New four-week Lockdown for England, and Furlough scheme extended until November
Boris Johnson announces four-week England lockdown from Thursday 5th November 2020 to 2nd December 2020 to try to keep rising coronavirus levels under control. All bars and restaurants will close but takeaways can continue to operate as in the Spring lockdown. Shielding measures will not be reintroduced, but vulnerable people or those aged over 75 are told to especially careful. Schools and Universities will be kept open throughout the period unlike I the lockdown earlier this year as the current surge in the virus takes the UK total number of positive cases to one million mark, it now stands at 1, 011, 860.
If no action is taken, government forecasts up to 4, 000 deaths a day as over the past week, the UK has averaged almost 23, 000 new cases a day, and 237 deaths with coronavirus.
Boris Johnson said “Over the next few days and weeks we plan a steady but massive expansion in the deployment of these quick turnaround tests to be used to test whle towns and even whole cities. The programme will begin in a matter of days and will be assisted by the military”.
The PM says he is under “no illusions” about how difficult it will be for businesses- and is truly sorry for that”. He is extending the furlough scheme through November.
Johnson confirms the measures will end on 2 December at that point “ We’ll seek to ease restrictions going back into the tiered system on a local and a regional basis according to the lastest data and trends”.