Boris Johnson has said a third wave of coronavirus is currently underway in parts of Europe, as he warned “bitter experience” has shown it could hit the UK three weeks later.
The prime minister expressed hope any surge in infections could look different this time around, saying there was “promising evidence” that many vulnerable people “are now protected against death and serious disease” amid the vaccine rollout.
Also on Saturday, the prime minister said the lifting of Covid restrictions should continue as planned as he sees “absolutely nothing in the data” to suggest the government’s plan be halted.
In an address to the Conservatives’ spring forum, the prime minister also said the “energy of capitalism” lies behind the UK’s vaccination success – downplaying the role of the government and NHS.
He said while the public services played a role, the vaccine rollout would not have been possible without “the might of the private sector”.
Meanwhile, the NHS announced that more than 25 million people in England have now received their first dose of a coronavirus vaccine, with nearly 2.5 million having had a second dose.
