Lockdown ‘could soon be harder’
THE UK is facing a return to a hard lockdown if people don’t wake up to the reality of Covid-19 and follow the rules, a professor who advises the Government has warned.
Peter Openshaw, professor of experimental medicine at Imperial College London, said a “trickle” of cases can turn into a “cascade” if restrictions are ignored.
He raised concerns after worrying increases in the spread of the lethal virus, including in some care homes and among younger people.
He told Sky’s Ridge on Sunday: “We know these are vulnerable pockets.
“It’s not just in the younger people, it’s starting to appear in people more vulnerable and that is going to be followed by hospital admissions and deaths so we need to act quickly.
“This isn’t a game. We should all be thinking about what we can do now to slow the spread.”
From today, gatherings in Scotland are restricted to two households and up to six people. There are exemptions for the number of children under 12 but they still have to be from no more than two households.
The number is also capped at six in England but they can be from any household.
Sir Mark Walport, a former chief scientific adviser and member of the UK’s Sage group, has warned that the country is “on the edge of losing control” of Covid-19.
Asked if he agreed, Openshaw said: “Yes, I think that is right.
“It’s a bit like water seeping through a dam, it starts as a trickle and if you don’t do something about it, it can turn into a real cascade.”
He said the “rule of six” must be followed.
“If we don’t do this now we’re going to be back in hard lockdown in short order,” he added.