A leading health official says Britain must stay in full coronavirus lockdown until June.
Professor Neil Ferguson said the entire population could be required to stay at home for nearly three months to stop the spread of the bug.
He told The Times: “We’re going to have to keep these measures [the full lockdown] in place, in my view, for a significant period of time — probably until the end of May, maybe even early June. May is optimistic.”
His stark warning comes as Boris Johnson writes to every household in the UK to urge the public to obey the lockdown and stay home during the ‘national emergency’.
The Prime Minister, who is self-isolating after testing positive for the bug, will stress the need to stay indoors to support the NHS by slowing the spread.
At an anticipated cost of £5.8 million, the letters will land on 30 million doorsteps along with a leaflet spelling out the Government’s advice following much public confusion.
The letters and leaflets are the latest in a public information campaign from No 10 to convince people to stay at home, wash their hands and shield the most vulnerable from the disease.
‘We know things will get worse before they get better,’ the PM’s letter will read.
