British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, on Friday, urged the public to obey the national lockdown as coronavirus deaths continued to rise steeply but new case numbers fell this week.
Speaking in a video posted on popular social media platform – Twitter Johnson said, ‘Please really think twice before leaving the house this weekend and only do so if it’s absolutely necessary,’
The prime minister was expected to give a televised press conference later Friday alongside top medical and scientific officials to discuss the situation.
Read Also: COVID-19 Vaccination Begins In UK
The plea for compliance came as government figures showed fatalities within 28 days of a positive virus test had risen by nearly a third in the last week, taking the mortality toll to a staggering 87,295, the highest in Europe. Health officials announced another 1,280 deaths on Friday. While infections have surpassed 3.3 million, with another 55,761 recorded Friday, new cases have fallen nearly 14 percent in the last week.
All of Britain is under tough lockdown restrictions and people are supposed to stay at home except for over-riding reasons such as work, childcare, and exercise. Officials believe the declining case rates are due to the stringent rules but concede there will be a time lag before hospitalizations and deaths may also drop. In a bid to inoculate the most vulnerable against Covid-19, Britain is rapidly rolling out its programme.
It has so far issued more than three million doses as part of a drive to vaccinate the four groups of most vulnerable people by the middle of next month, and every adult by the autumn. ‘Jab by jab, we will win this fight against Covid,’ Johnson said, vowing that this “extraordinary national effort is only going to accelerate.’
Meanwhile, the number of people in the UK to have been given the first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine is 3,234,946 as of 14 January, according to government data published on Friday – marking a rise of 316,694 from Thursday’s figures.
Some 114,567 first doses have been given in Northern Ireland, on top of the 2,769,164 in England, 126,375 in Wales, and 224,840 in Scotland.
So far, 443,234-second doses have been administered in the UK, including 420,510 in England, 129 in Wales, 19,264 in Northern Ireland, and 3,331 in Scotland.
AFRICA TODAY NEWS, NEW YORK