CRISIS? WHAT CRISIS?

Boris Johnson Rejects New COVID Lockdown as Health Chiefs Warn of ‘Winter Crisis’

Prime minister says he has a “Plan B” if COVID case counts continue to rise, but his ministers say the U.K. is just “learning to live with the virus.”

Prime Minister Boris Johnson promised he had a “Plan B” to keep Britain safe when he lifted the U.K.’s last COVID-19 restrictions in July. Now, with coronavirus cases surging and health chiefs warning of a “winter crisis,” it’s becoming clear what that plan is: Just keep calm and carry on. The NHS Confederation, which represents regional health services and employers, called Wednesday for a return to mandatory face coverings and other restrictions to stop hospitals becoming overwhelmed with people infected with coronavirus. Despite official figures showing as many as 50,000 new infections a day and around 1,000 deaths a week, Johnson’s government rejected the demands, with Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng insisting that both death and hospitalization rates were much lower than they were last winter. “We are learning to live with the virus—and get back to normal life,” he told ITV’s Good Morning Britain.