London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Oct 23, 2025

UK at 'critical moment' with coronavirus

UK at 'critical moment' with coronavirus

New measures to tackle the increase in coronavirus cases "will take time to feed through", Boris Johnson says.


The prime minister told a No 10 briefing the UK was at a "critical moment" and the rising number of cases and deaths shows "why our plan is so essential".

He said he would "not hesitate" to impose further restrictions if needed.

Chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance said: "We don't have this under control at the moment."

"There's no cause for complacency here at all," he added.

It comes as the latest UK coronavirus figures showed there have been a further 7,108 cases and another 71 deaths.

Last week, Mr Johnson introduced restrictions including a 10pm closing time for pubs, bars and restaurants in England, with similar announcements in Scotland and Wales, and a 15-person limit on weddings.

Since then, further local lockdowns have come into force, including in north-east England, where households are banned from mixing indoors.

At the press conference at Downing Street, Mr Johnson also said the nation could face the winter "with confidence" because it was now better prepared than in March.

The preparations include being on track for 500,000 tests a day by the end of October, 2,000 beds in seven Nightingale hospitals and a four-month supply of protective equipment (PPE) such as masks, gowns and visors.

He said they had trebled the number of ventilators in the NHS to 31,500 in the last six months.

There were 312 Covid-19 patients in mechanical ventilator beds as of Tuesday, the government said, and 2,252 in hospital, as reported on Monday.

'Will the second wave be less severe?'


It is now clear the second wave is here. Infections, hospital cases and deaths are all rising.

But what happens next is the big unknown.

The doomsday scenario of a doubling of cases every week that was put forward last week is not materialising.

The increase in hospital admissions is even more gradual - and the total numbers being admitted are more than 10 times lower than they were at the peak.

It points to a slower, less severe wave this time round.

But it is still early days.

We are just at the start of the autumn and winter period when respiratory viruses circulate more.

The situation could easily unravel.

However, the UK, like other countries, is in a much stronger position than we were when we walked blind into the first wave.

Better treatments are in place, social distancing has become routine and - despite the problems - there is much more testing available.

The odds are certainly stacked in our favour more than they were six months ago.

Mr Johnson also thanked "everyone for the fantastic national effort that we are seeing".

"No matter how impatient we may be, how fed up we may become, there is only one way of doing this, and that's by showing a collective forbearance, common sense and willingness to make sacrifices for the safety of others," he said.

Mr Johnson paid particular tribute to university students, hundreds of whom have been forced to self-isolate, and are "experiencing a first term back at university unlike anything they could have imagined".

Plans were being put in place to allow students home safely for Christmas, the prime minister promised.

He urged people to use the NHS Test and Trace app, saying it had reached 14 million downloads.

He also said he would resume providing regular Downing Street briefings.



'A long winter ahead'


The prime minister warned he was prepared to take "more costly" action against the virus if necessary.

"If we put in the work together now, then we give ourselves the best possible chance of avoiding that outcome and avoiding further measures," he said.

England's chief medical officer Prof Chris Whitty told the press conference that the number of Covid-19 patients was rising, especially in hotspots, although they remained lower than in early April.

In London, the north-east and north-west of England there was a "significant uptick" in the number of people admitted to intensive care, he said.

"We are pointing out that the direction of travel for both hospitals and intensive care is going in the wrong direction, particularly in these areas that have seen rapid increases in cases," he said.

"We have got a long winter ahead of us."

Prof Whitty said the pattern of cases was "rather different" in the second wave, with a "heavy concentration" of infections in areas such as the the Midlands, as well north-east and north-west England, alongside the general rise in Covid-19.

He said cases were increasing "quite rapidly" among older teenagers and under-21s, but the rate of transmission among school-age children was not changing very much.

The government has faced criticism in recent days over the lack of parliamentary scrutiny of its coronavirus measures and the complexity of the changing rules.

'Urgent review'


Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said there had to be "a national effort to prevent a second lockdown".

But he said the government was not fulfilling its role of providing a "very clear strategy", instead offering "confusion".

Sir Keir said there needed to be an "urgent review" of local restrictions, as they had now been imposed in 48 areas and only lifted in one - Luton.

A third of the UK population will be affected by some form of local coronavirus rules when new measures come into effect in four more local council areas in Wales on Thursday.

The prime minister, who on Tuesday apologised for misstating the rules in the North East, admitted there could be complexities but defended the local approach.

