK formally left the EU on January 31, beginning an 11-month transition period.
No doubt influenced by Brexit, the term “Megxit” was coined a week into the new year when the Duke and Duchess of Sussex announced plans to step back as senior royals.
It was later revealed by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) that the UK’s earliest known coronavirus death occurred in the week ending January 31.
Storm Ciara battered the country in early February, just weeks before mass flooding was exacerbated by Storm Dennis.
Sajid Javid quit as chancellor in a dramatic Cabinet reshuffle and was replaced by his former deputy, Rishi Sunak. Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his partner Carrie Symonds announced they were engaged and expecting a baby, on the same day the Home Office’s top civil servant Sir Philip Rutnam resigned, accusing Home Secretary Priti Patel of bullying.
Hashem Abedi, 23, the brother of the Manchester Arena bomber, was found guilty of 22 counts of murder, attempted murder and plotting to cause an explosion likely to endanger life in March, and was later handed a 55-year jail term.
Scores of major sporting and cultural events were suspended that month, along with local elections, as coronavirus deaths rose.
Experts and politicians accepted the virus could no longer be contained as the country moved to the “delay” phase, while Britons travelling abroad were urged to return, employees told to work from home and schools were closed.
On March 23, Mr Johnson announced strict new curbs on life in the UK, with businesses across the country shuttered for months to protect the NHS and save lives.
Among those to become infected with the virus was the Prince of Wales, while Mr Johnson spent three days in intensive care during his battle with Covid-19.
A grim milestone was passed when the hospital death toll reached 10,000 in early April, the same month concerns were raised about the situation in care homes and a lack of protective personal equipment (PPE) for healthcare staff.
Sir Keir Starmer was elected leader of the Labour Party the day before the Queen addressed the nation, saying if we “remain united and resolute” in the face of the coronavirus outbreak, “we will overcome it”.
Later that month – as testing targets were made and PPE shortages dominated headlines - the Prime Minister told the country it was “passing through the peak” of the outbreak.
There was outcry over Dominic Cummings’ lockdown trip to Barnard Castle in May. He claimed he made the initial trip to County Durham to help his wife with childcare after she became ill. He later drove to Barnard Castle to test whether he was well enough to drive after falling ill himself and told the press he behaved ‘reasonably and legally’.
“Black Out Tuesday” was held globally on June 2 in response to the death of George Floyd following his arrest in the US, which sparked anti-racism protests across the UK.
Thousands of demonstrators took to the streets and a statue of slave trader Edward Colston was toppled and dumped in Bristol Harbour, as the UK’s coronavirus death toll mounted 50,000.
Non-essential shops were permitted to open, crowds flocked to beaches amid balmy conditions and Leicester became the first area to have a local lockdown imposed following a spike of cases in the city.
An initial decision not to extend the children’s food voucher scheme into the summer holidays became the latest in a string of Government U-turns following a campaign by Manchester United footballer Marcus Rashford.
There was another of these U-turns in August when Education Secretary Gavin Williamson and Ofqual apologised to students and their parents, as they announced that all A-level and GCSE results in England would be based on teacher-assessed grades. Wales had already said it would revert to teacher assessments.
The “rule of six” came into force in September – the same month the Covid-19 alert level for the UK was increased to Level 4, meaning that transmission rates of the virus are “high or rising exponentially”.
Boris Johnson unveiled a threetier alert level system for England in October, and Wales went into lockdown as the UK exceeded one million lab-confirmed cases of coronavirus since the start of the outbreak. The measures led to conflict with Manchester
Mayor Andy Burnham over Manchester’s tier-three status.
England entered its second national lockdown at the start of November, the same month the PM congratulated US presidentelect Joe Biden on his victory over Donald Trump.
The UK’s terror threat level was raised from “substantial” to “severe” following attacks in France and Austria, while the UK Government and devolved administrations announced plans for “Christmas bubbles”.
It was announced Dominic Cummings would leave his role as chief adviser.
Elsewhere, Sir Philip Green’s retail empire Arcadia plunged into administration.
In early December, the UK became the first country to approve the coronavirus vaccine from Pfizer and BioNTech, and grandmother Margaret Keenan, 90, became the first patient to receive the jab.
Less than two weeks later, a rise in cases saw Boris Johnson effectively cancel Christmas with a two-week lockdown and households warned they should only gather for one day.
Fears of a highly infectious new strain prompted European countries to halt flights and ferry crossings from the UK.
Meanwhile a Brexit trade deal was finally agreed on Christms Eve.