Boris Johnson is to hold a coronavirus press conference this afternoon on the day that England is locked down for a second time.
It has been confirmed that the Prime Minister will be joined by NHS chief executive Sir Simon Stevens and will speak from D owning Street at 5pm.
Already today, Rishi Sunak has revealed that the furlough scheme will be extended until the end of March.
The Chancellor said he believes the decision is best for saving jobs and preventing business closures.
He said: “Given these changed public health restrictions and the economic trauma they would cause in job losses and business closures, I felt it best to extend the furlough scheme rather than transition at that precise moment to the new job support scheme.
"Political opponents have chosen to attack the Government for trying to keep the economy functioning and to make sure the support we provide encourages people to keep working.
"And they will now no doubt criticise the Government on the basis that we have had to change our approach. But to anyone in the real world that's just the thing you have to do when the circumstances change.”
What will Boris Johnson say?
The Mirror reports that the press conference is expected to focus on the importance of protecting the health service through the second wave.
Other than reiterating what Rishi Sunak has today announced about furlough, the media are not expecting major announcements.
It is also expected that Boris will speak briefly on the starting of the second national lockdown.
Pubs, restaurants and non-essential shops have once again been forced to close their doors and members of the public are ordered to stay at home for the next four weeks in a bid to reverse the spread of Covid-19.
Keep up to date with coronavirus cases in your area
Simon Stevens is likely to talk about the impact on the NHS – amid a continuing rise in coronavirus patients needing hospital care.
Sir Simon Stevens, NHS England chief executive, said the service already had “22 hospitals’ worth” of Covid-19 patients and now faced a “serious situation ahead”.
During a previous press conference, he also said a potential vaccination programme will see vaccines delivered at GP surgeries, pharmacies and mass testing centres – including at the Nightingale hospitals.
GPs will be put on stand-by from December should a vaccine be made available before Christmas, he added.
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