UK Could Face Coronavirus Curfew, London Lockdown ‘Inevitable’

A pedestrian wearing a face mask walks along Westminster Bridge in front of the Houses of
ISABEL INFANTES/AFP via Getty Images
Victoria Friedman

With the UK’s coronavirus outbreak progress just two weeks behind Italy, the prime minister is said to be considering an enforced nationwide curfew as Britons ignore social distancing recommendations, whilst a government source has said that at least a lockdown of London is “inevitable”.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson had said during Sunday’s coronavirus briefing that while he advises people to abide by the government’s advice on social distancing, “If people can’t do that, won’t do that, don’t do that, we will, of course, have to bring in tougher measures.” Clarifying that that could include “curfews and prohibitions on movement”, he said he and his team would be thinking about the option “very, very actively in the next 24 hours”.

The warning came after the government enforced the closure of pubs, restaurants, and gyms in an effort to limit the chances of Britons coming into contact with one another and spreading the deadly Chinese coronavirus. MPs will debate the government’s emergency coronavirus bill this afternoon, with Prime Minister Johnson attempting to get the legislation through within the day. The law would give police the power to enforce lockdowns of venues and even the ability to detain those who refuse testing or isolation orders.

Health secretary Matt Hancock told Sky News that a decision on whether to restrict Britons’ movements would come “very soon”, saying on Monday: “This isn’t the sort of thing that I wanted to do. But it’s the sort of thing that as a nation we’ve got to be prepared to see in order to stop this virus.”

The health secretary also criticised those who are ignoring social distancing rules as ” very selfish”, telling BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “The consequence of that costs lives and it means for everyone this will go on for longer.”

Official guidance was already updated to urge Britons to stay in their primary residence amidst reports over the weekend that beauty spots were seeing higher-than-expected numbers of visitors, sparking fears that rural and coastal communities could be infected by city-dwelling day-trippers. The National Trust, which manages some of Britain’s historic buildings and parklands, announced on Saturday that it would be closing its parks and gardens after shuttering its houses last week. Authorities which run sites in the Lake District and Yorkshire Dales have also told people to stay away, saying “now is not the time for tourism”.

Parks across London are also closing as it became evident during the warming Spring weather this weekend that Londoners were not heeding social distancing advice.

The prime minister is also reportedly facing pressure from the Cabinet and advisers to lock down London, which is weeks ahead of the rest of the country in terms of infection. A government source told The Times: “The prime minister will have the full support of the cabinet and the country at large if he goes ahead with this.”

The source added: “It is inevitable, you just have to look at other countries. The sooner you do it the better. The difficulty the government is facing is that the spread of this virus is exponential. We won’t know if what we’re doing is the right thing until it is too late.”

London’s Labour mayor, Sadiq Khan, warned that more “people will die” unless his city’s residents heed social distancing recommendations.

“Unless people stay at home, unless people stop using public transport unless it’s essential, unless people stop interacting with each other, more people will die,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

The government had denied last week that a London lockdown was on the cards, with a spokesman saying there was “zero prospect of any restrictions being placed on travelling in and out of London”.

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