The UK Health Secretary, Matt Hancock has warned that the new strain of COVID-19 is “out of control” and people need to behave as if they already have the virus, especially in the new Tier 4 areas of England.
The new variant – named VUI-202012/01 – saw the Prime Minister, Boris Johnson cancel Christmas for millions of people after he was advised the fast-moving new variant of the virus is 70% more transmissible than existing strains, and appears to be driving a rapid spike in new infections in Tier 4 areas; London and southern England.
However, “there’s no evidence to suggest it is more lethal or causes more severe illness,” or that vaccines would be less effective against it, he said.
In response to the surge, Mr Johnson announced a stay-at-home order for the capital and southeast England until at least December 30 to slow the spread of the disease.
Mr Hancock, in the wake of the PM’s decision said everybody was looking forward to Christmas, but the new infectious and rapid-spreading strain “was out of control” and the government had to act “quickly and decisively”.
He suggested the strengthened measures could be in place for months saying, “It (the new strain) is an enormous challenge, until we can get the vaccine rolled out to protect people. This is what we face over the next couple of months.
“Everybody, particularly people in Tier 4 areas, needs to behave as if they might well have the virus – that is the only way we are going to get it under control.”
He added that controlling the new strain of COVID-19 is “more important now than ever”, entreating people to stick to the rules and reduce social contact “because this is deadly serious.
“This is a deadly disease, we need to keep it under control, and it has been made more difficult by this new variant.”
Additionally, Professor Andrew Hayward of the government’s New and Emerging Virus Threats Advisory Group (NERVTAG) said Britons should be “very concerned” about the mutated strain of COVID-19 that is circulating in London and the South East.
Stressing on the importance of how much easier this strain passes from person-to-person, he said, “This is really terrible news in terms of the pandemic.
“If the vaccine is the best news, this is the worst news we’ve had so far, and we really, really need to tighten down the hatches to stop the spread of this strain while vaccinating as many people as possible.”
Meanwhile, several countries have banned flights to and from the United Kingdom with others considering such action, all in hopes of blocking the new strain of the coronavirus from spreading across the continent.
As a result, the pound has fallen sharply and stock markets have plunged. Sterling dipped by as much as three cents against the US dollar to close to $1.32 and was nearly two cents down versus the euro at close to €1.08 while the FTSE 100 opened more than 130 points, or 2%, lower.
