Restaurants, pubs, gyms and cinemas in London will be ordered to close their doors in an attempt to further contain the coronavirus outbreak.
As reported by the Evening Standard, the government is ramping up its efforts to slow down the spread of Covid-19, with Brits so far advised to avoid public spaces and social gatherings.
So far, the capital has been hit hardest by the pandemic, and it's believed that at least 58 of the fatal cases of the virus have been in London, with Johnson saying the city is a few weeks ahead of the rest of the country.
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Shops that aren't deemed 'essential' could be closed to stop customers passing on the virus.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said this morning on TalkRadio: "If you stay at home, you are saving lives. I know, of course, this is a more dangerous disease for older people but not exclusively, some young people get it too."
Speaking about the trouble with young people and social distancing, Wes Streeting, chairman of the London group of Labour MPs, told the Evening Standard: "Asking nicely isn't working. The Government must now take more direct action by ordering their closure and providing income protection for the workers affected."
Mr Hancock said that people should still be able to go shopping for essentials, saying the measures would be used in extreme circumstances, where people are obviously disregarding the government's advice.
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He added: "In the emergency Bill that's in front of Parliament right now, we are taking the powers to be able to enforce these measures, so we can make it happen by law if we need to.
"I'd rather not do that and the evidence so far is that the vast majority of people are following the advice, are doing what is sensible and right."
Prime Minister Boris Johnson said yesterday that he hopes to 'turn the tide' of coronavirus within 12 weeks.
During his daily coronavirus briefing, Johnson said: "I am absolutely confident we can turn the tide within the next 12 weeks."
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He added that he believes we can 'send the virus packing'.
There was no mention during Johnson's speech about a rumoured lockdown, but the Prime Minister did say he wouldn't rule out 'tougher measures' if people didn't follow the existing advice, which has encouraged people to social distance themselves where possible.
Johnson said: "We're absolutely emphatic about people avoiding social gatherings, and if we do need to more around that, we will."
Boris Johnson will hold his daily conference at 5pm today, where more is expected to be confirmed.
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