‘Think Again’ Before Leaving Your Home Warns UK Government Minister

Pedestrians wearing facemasks walk past NHS signage promoting "Stay Home, Save Lives" on a
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Kurt Zindulka

People in areas of the UK with identified outbreaks of the South African strain of the coronavirus have been warned to “think again” before leaving their homes, a government minister said.

Universities Minister Michelle Donelan said on Tuesday that while there have been no extra coronavirus lockdown measures in the eight areas identified as having confirmed cases of the mutated virus, people in the affected regions should refrain from activities which are permitted under lockdown rules.

“The message is ‘think again’ just before you go about activities, even for those activities that are within the rules such as essential shopping,” she told Sky News.

“Do you really need to go for that shopping or have you got enough in? Could you work from home? Could you have that conversation with your employer? It’s about reinforcing the rules that are in place.

“We’re at that final hurdle, but it’s still a very perilous stage of this virus and we’ve got these new variants spreading, so we do have to be extra vigilant and really abide by those rules to the letter of them, and also contemplate every action and activity that we do.”

Ms Donelan said that while it is “easy to become tired” of abiding by the draconian lockdown regulations, she pronounced: “We can’t. We’re at the final hurdle.”

The warning comes as the government has embarked upon a door-to-door coronavirus testing push in the affected areas, after just eleven people, with no history of international travel, tested positive for the South African variant.

Since December 22, Public Health England has identified 105 cases of the mutation through gene sequencing technology.

Health officials and police officers have been tasked with appearing on doorsteps to offer coronavirus tests in parts of London, Kent, Hertfordshire, Walsall, Woking in Surrey, and Lancashire.

Over 80,000 people over the age of sixteen will be targetted in the testing push, whether or not they display any symptoms of the virus.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said on Monday that it was “imperative” that people take the tests when offered, in order to contain any outbreaks.

Mr Hancock also called on people in the affected areas to exercise “special precautions”, saying: “The stay at home message is there for everyone but in particular in those areas, it’s absolutely vital that people minimise all social contact and get a test when the opportunity arises.”

While government ministers have admitted that there is no evidence that the coronavirus variant is any more lethal than previous strains, they claim that it is more transmissible.

Ministers say there is no evidence the variant is any more lethal, but that it is more transmissible.

At a Downing Street briefing on Monday, Dr Susan Hopkins of Public Health England said that the three vaccines which have been trialled in the UK may be less effective in fighting the South African strain, though claimed they will still provide a good level of immunity.

Dr Hopkins also went onto suggest that people may need to get a yearly vaccine shot, similar to booster shots for the flu.

Follow Kurt Zindulka on Twitter here @KurtZindulka

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