UK facing new coronavirus restrictions to fight surge in cases
Pubs, bars and other hospitality venues in the UK will have to close at 10pm from Thursday, as the British government imposes new restrictions to try to curb a surge in coronavirus cases, Euronews reports.
The Prime Minister Boris Johnson is set to announce the new measures on Tuesday, a day after the chief medical and scientific advisors warned about the spread of the virus in all parts of the country.
In a televised statement on Monday, the UK's scientific advisor Sir Patrick Vallance said with "cases doubling roughly every seven days", there could be 50,000 new cases a day by mid-October if the surge continues unabated.
Speaking alongside Chris Whitty, the UK's chief medical officer, Vallance said the "increase in case numbers has translated into a rise in hospitalisations, and deaths are also increasing", warning that what was needed was "speed and action, and enough to bring that rate down".