"The best thing I can tell you is that everybody in the North East or elsewhere, in Merseyside, the Midlands, everywhere there are local restrictions, get on the websites, look at precisely what you're supposed to do," he said.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
US Administration Under President Donald Trump Reportedly Lifts Ban on Ukraine’s Use of Storm Shadow Missiles Against Russia
‘Frightening’ First Night in Prison for Sarkozy: Inmates Riot and Shout ‘Little Nicolas’
White House Announces No Imminent Summit Between Trump and Putin
US and Qatar Warn EU of Trade and Energy Risks from Tough Climate Regulation
Apple Challenges EU Digital Markets Act Crackdown in Landmark Court Battle
Nicolas Sarkozy begins five-year prison term at La Santé in Paris
Japan stocks surge to record as Sanae Takaichi becomes Prime Minister
This Is How the 'Heist of the Century' Was Carried Out at the Louvre in Seven Minutes: France Humiliated as Crown with 2,000 Diamonds Vanishes
China Warns UK of ‘Consequences’ After Delay to London Embassy Approval
France’s Wealthy Shift Billions to Luxembourg and Switzerland Amid Tax and Political Turmoil
"Sniper Position": Observation Post Targeting 'Air Force One' Found Before Trump’s Arrival in Florida
Shouting Match at the White House: 'Trump Cursed, Threw Maps, and Told Zelensky – "Putin Will Destroy You"'
Windows’ Own ‘Siri’ Has Arrived: You Can Now Talk to Your Computer
Thailand and Singapore Investigate Cambodian-Based Prince Group as U.S. and U.K. Sanctions Unfold
‘No Kings’ Protests Inflate Numbers — But History Shows Nations Collapse Without Strong Executive Power
Chinese Tech Giants Halt Stablecoin Launches After Beijing’s Regulatory Intervention
Manhattan Jury Holds BNP Paribas Liable for Enabling Sudanese Government Abuses
Trump Orders Immediate Release of Former Congressman George Santos After Commuting Prison Sentence
S&P Downgrades France’s Credit Rating, Citing Soaring Debt and Political Instability
Ofcom Rules BBC’s Gaza Documentary ‘Materially Misleading’ Over Narrator’s Hamas Ties
Diane Keaton’s Cause of Death Revealed as Pneumonia, Family Confirms
Former Lostprophets Frontman Ian Watkins Stabbed to Death in British Prison
"The Tsunami Is Coming, and It’s Massive": The World’s Richest Man Unveils a New AI Vision
Outsider, Heroine, Trailblazer: Diane Keaton Was Always a Little Strange — and Forever One of a Kind
Dramatic Development in the Death of 'Mango' Founder: Billionaire's Son Suspected of Murder
Two Years of Darkness: The Harrowing Testimonies of Israeli Hostages Emerging From Gaza Captivity
EU Moves to Use Frozen Russian Assets to Buy U.S. Weapons for Ukraine
Europe Emerges as the Biggest Casualty in U.S.-China Rare Earth Rivalry
HSBC Confronts Strategic Crossroads as NAB Seeks Only Retail Arm in Australia Exit
U.S. Chamber Sues Trump Over $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Shenzhen Expo Spotlights China’s Quantum Step in Semiconductor Self-Reliance
China Accelerates to the Forefront in Global Nuclear Fusion Race
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
Australia’s Wedgetail Spies Aid NATO Response as Russian MiGs Breach Estonian Airspace
McGowan Urges Chalmers to Cut Spending Over Tax Hike to Close $20 Billion Budget Gap
Victoria Orders Review of Transgender Prison Placement Amid Safety Concerns for Female Inmates
U.S. Treasury Mobilises New $20 Billion Debt Facility to Stabilise Argentina
French Business Leaders Decry Budget as Macron’s Pro-Enterprise Promise Undermined
Trump Claims Modi Pledged India Would End Russian Oil Imports Amid U.S. Tariff Pressure
Surging AI Startup Valuations Fuel Bubble Concerns Among Top Investors
Australian Punter Archie Wilson Tears Up During Nebraska Press Conference, Sparking Conversation on Male Vulnerability
Australia Confirms U.S. Access to Upgraded Submarine Shipyard Under AUKUS Deal
“Firepower” Promised for Ukraine as NATO Ministers Meet — But U.S. Tomahawks Remain Undecided
Brands Confront New Dilemma as Extremists Adopt Fashion Labels
The Sydney Sweeney and Jeans Storm: “The Outcome Surpassed Our Wildest Dreams”
Erika Kirk Delivers Moving Tribute at White House as Trump Awards Charlie Presidential Medal of Freedom
British Food Influencer ‘Big John’ Detained in Australia After Visa Dispute
ScamBodia: The Chinese Fraud Empire Shielded by Cambodia’s Ruling Elite
French PM Suspends Macron’s Pension Reform Until After 2027 in Bid to Stabilize Government
Orange, Bouygues and Free Make €17 Billion Bid for Drahi’s Altice France Telecom Assets
×