Prime Minister's address to the nation as Third Lockdown for England is announced
The Transcript of the Prime Minister’s Speech made this evening at 8pm is as follows:-
Since the pandemic began last year, the whole United Kingdom has been engaged in a great national effort to fight Covid.
And there is no doubt that in fighting the old variant of the virus, our collective efforts were working and would have continued to work.
But we now have a new variant of the virus. It has been both frustrating and alarming to see the speed with which the new variant is spreading.
Our scientists have confirmed this new variant is between 50 and 70 per cent more transmissible – that means you are much, much more likely to catch the virus and to pass it on.
As I speak to you tonight, our hospitals are under more pressure from Covid than at any time since the start of the pandemic.
In England alone, the number of Covid patients in hospitals has increased by nearly a third in the last week, to almost 27,000.
That number is 40 per cent higher than the first peak in April.
Updated Information from Government throws Christmas Plans into Turmoil
I am sorry to report that the situation has deteriorated since I last spoke to you three days ago. Yesterday afternoon, I was briefed on the latest data showing the virus spreading more rapidly in London, the South East and the East of England than would be expected given the tough restrictions which are already in place.
I also received an explanation for why the virus is spreading more rapidly in these areas. It appears this spread is now being driven by the new variant of the virus, which we first learned about earlier this week. Our advisory group on New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats – NERVTAG – has spent the last few days analysing the new variant. There is no evidence the variant causes more severe illness or higher mortality, but it does appear to be passed on significantly more easily.
NERVTAG’s early analysis suggests the new variant could increase R by 0.4 or greater. Although there is considerable uncertainty, it may be up to 70% more transmissible than the old variant. This is early data. It is subject to review. It is the best we have at the moment, and we have to act on information as we have it because this is now spreading very fast. The U.K. has by far the best genomic sequencing ability in the world, which means we are better able to identify new strains like this than any other country.
The Age of Contagion and its Impact on Climate Change
The world was coming to terms with Climate Change. Some were believers, others were sceptics, but the balance, with some notable exceptions had shifted in favour of the view that the human race was a catalyst in the deterioration of the global environment. The science was becoming clear and beginning to win the day. COP21, The Paris Agreement, had set wheels in motion that would see Nations setting goals to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. These were to be further refined at COP26 in Glasgow in November 2020.
Preparedness to avoid creating Panic
Letting Agents have always been capable of dealing with challenges - change management is part of their psyche. However, as the outbreak of the Coronavirus begins to be more prevalent, agents are putting procedures into place the guidance provided by Public Health England. No one, even the specialists are sure of how this situation will unravel. Larger organisations have already rolled out their plans, small to medium enterprises should follow suit.