UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Wednesday assured the House of Commons that thousands of UK nationals were following the government's guidance in the fight against COVID-19 and complying with the self-isolation regime under the new test and trace scheme
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 03rd June, 2020) UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Wednesday assured the House of Commons that thousands of UK nationals were following the government's guidance in the fight against COVID-19 and complying with the self-isolation regime under the new test and trace scheme.
The remarks came in response to the criticism of UK Labor leader Keir Starmer, who challenged the prime minister over his handling of the coronavirus crisis and easing lockdown restrictions. Starmer, in particular, recalled that that two weeks ago, Johnson had promised that by June 1, the country would have a "world beating" test, track and trace operation system. According to the opposition, the system is still not operational. Starmer has urged Boris Johnson to "get a grip" on the coronavirus crisis and restore public confidence in the government's handling of the epidemic.
"I am afraid he [Starmer] is casting aspersions on the efforts of tens of thousands of people who have set up a test, track and trace system in this country from a standing start. We now have 40,000 people engaged in this ... as a result of their efforts thousands of people are now following our guidance, following the law and self-isolating to stop the spread of the disease," Johnson said at the weekly Prime Minister's Questions session in the House of Commons.
Johnson also admitted that the UK's coronavirus alert level is still at 4, days after the lockdown measures had been eased for the second time. Level 4 prescribes that COVID-19 is still in general circulation and the transmission rate is high.
In mid-May, the United Kingdom launched its 5-level coronavirus alert system to monitor the situation concerning the COVID-19 outbreak. The level is primarily determined by the R value (basic reproduction number) and the number of coronavirus cases. Johnson said that the UK had been at level four since the start of the epidemic, but was now entering level three, as the country has managed to bring the R level and number of infections down.
The public health authorities in the UK confirmed 1,613 new positive tests for COVID-19 on Tuesday, taking the country's case total to 277,985. On Tuesday, the daily increase in coronavirus-related fatalities stood at 324, a significant rise from the 111 new fatalities reported the day before.
