Boris Johnson is 'stable' in ICU amid questions about who's running the UK - CNN

Johnson's condition is stable and he "remains in good spirits," his spokesperson said. He has not required invasive or non-invasive ventilation and does not have pneumonia.

But the seriousness of the Prime Minister's condition at a time of national emergency, combined with the lack of a formal succession procedure for heads of government in the UK, has raised questions about who is leading the country.

Johnson has nominated his Foreign Secretary, Dominic Raab, to deputize for him "as necessary" but there is no recent precedent for a sitting UK prime minister becoming incapacitated for a lengthy period.

In its daily update to reporters, Downing Street moved to head off concerns, stressing that Raab was running the country from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office with the support of government officials.

Raab would chair meetings of the National Security Council if any were needed while he was deputizing for the Prime Minister, a spokesperson said. Raab, 46, and the UK's Cabinet have the authority and ability to respond in the PM's absence on military action, the spokesperson added.

Decisions relating to Covid-19 would be taken in the usual way through the daily morning meeting, chaired by Raab, and other ministerial groupings. But Raab would not have the power to hire and fire ministers or officials, the spokesperson said.

The UK lockdown will remain in place with the government "focused on stopping the spread of the infection." The spokesperson said that if there were evidence that more needed to be done to slow the rate of transmission, "we would be prepared to do that."

Who is running the UK?

Few formal powers are invested specifically in the UK prime minister and key decisions are taken collectively by the Cabinet or its sub-committees. Many statutory powers are held by individual secretaries of state. But in recent decades, holders of the UK's top political office have adopted a more presidential style, and the sweeping nature of the ruling Conservative Party's most recent election victory was attributed to Johnson's personal appeal with voters.

"The Prime Minister has a team around him who ensure the work of government goes on," a senior Cabinet minister, Michael Gove, told the BBC earlier. He sidestepped a question about who would take decisions in the event of a nuclear attack, saying he would not discuss national security issues.

Conservative MP Tobias Ellwood, who chairs the House of Commons defense select committee, tweeted good wishes to Johnson but added: "It is important to have 100% clarity as to where responsibility for UK national security decisions now lies. We must anticipate adversaries attempting to exploit any perceived weakness."

Buckingham Palace and the Queen have been regularly updated on Johnson's condition, Downing Street said. The Prime Minister's two most senior officials, the cabinet secretary and his principal private secretary, will maintain contact with the palace on the Prime Minister's behalf, but the weekly audiences with the Queen will not continue for the time being.

The Queen has sent a message to Johnson's pregnant fiancée Carrie Symonds and the Johnson family. "Her Majesty said they were in her thoughts and that she wished the Prime Minister a full and speedy recovery," Buckingham Palace said.

The Duke of Cambridge also sent his best wishes. "Our thoughts are with the Prime Minister and his family, who like so many in the UK and around the world are affected by coronavirus," said Prince William.

Johnson's spokesperson said that despite the lack of a formal succession procedure in the UK, there was an established order of ministerial precedence, with the top finance minister, Rishi Sunak following Raab. The "letters of last resort," sealed documents written by the Prime Minister to ballistic missile submarine commanders in case of a nuclear attack, still stand. "The Prime Minister remains the Prime Minister," the spokesperson said.

US President Donald Trump said at a Monday news conference that his administration had been in contact with Johnson's doctors. The Prime Minister's spokesperson said the government was "grateful for all of the warm wishes the PM has received overnight" and "confident he is receiving the best care from the NHS. Any treatment he receives is a matter for his doctors."

Gove told BBC Radio 4's Today program earlier that Johnson was "receiving the very best care" at St. Thomas' Hospital in London, after being taken into intensive care at 7 p.m. local time (2 p.m. ET) on Monday. Gove later said that he was self-isolating at home because a member of his family was displaying coronavirus symptoms. Gove said on Twitter that he did not have any symptoms and was continuing to work.

The coronavirus has hit the top of the British government hard. The Health Secretary, Matt Hancock, said on March 27 that he had the virus, on the same day that the chief medical officer, Chris Whitty, announced that he would begin self-isolation after displaying Covid-19 symptoms. Neil Ferguson, a top UK government adviser on the virus, said on March 18 he believed he had been infected.

Various other senior government ministers and advisers have been forced to self-isolate. Dominic Cummings, the Prime Minister's senior adviser, who self-isolated soon after Johnson's diagnosis, has not yet returned to work, Downing Street said.

