Boris Johnson Says 'Tougher' Coronavirus Measures May Be Introduced In Next Few Weeks

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said 'tougher measures' may have to be introduced in England to help combat the rise of coronavirus cases.

Speaking on The Andrew Marr Show this morning, Johnson refused to 'speculate' about a potential tier five or what such stricter measures would involve.

However, he said he was 'reconciled' to the fact that restrictions may need to be changed in the 'next few weeks'.

Johnson referred back to the last time he was on the show in October, telling Marr: "You said, 'How does it look?' And I said, 'We were going to have a very bumpy period at Christmas and beyond'.

"But I thought that by spring things would be better. I stick to that. I think that's roughly how it's going to be.

"It may be that we need to do things in the next few weeks that will be tougher in many parts of the country - I am fully reconciled to that."

When Marr pressed him about what a potential tier five might entail, Johnson said: "You've spoken about tier five, I haven't said that.

"But there's obviously a range of tougher measures that we would have to consider."

He was pressed again for more detail, but he continued: "I don't want to speculate. I'm not going to speculate now about what they would be, but I'm sure that all our viewers and listeners will understand what the sort of things [are]."

PA

Johnson did say that that this included the possibility of keeping schools closed, but said this was not 'something we want to do'.

Most primary schools in England are due to open on Monday, apart from those in London and part of the South East, where there has been a worrying spike in cases.

Johnson told Marr the risk to children was 'very, very low', but that the benefit of education was 'so huge'.

He explained that while school closures would be kept 'under constant review', the government was being driven by 'public health considerations and by the massive importance of education'.

Johnson added: "And if you think about the history of the pandemic, we've kept schools going for a long, long time in areas where the pandemic has really been at really high levels."

Topics: UK News, News, Coronavirus, Boris Johnson

Jess Hardiman

Jess is a journalist at LADbible who graduated from Manchester University with a degree in Film Studies, English Language and Linguistics - indecisiveness at its finest, right there. She also works for FOODbible and its sister page Seitanists, which are both a safe haven for her to channel a love for homemade pasta, fennel and everything else in between. You can contact Jess at [email protected].

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