Babak Belurs

Kamis, 19 Maret 2020

London Tube stations close but UK government plays down prospect of full lockdown - CNN

Up to 40 stations across London were being closed on Thursday and the night tube service will be suspended at weekends, Transport for London announced.

The order comes as the city's mayor Sadiq Khan urged Londoners not to travel unless it is essential to do so. "Londoners should be avoiding social interaction unless absolutely necessary, and that means they should be avoiding using the transport network unless absolutely necessary."

On Thursday morning, the government's communications team attempted to play down the prospect of a lockdown in the capital, a day after the prime Minister, Boris Johnson, declined to rule out stricter measures for the city.

A handful of commuters during London's usually busy rush hour on Wednesday.

On Wednesday, multiple government sources told CNN that conservations had taken place in Downing Street discussing measures ranging from shutting down parts of the capital's transport network to restricting travel in and out of the city. Similar reports appeared across the UK media.

On Thursday, the Prime Minister's spokesman said there was "zero prospect" of any restrictions on travel in and out of London and that there were "no plans" to shut down London's transport network. However, London's transport authority had already closed parts of London's Tube network, and the government did not rule out introducing further social distancing measures in the coming days.

London, by far the UK's busiest city, has been the worst-hit part of the country during the coronavirus pandemic. Of the 2,626 confirmed cases in the country, nearly 1,000 have been in London -- but health officials admit that the true number of people infected but not tested is likely far higher.

An empty platform at Bank Underground station on Wednesday.

The Tube closures are intended to allow the city's "critical" workers, including hospital staff, to make essential journeys, Transport for London said.

The measure highlights the severity of the situation in Britain's capital. London's famous subway system -- the oldest in the world -- is used by around 2 million people every day, and has not seen extended mass closures since the the 7/7 terror attacks in 2005 shut down parts of the service for almost a month.

"London will get through these extraordinarily challenging times, and ensuring the capital's critical workers can move around the city will be crucial," Khan said.

Giving evidence to the London assembly on Thursday, Khan said too many Londoners were failing to follow official advice. "We are clearly still in the early phase of this crisis but the spread of the virus is at a more advanced stage in London than in other parts of the country. This means that further measures will need to be introduced at the point at which they will have the biggest effect," he said.

CNN's Luke McGee contributed reporting

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2020-03-19 13:34:14Z
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London Tube stations close but UK government plays down prospect of full lockdown - CNN

Up to 40 stations across London were being closed on Thursday and the night tube service will be suspended at weekends, Transport for London announced.

The order comes as the city's mayor Sadiq Khan urged Londoners not to travel unless it is essential to do so.

"Londoners should be avoiding social interaction unless absolutely necessary, and that means they should be avoiding using the transport network unless absolutely necessary."

The Waterloo and City line, which runs between Waterloo and Bank stations, will also be suspended from Friday.

The Tube closures are intended to allow the city's "critical" workers, including hospital staff, to make essential journeys, TfL said.

But the measure highlights the severity of the situation in Britain's capital. London's famous subway system -- the oldest in the world -- is used by around 2 million people every day, and has not seen extended mass closures since the the 7/7 terror attacks in 2005 shut down parts of the service for almost a month.

"London will get through these extraordinarily challenging times, and ensuring the capital's critical workers can move around the city will be crucial," Khan said.

On Wednesday multiple sources told CNN that the UK government is considering a partial lockdown in London, amid concerns that residents in the capital are not heeding official advice to stay at home.

Discussions have been held in Downing Street about restricting travel in and out of the city, including shutting down parts of the capital's public transport network, and about how those measures would be enforced, the sources said.

"But I have to tell you we will rule nothing out and we will certainly wish to consider bringing forward further and faster measures where that is necessary," he added.

CNN's Luke McGee contributed reporting

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UK considers partial lockdown in London and the army may be deployed to help - CNN

On Thursday morning, Transport for London announced that it would close dozens of underground stations and begin limiting its service within 24 hours. Up to 40 stations have been shut across the capital. "Londoners should be avoiding social interaction unless absolutely necessary," said the city's mayor, Sadiq Khan.

