M25 quarantine: is a London coronavirus lockdown in the offing?
Sadiq Khan allegedly left out of the loop about potential measures to halt second spike in infections in the capital
London Mayor Sadiq Khan has launched a public attack on Boris Johnson after being excluded from government talks about a potential “local lockdown” in the capital.
Khan claims that plans to stop travel in and out of the city via the M25 motorway in a bid to prevent a fresh surge in coronavirus infections were drawn up without the knowledge of London City Hall.
The proposals to introduce restrictions like those imposed in Leicester at the end of June comes amid growing fears of a second nationwide spike in coronavirus cases. Rises in infections were recorded each day last week for the first time since April, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
What is the current state of play in London?
“More than half of London’s boroughs saw coronavirus cases increase” last week, with Covid cases up “slightly” in 18 boroughs, reports MyLondon.
According to Public Health England (PHE), Hammersmith and Fulham saw the biggest increase, with cases rising from 3.8 per 100,000 people to 8.6. Other boroughs that reported rises include Barking and Dagenham (5.2 to 9.9 per 100,000), Brent (4.5 to 9.1), Barnet (5.4 to 7.9), Camden (1.5 to 4.2) and Greenwich (2.8 to 6.6).
But on a positive note, 14 boroughs saw their infection rates fall during the same period.
What is the government proposing?
The Sunday Times reported this weekend that the prime minister “convened a war gaming exercise last Wednesday in No. 10” that could “pave the way for draconian travel restrictions in and out of London” if Covid “flares up” in the capital.
The proposals are said to include banning overnight stays, imposing stay-at-home orders and the closure of “close-contact services such as hairdressers”.
“The challenge in London is how quickly people move around on the trains and Tube,” a government source told the newspaper. “It would potentially spread much quicker than in other areas, so you’d have to be quicker on the regional hammer in London.”
Plans have also reportedly been mooted to advise Londoners to remain within the M25, the ring-shaped motorway encompassing the city, if a second outbreak occurs.
“In practice, this would be almost impossible to police and highly disruptive for the nine million people living in the city,” says The Guardian. “It would have to take the form of guidance rather than an edict and could lead to anger against any Londoners found elsewhere in the country.”
And the reaction?
Khan has accused Johnson of “riding roughshod” over local leaders, and described the lockdown plans as “totally unacceptable and an affront to London and Londoners”.
In a joint open letter to the PM, Khan and London Councils chair Peter John said they had read about the M25 idea in Sunday newspapers with “great surprise”.
“Our surprise is that such far-reaching contingency plans have been discussed and tested without the involvement or awareness of London’s government,” the letter continued.
Khan also noted that it had been 12 weeks since he was last invited to attend a meeting of the Cobra emergency committee “on behalf of London and its nine million citizens”.
Tory MP Nadhim Zahawi yesterday attempted to downplay the reports, telling the BBC’s Today programme that claims about a London lockdown were mere “speculation” and “inaccurate”. But the minister “refused to deny the shock plan”, says the Daily Mirror.
“We will follow how the virus is behaving and how it is being transmitted between people and then act accordingly,” Zahawi said.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Life in the post-truth era
Opinion The mainstream media can't hold back a tsunami of misinformation
By Theunis Bates Published
-
Magazine printables - November 8, 2024
Puzzles and Quizzes Issue - November 8, 2024
By The Week US Published
-
Magazine solutions - November 8, 2024
Puzzles and Quizzes Issue - November 8, 2024
By The Week US Published
-
What is the next Tory leader up against?
Today's Big Question Kemi Badenoch or Robert Jenrick will have to unify warring factions and win back disillusioned voters – without alienating the centre ground
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
What is Lammy hoping to achieve in China?
Today's Big Question Foreign secretary heads to Beijing as Labour seeks cooperation on global challenges and courts opportunities for trade and investment
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Bob Woodward's War: the explosive Trump revelations
In the spotlight Nobody can beat Watergate veteran at 'getting the story of the White House from the inside'
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Trump kept up with Putin, sent Covid tests, book says
Speed Read The revelation comes courtesy of a new book by Bob Woodward
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
'The federal government's response to the latest surge has been tepid at best'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Is Britain about to 'boil over'?
Today's Big Question A message shared across far-right groups listed more than 30 potential targets for violence in the UK today
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
UK's Starmer slams 'far-right thuggery' at riots
Speed Read The anti-immigrant violence was spurred by false rumors that the suspect in the Southport knife attack was an immigrant
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Biden tests positive for Covid in fresh blow to campaign
Speed Read The president said he would consider dropping out of the race if presented with a "medical condition"
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published