Northern Ireland extends lockdown; U.K. likely to extend till May

Thursday, April 16, 2020

The U.K. is likely to extend the coronavirus lockdown until the month of May although an official confirmation is expected to arrive on Thursday. The country was expecting to witness some ease in restrictions next month as reports said that the coronavirus outbreak is reaching its peak in the region.

However, on Wednesday, U.K. Health Secretary Matt Hancock mentioned in a statement that it is quite early to make any changes to the current scenario in the country. He said that it is important for people to stay confined in their homes to mitigate the risk of the virus spread and provide support to the National Health Service as they continue saving lives and fighting against the deadly COVID-19 virus.

On the other hand, England’s Chief Medical Officer, Chris Whitty, informed that the U.K. is about to see a much-flattened graph of new coronavirus cases. He mentioned that the virus is probably reaching its peak in the country. Although, he also informed that it cannot be said that the country has safely passed the peak and added that the number of positive coronavirus cases could rise again.

Meanwhile, on Wednesday, Northern Ireland’s first minister Arlene Foster announced that the lockdown in Northern Ireland would be extended for further three weeks. He mentioned that all restrictions would be reviewed once again as the region enters the second phase of lockdown. The Republic of Ireland has also extended its lockdown until May 5. MLA Michelle O’Neill also informed that Northern Ireland was still in a period of surge and restrictions would be reviewed once the first wave of the pandemic passes.

In addition, lockdown in Scotland and Wales are also set to be extended further. With regard to the U.K.’s constituent nations taking similar measures against the pandemic throughout the period of crisis, government officials are expected to be taking similar decisions regarding the lockdown in the U.K.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab is likely to conduct an emergency committee of ministers to extend the lockdown formally. The meeting is set to be executed on Thursday and will be attended by the leaders of developed administrations from the country. U.K. Ministers are also hopeful regarding Boris Johnson resuming government work on May 7 after successfully fighting the coronavirus disease. Therefore, another meeting by law would be conducted on May 7 with the Prime Minister taking the final call on easing the lockdown next month.

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