Johnson and Khan will meet at lunchtime on Thursday to discuss the next steps for London, a spokesman for Khan said.

The government announced that up to 10,000 military personnel will be placed on standby throughout the UK in order to maintain public services in the coming months. Government sources told CNN on Wednesday that discussions had taken place concerning what role the armed forces could play in enforcing any lockdown measures.

Scientists believe that the spread of the virus is more advanced in London than in the rest of the UK, and there are concerns that not enough residents here are heeding the advice to work from home and stop going to bars, restaurants and other public places.

People are getting creative with their work-from-home setups

Asked at the UK government's daily coronavirus press conference on Wednesday about whether London would see further legal restrictions, Johnson said: "We live in land of liberty, as you know, and it's one of the great features of our lives we don't tend to impose those sorts of restrictions on people in this country. But I have to tell you we will rule nothing out and we will certainly wish to consider bringing forward further and faster measures where that is necessary."

A Downing Street source declined to comment on specifics or timing on any further restrictions in the capital, stressing that the government would do all that was necessary to protect public health.

But if such drastic measures were introduced, Londoners would be given plenty of notice to make any personal arrangements before they came into place, two government sources told CNN. They would mirror those taken in some European countries: In France, residents face a fine if they are unable to justify a decision to be outside.

A source close to the office of the London mayor told CNN that as of Wednesday, officials in City Hall were not aware of the plans yet and had not been party to any government thinking. Multiple sources close to the Prime Minister said they did not expect an announcement about London to be made imminently. But UK officials have repeatedly warned that the situation is moving quickly.

Earlier this week, Johnson warned that the spread of the virus in London was ahead of the rest of the UK and that Londoners should "take particularly seriously the advice about working from home and avoiding confined spaces such as pubs and restaurants."

Asked Wednesday about what he thought of people who failed to heed that advice, Johnson said: "The more ruthlessly we can enforce upon ourselves the advice... the fewer deaths we will have and the less suffering there will be."

In his press conference, Johnson said that all schools in the UK would close by the end of the week and that exams scheduled for the summer would not take place.

The UK has faced criticism from other nations that it has not yet been tough enough on measures against the pandemic. But British officials have stated repeatedly that they would move on a phased plan. The UK would do the "right thing at the right time," Johnson said.

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2020-03-19 12:51:15Z
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UK considers partial lockdown in London and the army may be deployed to help enforce it - CNN

Johnson and Khan will meet at lunchtime on Thursday to discuss the next steps for London, a spokesman for Khan said.

A Downing Street source declined to comment on specifics or timing on any further restrictions in the capital, stressing that the government would do all that was necessary to protect public health.

In his press conference, Johnson said that all schools in the UK would close by the end of the week and that exams scheduled for the summer would not take place.

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UK considers partial lockdown in London and the army may be deployed to help enforce it - CNN

Johnson and Khan will meet at lunchtime on Thursday to discuss the next steps for London, a spokesman for Khan said.

A Downing Street source declined to comment on specifics or timing on any further restrictions in the capital, stressing that the government would do all that was necessary to protect public health.

In his press conference, Johnson said that all schools in the UK would close by the end of the week and that exams scheduled for the summer would not take place.

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UK considers partial lockdown in London and the army may be deployed to help enforce it - CNN

A Downing Street source declined to comment on specifics or timing on any further restrictions in the capital, stressing that the government would do all that was necessary to protect public health.

A source close to the office of the London mayor told CNN that officials in City Hall were not aware of the plans yet and had not been party to any government thinking. Multiple sources close to the Prime Minister said they did not expect an announcement about London to be made imminently. But UK officials have repeatedly warned that the situation is moving quickly.

In his press conference, Johnson said that all schools in the UK would close by the end of the week and that exams scheduled for the summer would not take place.

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UK considers partial lockdown in London and the army may be deployed to help enforce it - CNN

A Downing Street source declined to comment on specifics or timing on any further restrictions in the capital, stressing that the government would do all that was necessary to protect public health.

In his press conference, Johnson said that all schools in the UK would close by the end of the week and that exams scheduled for the summer would not take place.

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