|
 Since the first Omicron cases were detected on Nov. 27 in the United
Kingdom, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has imposed tougher
restrictions and told the nation on Sunday that a "tidal wave" of
Omicron was coming.
Britain says that unless action is taken there could be a million
people infected with Omicron by the end of the month.
"It's spreading at a phenomenal rate, something that we've never
seen before, it's doubling every two to three days in infections,"
Health Secretary Sajid Javid told Sky News.
"That means we're facing a tidal wave of infection, we're once again
in a race between the vaccine and the virus."
The pound fell 0.4% to $1.3225, while it was broadly steady against
the euro at 85.29 pence.
Johnson, who is grappling with a rebellion in his party over
measures to curb Omicron and an outcry over alleged parties at his
Downing Street office during last year's lockdowns, said people
should rush to get booster vaccines to protect "our freedoms and our
way of life".
After COVID-19 was first detected in China in late 2019, he faced
criticism for initially resisting lockdown.
He has also been criticised for overseeing mistakes in transferring
patients into care homes, and for building a costly test-and-trace
system that failed to stop a deadly second wave.
Johnson has repeatedly said that while mistakes were made, the
government was making decisions at pace in the biggest public health
crisis for generations and that his government was swift to roll out
vaccines.
Across the world, COVID has killed 5.3 million people, wiped out
trillions of dollars in economic output and turned normal life
upside down for many. In the United Kingdom, more than 146,000
people have died from COVID.
[to top of second column] |
 'TIDAL WAVE'
As Johnson tries to stem the spread of Omicron,
he faces growing anger from libertarians in his
party over stiffer COVID rules and sinking poll
ratings.
He has faced criticism over his handling of a
sleaze scandal, the awarding of lucrative COVID
contracts, the refurbishment of his Downing
Street flat and a claim he intervened to ensure
pets were evacuated from Kabul during the
chaotic Western withdrawal in August.
An Ipsos MORI survey for The London Evening Standard newspaper
showed opposition Labour leader Keir Starmer's ranking was 13
percentage points ahead of Johnson, the first time a Labour leader
had been viewed as a more capable prime minister since 2008.
It also echoed other polls by showing Labour up three points on 39%
ahead of Johnson's Conservatives, who were down one point since the
last survey in November on 35%.
Javid said although there had been no deaths confirmed in England
and just 10 people hospitalised with the Omicron variant, its swift
spread meant that unless the government acted the health service
could be overwhelmed.
"Two doses are not enough, but three doses still provide excellent
protection against symptomatic infection," Javid said.
The government wants to offer all adults a booster by New Year, an
ambitious target given the Christmas holiday and that vaccinating 1
million people per day is around double the current 530,000 per day.
(Reporting by Guy Faulconbridge and Michael Holden;Editing by Andrew
Cawthorne and Ed Osmond)
[© 2021 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2021 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content |
