With Coronavirus cases still on the rise in the UK, ministers have said that a national curfew would be an “obvious next step” if current rules prove ineffective.
The curfew would be designed to target those in the 20-29 age group, who the government is blaming for the recent surge in cases. An anonymous government source told The Daily Telegraph: “A national curfew is the obvious next step if the numbers keep rising despite all the steps we are currently taking.
“But we are not at that stage at the moment, and hopefully the action we are taking locally to contain outbreaks where they occur will mean we don’t have to go that far.”
The UK’s coronavirus cases increased by over 3,000 on Sunday, largely in the under 30s age bracket.
The Justice Secretary Robert Buckland said that curfews would be a useful tool to confront the surge in cases among young people who are “getting together and enjoying themselves” and not following social distancing rules.
From today in England, anyone meeting in a group of more than 6 can be fined £100, with organisers of large events already being fined £10,000. But there has been confusion over what the new rules mean with the government waiting until ten minutes to midnight before publishing the legislation.
… a 'qualifying group' which basically means you go along as a 6 or less, or a household, but then you are not allowed to (@davidallengreen @SeethingMead you're going to love this) *mingle* with anyone else. It's illegal to mingle! What does mingle mean? /7 pic.twitter.com/ycm9Cmx17N
— Adam Wagner (@AdamWagner1) September 13, 2020
Government ministers also said on Sunday that schools would remain the priority. on Sophie Ridge on Sunday, Robert Buckland said: “I do think that what we’re doing now is being clear about prioritising schools, colleges in the economy and making the point that while social occasions are important – and of course family social occasions are particularly important – they do take and they must take second place to those priorities.”
