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Britain asks public to respect coronavirus lockdown
LONDON, March 24, 2020 (BSS/AFP) – Britain’s leaders on Tuesday urged
people to respect an unprecedented countrywide lockdown, saying that
following advice to stay at home would stop people dying of coronavirus.
“Unless you stay at home, then the people you love most may die,” senior
minister Michael Gove said in a round of broadcast interviews.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson late on Monday bowed to pressure to follow
other European countries in shutting most shops and services, as the death
toll reached 335.
Many streets were deserted on Tuesday morning, although reduced traffic
still circulated in London and construction workers were being allowed to
stay on site.
Pictures on social media showed packed rush-hour trains on the London
Underground “Tube” network, but this is partly as a result of a dramatic
reduction in services.
Johnson said people must stay inside except to buy essentials and take
daily exercise, but there were questions about how the new rules will be
enforced.
“For those people who are determined to flout the rules, the police will
have the tools in order to ensure that those people are penalised and
punished”, Gove said, citing the risk of a fine.
– Police ‘very stretched’ –
But Britain’s police forces were thinly spread even before the outbreak,
which has caused further shortages due to officers self-isolating.
Peter Fahy, the former head of police in Manchester, said clarification
was needed, particularly on how to enforce a new rule banning gatherings of
more than two people.
“Our police officers are already very stretched,” he told BBC television.
“It will require a huge amount of public support, public acceptance and
public compliance.”
Britain has been slower than some of its neighbours to impose a shutdown
to tackle the outbreak of COVID-19 sweeping the globe.
Johnson insists he has been following the scientific advice, but many
commentators suggest his instinctive dislike of telling people what to do has
played a part.
Last week, the government told people to maintain ‘social distancing’ and
on Friday shut pubs, restaurants and cafes — only to see crowds of people
packing parks and beaches over the sunny weekend.
“You must stay at home,” Johnson told the country in a televised address,
which broadcast industry analysts said was watched by 27 million people,
calling the situation a “national emergency”.
– ‘Eerily quiet’ –
AFP reporters on Tuesday morning reported quiet streets with shops
shuttered and pavements emptied except for joggers.
On Hampstead Heath, one of London’s most popular open spaces, many people
were out for an early morning walk with their dog or for a run.
Most followed park signs to keep two metres away from each other.
One south London supermarket was doing brisk trade from the minute it
opened at 6:00 am (0600 GMT), although most shoppers were keeping apart.
One shop assistant said she had been worried about being stopped going
into work.
“I got in at 4:30 am and the roads were eerily quiet. My manager told me
to bring proof of where I work in case the police stopped me,” she told AFP
but added she was not checked.
In Edinburgh, which relies on tourism, tour guides, buses, bagpipers on
street corners were nowhere to be seen, as the Scottish capital turned into a
ghost town.
The popular statue of Greyfriars Bobby — a Skye terrier who won hearts
for guarding his master’s grave in the late 1800s — was covered by a medical
face mask.
Johnson’s government has already announced unprecedented measures to help
businesses and workers hit by the economic fallout, as latest statistics
showed a record slump in industrial output.
New help is expected for the self-employed.
Lawmakers are also debating proposed emergency legislation to tackle the
outbreak.
BSS/AFP/ARS/1739 hrs