Britain imposes tougher restrictions
Northeastern England case increase a concern
LONDON — Britain imposed tougher restrictions Thursday on people and businesses in parts of northeastern England as the nation attempts to stem the spread of COVID-19 before the colder winter months.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock told the House of Commons that the new measures would include a ban on residents socializing with people outside their own households, ordering leisure and entertainment venues to close from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. and restricting bars and restaurants to table service.
He also promised $3.5 billion to support the National Health Service this winter.
“The battle against coronavirus is not over, and while we strain every sinew to spring free from its clutches, with winter on the horizon we must prepare, bolster our defenses and come together once again against this common foe,” Hancock said.
The comments came after British Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned that authorities will have to impose tougher measures to combat the spread of COVID-19 and “protect” the Christmas holidays. In a piece published in The Sun newspaper, he said that the only way to be certain the country can enjoy the winter holidays “is to be tough now.”
“So if we can grip it now,” Johnson said, Britain can “stop the surge, arrest the spike, stop the second hump of the dromedary, flatten the second hump.”
Opposition lawmakers have criticized Johnson’s handling of the COVID-19 crisis and said his government lacked a plan to tackle a second wave of the pandemic.
A shortage of testing capacity is a particular concern, with people around the country complaining they were unable to book appointments for tests or directed to testing centers far from their homes.
In other developments:
■ The U.K. government said travelers from Singapore and Thailand won’t need to quarantine for two weeks because of a lower coronavirus infection risk. The government said Slovenia and Guadeloupe travelers must quarantine for two weeks starting Saturday because of an increase in confirmed cases.
■ Denmark officials advised against traveling to the Netherlands, Portugal, Switzerland, Hungary and Austria. Denmark made the move because of a flare-up of coronavirus cases, with the countries crossing the threshold of 30 cases per 100,000 inhabitants per week.
■ Canada’s largest province will fine people who hold social gatherings in defiance of new limits. Ontario reported 293 newly confirmed coronavirus cases Thursday, and Ontario Premier Doug Ford blames such gatherings for spiking COVID-19 numbers in Toronto, Ottawa and a region just outside Toronto.
■ Moscow’s mayor is urging employers to support employees working from home as coronavirus cases continue to rise. The Russian capital on Thursday recorded 730 new cases, an increase of about 15 percent from early September.
■ Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez will meet with Madrid’s regional authorities to discuss the surging coronavirus. Sánchez sent a letter on Thursday to Madrid regional leader Isabel Díaz Ayuso, who replied on Twitter that she’s happy to meet with the prime minister.