UK Covid stay: ‘we wish this lockdown to be the final,’ says Boris Johnson, as he requires ‘optimism and endurance’ | World information

Q. What are the implications of no vaccination programme being 100% efficient?

Johnson says the vaccines supply a excessive safety towards severe illness or loss of life, however in the intervening time we will’t quantify what which means by way of driving down the incidence of the virus and the pace at which that can occur.

So we simply should be cautious in the intervening time, he provides.

Q. What implications of this for safeguarding public well being? Will some measures like social distancing turn into everlasting?

Whitty says the danger will step by step go down, however whether or not it will get all the way down to zero or to a case the place we’ve to do issues at varied factors within the season is simply too early to say.

By far the vast majority of the heavy lifting is completed by vaccination medication and promising remedies (which the prime minister can’t pronounce) will even assist, he provides.

Q. As soon as faculties are reopened, will you wait to see what impact it has on an infection charges earlier than opening up anything?

Q. Will you announce some other measures on the similar time, e.g. socialising outside?

Johnson says selections aren’t taken but.

Q. Are we seeing an impact of vaccinations on the loss of life price but and if not, when?

Whitty says the early indications indicate there’s some impact but it surely’s too early to place a quantity on it. He expects within the subsequent few weeks we may, he provides.

Q. Are you able to assure this would be the final lockdown and can or not it’s a really gradual easing? Ought to we rule out getaways at Easter?

Johnson says he can’t give that assure, although he’s optimistic in regards to the prospects for opening up with vaccinations.

Q. Will the federal government decide to a psychological well being spokesperson on the subsequent briefing to set out how folks can entry help?

Johnson says the stresses and strains of lockdown are having an affect on folks, including that NHS psychological well being companies and psychological well being charities are nonetheless there to be accessed by those that want them.

I hope there isn’t for much longer to go now, he provides.

Whitty says one of many subsequent precedence teams to obtain their first dose of the vaccine is individuals who have important psychological well being issues.

They’re taking questions now.

Q. How will the NHS deal with stress to re-vaccinate folks yearly and resume regular well being provision?

Whitty says we nonetheless don’t know the way lengthy we are going to want between vaccinations and if there can be variants that escape the immunity the vaccine offers.

The vaccine can be redesigned across the new variant, he says. However we don’t know the way recurrently this can be wanted, he provides.

It is going to in all probability fluctuate yr by yr, however in all probability gained’t be on this scale, he says.

Stevens says 1000’s of volunteers and excessive road pharmacists have helped the vaccination effort, which can assist the standard NHS workforce.

Stevens is talking now.

Between now and the tip of April, those that have been invited for his or her first dose however haven’t come ahead, they will nonetheless achieve this by getting in contact with their GP, he says.

Individuals will even get their second booster doses, he says, starting early-mid March, 12 weeks on from the primary dose, on the similar place you had the primary dose.

And the supply can be prolonged to a bigger group of individuals, for folks aged 65-69, he says, in addition to these with diabetes, coronary heart issues, studying difficulties and psychological sickness.

Eligible grownup carers will even be contacted by letter, he says.

The variety of folks receiving a primary dose of the vaccine is steadily going up, he says.

The primary layer of safety – the primary dose – solely begins to work three weeks later, he says.

It’s essential folks return for his or her second dose, Whitty says.

They don’t but know the way efficient these vaccines are towards transmission, he reiterates.

The extra we vaccinate out locally, the extra we defend these most weak, he says.

The variety of folks dying stays excessive however is continuous to go down, he says.

The latest seven-day common is 657 deaths, now beneath the height of the primary wave, he provides.

The variety of folks in hospital can be coming down, however charges are nonetheless very excessive (barely above what they have been in April in the course of the peak final yr), he says.

Whitty is talking now.

The variety of folks testing constructive for Covid-19 is coming down steadily over time, but it surely’s nonetheless at fairly a excessive degree (above September final yr), he says.

We have to be optimistic but in addition affected person, he says.

Subsequent week he can be setting out the path to normality, Johnson says, including that he desires this lockdown to be the final.