LONDON (UK) – British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has called senior ministers to an unscheduled meeting on Friday evening to talk about containing a new variant of the coronavirus, found to be more virulent, as reported by The Telegraph newspaper.
An emergency tightening of COVID-19 restrictions could be announced as soon as Saturday, which could possibly include restrictions on travel between the southeast of England, encompassing London, and the rest of the country, the newspaper said.
A spokesman for the prime minister said he was unable to comment on the report immediately.
Britain’s government on Monday said a rise in new infections might have partly connection with the new variant as it categorised its capital city and other areas into the highest tier of COVID-19 restrictions.
The Telegraph also reported on Friday that government officials were hopeful that the AstraZeneca-Oxford University COVID-19 vaccine would clear regulatory approval on Dec. 28 or 29, thereby becoming a catalyst to accelerate the vaccination campaign.
Johnson said on Friday he hoped that England would not need to go into a third lockdown post Christmas.