Boris Johnson to hold emergency Cabinet meeting this afternoon

The Prime Minister will be hosting an emergency Cabinet meeting today as the UK braces for the reintroduction of lockdown restrictions.

According to reports, Boris Johnson will meet his top team at 2pm as he comes under mounting pressure to tackle the surge in Omicron variant cases before they get out of control and overwhelm the NHS.

This comes after more than 10,000 new Omicron cases were found across the UK over the weekend, bringing the overall case number to over 90,000. 

Over the weekend, The Telegraph reported that Johnson has been presented with three scenarios for tougher restrictions by scientists, the first being the lowest level possible and asking people to limit their indoor contacts.

The second option is said to bring in a full ban on indoor household mixing, reintroduce social distancing in all public areas and bring in an 8pm curfew on pubs and restaurants, as well as limiting them to outdoor service only. 

And the third option presented to Johnson is allegedly a full ‘circuit breaker’ lockdown, which would see all non-essential shops, pubs and restaurants close and people to stay at home. 

Matteo Jorjoson / Unsplash

Health Secretary Sajid Javid has also refused to rule out any lockdown rules being implemented before Christmas, with him saying over the weekend that there are ‘no guarantees in this pandemic’.

Discussing the rumoured lockdown on The Andrew Marr Show yesterday, Javid said: “There are no guarantees in this pandemic, I don’t think. At this point, we just have to keep everything under review.”

He added that the government are continuing to assess the ‘fast-moving’ situation, saying: “We’ve seen with Omicron there’s a lot that we still don’t know about Omicron. That’s the truth of the matter. The reality is there’s a lot of uncertainty.”

Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has opposed another lockdown, saying he doesn’t the ‘justification’ for any further restrictions. 

Speaking to BBC Radio Manchester, Burnham said: “There is a small rise in the number of cases, but the position in hospitals isn’t really changing… maybe slightly increasing upwards, but not hugely.

“I would say there is a need for being proportionate here. The schools are about to break up. If I look at our figures, it’s the 0-15 range where the highest number of cases are, and schools I think… are part of what increases transmission.

“I think we just need to be careful at this moment in time because lockdowns hurt peoples’ mental health, it obviously hurts the economy and so the government has a difficult job to do… but it needs to be proportionate. 

“It needs to carry the public with them.”