Expert says coronavirus ‘may be slowing’ in UK

Coronavirus in the UK “may be slowing” across the UK after a government scientist advised Downing Street to bring in social distancing measures.

Professor Neil Ferguson, of Imperial College London said, “If we look at the numbers of new hospital admissions, that does appear to be slowing down a bit now.

“It has not yet plateaued, so still the numbers can be increasing each day, but the rate of that increase has slowed.”

Professor Ferguson said the number of cases across the UK has fallen in the last two days, over Saturday and Sunday.

He told BBC Radio 4, “In the UK we can see some early signs of slowing in some indicators, less so deaths because deaths are lagged by a long time from when measures come in force.

“It has not yet plateaued, so still the numbers can be increasing each day, but the rate of that increase has slowed.”

During the daily Downing Street press conference on Sunday, Dr Jenny Harries the deputy chief medical officer warned that the UK lockdown could last for up to six months, or even longer.

She warned people that no one should see the coronavirus crisis as “something that will blow over” within weeks.

The UK’s senior Dr said at the press briefing, “The issue of the three weeks is for us to review where we are and see if we’ve had an impact jointly on the slope of that curve.

The NHS has started “ventilator rationing” across the UK with patients who only have a “reasonable certainty” of surviving coronavirus.

Ventilator machines which are used to keep patients breathing are now restricted to those who will survive on medical grounds.

The NHS said, “very poorly patients with coronavirus may need to be on a ventilator for extended periods.

“for some patients this would not be in their best interests.”