PM’S WARNING TO THE NATION

The struggle against Covid is the single biggest crisis the world has faced in my lifetime... And yet I am more certain than ever that this is a struggle that humanity will win, and we in this country will win.

We have to acknowledge that this is a great and freedom-loving country; and while the vast majority have complied with the rules there have been too many breaches.

The single greatest weapon we bring to this fight is the... joint resolve of this country to work together to suppress Covid now.

The tragic reality of having Covid is that your mild cough can be someone else’s death knell.

I am deeply, spiritually reluctant to make any of these impositions, or infringe anyone’s freedom, but unless we take action the risk is that we will have to go for tougher measures later.

If people don’t follow the rules we have set out, then we must reserve the right to go further. We must take action now because a stitch in time saves nine.

Never in our history has our collective destiny and our collective health depended so completely on our individual behaviour.

If we follow these simple rules together, we will get through this winter together.

The fight against Covid is by no means over. I have no doubt, however, that there are great days ahead. But now is the time for us all to summon the discipline, and the resolve, and the spirit of togetherness that will carry us through.