Summer Lockdown

Lifting rules could lead to outbreak Elderly think they will cope better

- Pippa Crerar

Normal life could remain on hold until after summer, health chiefs warn as the whole country is put on an emergency footing not seen since the Second World War.

Disruption may even continue until the end of the year as the coronavirus pandemic continues.

Experts fear lifting the lockdown too soon after the expected peak next month could lead to a surge in infections, creating a second high for the deadly disease.

Deputy chief medical officer Dr Jenny Harries said: “This is not to say we would be in complete lockdown for six months. But as a nation we have to be really, really responsible and keep doing what we’re all doing... until we gradually come back to a normal way of living.”

The lockdown will be reviewed every three weeks to see if it can be relaxed, but Dr Harries said it was “plausible” restrictions could continue until the end of the year. Prof Neil Ferguson, chief of the Centre for Global Infectious Disease Analysis at Imperial College London, said the entire population could need to stay home for three months.