Restrictions on everyday life in the UK to slow the spread of the coronavirus are likely to be needed for the "next calendar year", the country's top medic says.
Britain is in the fifth week of a lockdown that only allows people to leave home for essential work, food shopping, exercise and limited other reasons.
There were 763 new deaths reported on Wednesday, taking the total to 18,100.
The government said last Thursday the full restrictions would remain in place for at least another three weeks, due to the time needed to develop and roll out vaccines or find a cure, and its chief medical adviser, Chris Whitty, said on Wednesday some forms of social distancing would be needed for much longer.
Britain's Chief Medical Officer Professor Chris Witty. Source: Press Association
Social distancing to stay
Normal life will only return once an effective vaccine or treatment for COVID-19 is available, Mr Whitty said at the government's daily news conference.
"Until we have those - and the probability of having those any time in the next calendar year are incredibly small, and I think we should be realistic about that - we're going to have to rely on other social measures," he said.
The UK reported its highest daily hospital death toll on April 9, when fatalities peaked at 980, and since then the number of hospital deaths reported each day has oscillated between 449 and 917.
Mr Whitty said the descent in new cases and deaths was likely to be slow, given the experience of other European countries.
"If people are hoping that it's suddenly going to move from where we are now, in lockdown, suddenly into 'everything's gone', that is a wholly unrealistic expectation," he said.
"We're going to have to do a lot of things for really quite a long period of time."
People in Australia must stay at least 1.5 metres away from others and gatherings are limited to two people unless you are with your family or household.
If you believe you may have contracted the virus, call your doctor (don’t visit) or contact the national Coronavirus Health Information Hotline on 1800 020 080.
If you are struggling to breathe or experiencing a medical emergency, call 000. SBS is committed to informing Australia’s diverse communities about the latest COVID-19 developments.
News and information is available in 63 languages at sbs.com.au/coronavirus.
Share
