Coronavirus: Britain sets out battle plan to contain spread of disease
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A woman wears a protective face mask as she travels on a London tube train carriage in London on March 3, 2020.
PHOTO: AFP
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LONDON • Britain unveiled its battle plan to tackle the spread of the coronavirus yesterday, warning that as many as a fifth of employees could be off work at the peak of the outbreak.
Britain has so far had 39 confirmed cases of the virus, and Prime Minister Boris Johnson said it was highly likely the country would see a growing number of cases.
The plan includes possible closing of schools, working from home and the cancelling of large-scale gatherings to delay the peak of the outbreak. Businesses could be given extra time to pay their taxes if they are facing short-term cash-flow issues.
"This is a national challenge... I think we will get through it in very good shape," Mr Johnson said at a news conference alongside England's chief medical officer Chris Whitty and the government's chief scientific adviser Patrick Vallance.
The government said its strategy is aimed at delaying the peak of the outbreak until the summer, when the weather is warmer and the health service is under less seasonal pressure.
This would also allow more time for the development of vaccines.
Possible options include discouraging unnecessary travel, delaying non-urgent healthcare and drafting in health professionals who have retired. If staff shortages impact emergency services such as the police force, they will focus on responding to serious crimes and maintaining public order. The army is also ready to step in and provide back-up to the police if needed.
If the outbreak worsens or is severe and prolonged, the government said it would move from seeking to contain and delay the outbreak to mitigating its impact.
Dr Whitty said he thought it was unlikely that Britain would be in the situation of locking down individual cities, but all options would be kept available.
"Locking down a city is most useful when it is starting in one place with a high transmission in that place and nowhere else," he said.
Finance Minister Rishi Sunak has asked officials to draw up further measures to support the public health response, businesses and the economy as needed, and will give an update in his first budget to Parliament next Wednesday.
REUTERS
