LONDON: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Tuesday that England could hold a surge in Covid-19 infection without turning off the economy when England reported a record high of everyday, driven by Omicron variants.
Johnson has rejected strict locking measures in the UK, betting that drive vaccine booster and carefully among the population will be enough to limit the latest waves.
England reported 218,724 new Covid cases on Tuesday, a new record for the number of cases reported on one day – despite the numbers that were also leaning to report delays during the holidays.
Johnson said he clung to the steps “plan B” which was introduced in England last month, which included the use of facial coverings on public transportation and in stores but did not limit meetings or close businesses.
“Together with the size of the steps we introduce before Christmas, we have the opportunity to ride this omicron wave without turning off our country once again.
We can keep our school and our business open, and we can find a way to live with this virus, “Johnson said.
“But the coming weeks will be a challenge, both here in the UK and throughout the world.
No one escaped from the fact that some services will be disturbed by the absence of staff,” Johnson has warned that hospitals will face quite a lot of pressure in In the coming weeks.
And on Tuesday announced a Daily Covid-19 test for 100,000 important workers.
While receipts have increased since mid-December, they have not tracked down the trajectory of everyday cases, it may reflect the impact of vaccines and booster shots, the possibility of lower omicron severity and lag time in the hospital.
Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty said that the death rate did not increase with the increase in cases, while Johnson said that more than 60% of people in intensive care with Covid had not received vaccines.
Neil Ferguson, an epidemiologist at the London Imperial College, said that inpatient patterns could change as the omicron wave seeped into an older age group.
“Inpatient is generally still rising throughout the country, and we may see a high level for several weeks,” he told BBC Radio.
“Vaccination survives in terms of protection against severe illness, assisted by the fact that Omicron is almost certainly less severe, but still puts pressure on the health system.”