Make or break weekend
» Warning to stay home this Easter... but infection rate fall offers ray of hope » PM Boris out of intensive care... as nation once again salutes NHS heroes
EASTER sun must not tempt us to flout the lockdown, the nation was warned as we applauded our NHS. Falling infection rates brought hopes of beating the pandemic as Boris Johnson left intensive care after three days. But stand-in Dominic Raab said: “Let’s not ruin it now. Let’s not undo the gains we’ve made.”
BRITS have been warned not to set back the fight against coronavirus by breaking strict lockdown rules over the Easter weekend.
Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, standing in for the Prime Minister, urged restraint amid signs socialdistancing was beginning to work.
But with temperatures set to soar over the bank holiday, police warned they were ready to take action against those who flout the rules.
One police chief even warned his force was only “a few days away” from imposing roadblocks.
It comes as Boris Johnson was last night moved back to the ward at St Thomas’ Hospital in South London after his condition improved following three anxious nights in intensive care.
A No10 spokesman said the PM “will receive close monitoring” and was “in extremely good spirits”.
The PM’s fiancée Carrie Symonds broke her silence by tweeting multiple clapping hand emojis and a child’s painting of a rainbow, as the country applauded health workers at 8pm.
Government officials are now confident that new coronavirus infections are starting to level off.
But as Mr Johnson spent his fifth night in hospital, Mr Raab said it was too soon to begin lifting the measures brought in almost three weeks ago.
Saying the Government would not even begin re-assessing the lockdown until the end of next week, he urged the public to think “long and hard” about the impact on heroic NHS staff if they ignored the rules.
“After all the efforts everybody has made, after all the sacrifices so many people have made let’s not ruin it now,” Mr Raab said.
“Let’s not undo the gains we’ve made, let’s not waste the sacrifices so many people have made. We mustn’t give the coronavirus a second chance to kill more people and to hurt our country.”
Apologising that people would not be able to spend time with their families over Easter he added: “The deaths are still rising. It’s too early to lift the measures that we put in place.”
Ministers launched a Stay at Home This Easter publicity drive designed to make sunseekers think twice.
And stars from sport, and music backed the message. England and Manchester United footballer Marcus Rashford, and Happy Mondays singer Shaun Ryder joined key workers to record clips for a video released by Greater Manchester Police yesterday.
The warnings come as new figures showed the number of hospital patients who have died after testing positive rose 881 to 7,978.
But the rate of new infections appears to have slowed and officials are confident lockdown is working. Sources say they now believe Brits with Covid-19 are infecting on average less than one person each.
This is the crucial reproduction number (R0) threshold which, if kept up, would see the outbreak die out.
New daily confirmed cases fell to
We mustn’t give the virus a new chance to kill more people
DOMINIC RAAB URGING PEOPLE TO STICK TO RULES
4,344 yesterday, a significant drop from 5,492 the previous day.
This had been falling with 3,634 on Tuesday, 3,802 on Monday, down from the peak of 5,903 on Sunday.
Lockdown began after modelling showed the reproduction number (R0) – or amount of people each carrier infects – was between 2 and 2.5, meaning cases doubling every four or five days.
A source leading the response to the crisis said: “If the R0 goes below 1, the epidemic just dies out anyway, which is hopefully what’s happening.
“If the R0 is somewhat above 1 you can control it with active measures.”
Daily testing is now starting to be increased to around 15,000 after stalling near the 10,000 a day mark.
But insiders say easing lockdown can only be considered if the Government meets its 100,000-a-day target.
Even then it can only happen if social distancing has been maintained and hospitals are well within capacity.
But the focus is now moving move to a Government “exit strategy”, which it has repeatedly refused to outline.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer asked ministers to publish plans to get Britain out of the lockdown.
He said: “I’m not calling for timings, but the strategy. We need to know plans are in place, and what they are.”
Downing Street said police would have the “full support” of Government in enforcing the coronavirus lockdown at this “critical juncture”.
Northamptonshire chief constable Nick Adderley said: “If we don’t get the compliance we would expect, then the next stage will be roadblocks and it will be stopping people to ask why they are going, where they’re going.”
Cheshire police and the Avon and Somerset force said they would have more police on the roads.
And Supt Glyn Fernquest, of Gwent Police, warned: “We will be stepping up our response to enforcement. There can be no excuses.”