Holiday bookings, childcare and job losses – what we learned from Boris Johnson’s latest Downing Street briefing

Here’s what we learned about the coronavirus pandemic from Wednesday’s Government press conference.
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Boris Johnson was joined by the Chief Medical Officer Professor Chris Whitty and the Chief Scientific Adviser Sir Patrick Vallance.

Latest figures

The Prime Minister opened by announcing the latest figures from the Department of Health and Social Care.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson, during a media briefing in Downing Street, London, on coronavirus (COVID-19). Photo: Andrew Parsons/10 Downing Street/Crown Copyright/PA WirePrime Minister Boris Johnson, during a media briefing in Downing Street, London, on coronavirus (COVID-19). Photo: Andrew Parsons/10 Downing Street/Crown Copyright/PA Wire
Prime Minister Boris Johnson, during a media briefing in Downing Street, London, on coronavirus (COVID-19). Photo: Andrew Parsons/10 Downing Street/Crown Copyright/PA Wire
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As of 5pm on June 2, 39,728 people have sadly died across all settings after testing positive for coronavirus, a rise of 359 on the previous count.

A total of 279,856 people have tested positive for coronavirus in the UK with a further 1,871 confirmed as of 9am on June 3.

A total of 4,786,219 tests have been carried out, with 171,829 tests on 2 June though there is still no data regarding the number of people being tested daily.

People urged not to meet indoors

Boris Johnson urged the public not to start gathering indoors if it begins to rain, warning it could undermine the progress made by the lockdown.

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The Prime Minister told the daily Downing Street briefing: "I want to stress one final point which may be relevant today as the weather threatens, I think to take a turn for the worse.

"Some of you may be tempted to move the gatherings you've been enjoying outdoors indoors out of the rain. I really urge you: Don't do that.

"We relaxed the rules on meeting outside for a very specific reason because the evidence shows the risks of transmission are much lower outdoors.

"And the risks of passing on the virus are significantly higher indoors which is why gatherings inside other people's homes are still prohibited.

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"Breaking these rules now could undermine and reverse all the progress that we've made together.

"I have no doubt that won't happen."

PM defends new quarantine measures for travellers

Boris Johnson defended the decision to impose a quarantine on new entrants to the UK amid disquiet on the Tory backbenches on the restriction.

The Prime Minister told the Downing Street briefing: "Once community transmission was widespread within the UK, cases from abroad made up a tiny proportion of the total.

"At the same time you will remember international travel plummeted as countries around the world went into lockdown. As a result measures at the border were halted because they made little difference at the time in our fight against the virus.

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"Now that we're getting the virus under control in the UK, there is a risk that cases from abroad begin once again to make up a greater proportion of overall cases. We therefore need to take steps now to manage that risk of these imported cases triggering a second peak.

Travel corridors ‘will be explored’

Boris Johnson said the Government "will explore the possibility" of "travel corridors" with countries with low rates of coronavirus.

The Prime Minister told the daily Downing Street briefing: "We will review how the policy's working after three weeks and of course we will explore the possibility of international travel corridors with countries that have low rates of infection but only when the evidence shows it is safe to do so.

Should people be booking holidays this year?

Boris Johnson would not be drawn on whether Britons would be able to go abroad on holiday this year.

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He told the Downing Street press conference: "I'm not going to give advice on individuals' travel arrangements, but you know what the Foreign Office guidance is... everybody at the moment should avoid non-essential travel."

He added: "We have got to knock this virus on the head."

Chief scientific adviser admits there could be around 8,000 new daily coronavirus cases in the UK

The Government's chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance has said there could be 8,000 new cases of coronavirus a day in the UK.

Sir Patrick told the daily No 10 briefing that while the latest figures showed more than 1,800 a day had tested positive, data from the Office for National Statistics suggested the true figure was significantly higher.

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At the same time he said the R - the rate of transmission - was still close to 1 which meant the numbers were not coming down quickly.

"We have relatively large numbers still not coming down fast. That gives relatively little room for manoeuvre. We have to tread very cautiously," he said.

He said the number of deaths was also coming down "but it is not coming down as fast as we would like it to come down".

Not being able to secure childcare is a valid reason to delay returning to work

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The Prime Minister said not being able to secure childcare was a reason to be let off returning to work.

Responding to a question from the public about what parents could do about going back to work if their children were not yet entitled to return to school and they could not acquire childcare, Boris Johnson said he "hoped to get more primary school children back".

But he added: "We are doing a huge amount to support families in terms of their income and their basic inability to go back to work.

"As I said several times, obviously employers have to be reasonable and if someone can't get childcare then that is clearly a reason for them not to be able to go back to work.

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"We want to do everything we can to help you with childcare if we can.

"We will try and get more schools back in due course but it is, I'm afraid, all conditional on making progress in fighting that virus."

Alert level unanimously decided to remain at ‘four’

Chris Whitty said it was the "unanimous view" of the UK's four chief medical officers that the coronavirus alert level should remain at four.

He told the Downing Street press conference: "We're trending downwards. The alert level is a clear four but with a direction of travel down - that was the unanimous view of the four chief medical officers on the advice, the independent advice, of the Joint Biosecurity Centre."

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A move to the level three stage would see a further easing of lockdown and social distancing measures.

Many job losses expected and apprenticeships for young people

Boris Johnson has said there will be "many, many job losses" as a result of the coronavirus outbreak but promised the Government would take an "activist" approach to reviving the economy.

"I am afraid tragically there will be many, many job losses. That is just inevitable," he told the No 10 daily briefing.

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He said that ministers would be as interventionist in the aftermath of the pandemic has they had been previously in protecting jobs.

"We will be just as interventionist in the next phase, investing in the UK economy, investing in infrastructure, taking our country forward so that we bounce back as sharply and decisively as we can," he said.

He said he believed it was "vital" to ensure young people who were likely to be the hardest hit were guaranteed apprenticeships.

"Young people in particular I believe should be guaranteed an apprenticeship," he said.

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