London, April 14 (IANS) British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab has said that the British government does not expect to make changes to coronavirus lockdown restrictions this week, it was reported.
Raab, who is deputising for Prime Minister Boris Johnson as he recovers from coronavirus, said on Monday that a meeting of scientific advisers would take place to review evidence relating to the current lockdown restrictions, reports the BBC.
“We don’t expect to make any changes to the measures currently in place at that point and we won’t until we’re confident, as confident as we realistically can be, that any such changes can be safely made,” he said i a press briefing.
He said that easing restrictions too early would “risk a second wave” of infections.
Responding to claims the government lacked an exit strategy, Raab said it was “crucially important that we do not take our eye off the ball or the public’s focus” off social distancing measures.
He admitted the government had been “concerned” people “might start ignoring the advice or cutting corners given the temptation to go out into the sunshine” over the Easter weekend.
However, he said the “overwhelming” majority of people stayed at home.
The number of deaths in the UK hospitals has risen 11,347 – up by 717 since Sunday.
The Department of Health said a further 4,342 people had tested positive for coronavirus as of on Monday night, taking the overall number of cases to 89,571.
–IANS
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