CORONAVIRUS LATEST

CORONAVIRUS LOCKDOWNS will be reimposed on a local level if flare-ups of the virus are detected, the Health Secretary has confirmed,

Matt Hancock said yesterday that it was “incredibly important” to stop local flare-ups, and that there were a number of agencies involved in that.

Speaking at the daily press briefing, Mr Hancock said the next stage of the response, where a test and trace programme was launched, meant a “move to a system where we have a more targeted lockdown, where if you’re a high risk because you’ve been in contact with somebody who’s tested positive, you’re asked to self-isolate.

“And also it will give us the information to have local lockdowns and focus on areas where there may be flare-ups.”

It was not made clear what was meant by local in this context – whether that corresponded to towns, cities, counties or regions, for example – but he added: “It’s incredibly important and it will stop those local flare-ups from happening.”

Last week it was announced Leeds would be one of 11 areas to draw up local plans on how this would be implemented.

And Mr Hancock said yesterday: “We have a system that we’re putting in place with a combination of Public Health England, and the new Joint Biosecurity Centre, along with the local directors of public health – who play an absolutely crucial role in the decision making – to make sure if there is a local flare-up, we have a local lockdown.

“So local lockdowns will be part of the future system that we put in place as part of the NHS test and trace system.”

The Government’s testing coordinator Professor John Newton said “whatever measures we put in place have to work everywhere in the country, and all different areas will have their own different considerations”.

He said the system will need both national and local input to be a success.

Prof Newton said: “The whole of civic society needs to be involved in coronavirus. We’re all affected by it and in fact, many different organisations will be involved in helping us to respond to it, whether that’s in local councils who help with infection control, but also in supporting people who might be self-isolating, and many other local businesses who will need to use them.

“So distancing to prevent infection, but also to respond when their employees are asked to selfisolate and support them.

“So it is a whole country effort. It has a national component, but it has a very important local component as well.”