Johnson was taken to hospital on Sunday evening. At the time, Downing Street said the decision was a precaution because he continued to suffer from a cough and a fever ten days after testing positive for the coronavirus. But his condition deteriorated on Monday, Downing Street said, and he was moved to the intensive care unit at St. Thomas' Hospital.

Gove told Sky News on Tuesday morning that Cabinet ministers were not told about the Prime Minister's deteriorating condition until nearly an hour after Johnson was taken into intensive care.

Asked whether the government had been up front with the public about Johnson's condition, and whether the Cabinet had been taken by surprise, he replied: "Yes we were. The [daily coronavirus] briefing that was given at 5 o'clock was given at a time when we didn't know about the deterioration in the Prime Minister's condition."

"We were informed subsequently. The Prime Minister was admitted to intensive care at 7 o'clock, and that information wasn't given to us in government -- to those in the cabinet -- until just before 8 o'clock."

Words of support

Politicians around the world sent best wishes for the Prime Minister's recovery.

Finance minister Sunak said on Twitter that his thoughts were with Johnson and his fiancée, Symonds. "I know he'll be getting the best care possible and will come out of this even stronger," he said.

Symonds has also experienced Covid-19 symptoms but said over the weekend she was "on the mend."

The leader of the UK's House of Commons, Lindsay Hoyle, said: "I know the thoughts and prayers of everyone across the House are with the Prime Minister and his family right now. We all wish him a speedy recovery."

Keir Starmer, the newly elected leader of the UK's main opposition Labour Party leader, tweeted: "Terribly sad news. All the country's thoughts are with the Prime Minister and his family during this incredibly difficult time."

Former Prime Minister Theresa May, who was replaced by Johnson in the country's Brexit crisis, wrote on Twitter said her "thoughts and prayers" were with Johnson and his family. "This horrific virus does not discriminate," she added.

French President Emmanuel Macron sent his "support to Boris Johnson, to his family and to the British people at this difficult moment," wishing him a "speedy recovery at this testing time."

Irish leader Leo Varadkar, who has returned to work as a doctor during the outbreak, tweeted that Johnson was "in our thoughts" on Monday night and wished him "a rapid return to health."

President Trump said on Monday: "We're very saddened to hear that he was taken into intensive care this a little while ago. He's been a really good friend. He's been really something very special. Strong. Resolute."

CNN's Angela Dewan also contributed reporting.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiUmh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmNubi5jb20vMjAyMC8wNC8wNy91ay9ib3Jpcy1qb2huc29uLWNvcm9uYXZpcnVzLXVrLWdici1pbnRsL2luZGV4Lmh0bWzSAVZodHRwczovL2FtcC5jbm4uY29tL2Nubi8yMDIwLzA0LzA3L3VrL2JvcmlzLWpvaG5zb24tY29yb25hdmlydXMtdWstZ2JyLWludGwvaW5kZXguaHRtbA?oc=5

2020-04-07 14:24:48Z
52780704870161

To Fight Coronavirus, U.K. Asked for Some Volunteers. It Got an Army. - The New York Times

LONDON — A few weeks ago, Kate Sellars was organizing a James Bond getaway for her wealthy clients, in which they would have been flown by helicopter to Monte Carlo for a preview of the latest Bond movie, a glittering party with cast members and, for each guest, an Aston Martin gassed up and ready to drive.

Last week, Ms. Sellars lugged two bags of groceries from her local supermarket to the front step of Garth D’lima, a 73-year-old retired accountant who is marooned inside his house as the coronavirus sweeps London.

“It’s just heartbreaking not to be able to help him carry his groceries up the stairs,” she said, as she waved at Mr. D’lima from his front gate. “We can’t go into people’s houses because that would put them at risk.”

Ms. Sellars, whose luxury travel agency has been put on ice by the pandemic, has traded her glamorous day job for a grinding schedule of grocery shopping and picking up prescriptions for older people in Hampstead, her leafy, prosperous London neighborhood. She is a foot soldier in a vast volunteer army, marshaled in barely a week, to take care of Britain’s most vulnerable people during the country’s lockdown.

When the government appealed recently for 250,000 people to help the National Health Service, more than 750,000 signed up. It was forced to temporarily stop taking applicants so it could process the flood. In addition to the national program, hundreds of community-based aid groups have sprung up around the country, enrolling tens of thousands of volunteers, like Ms. Sellars.

All told, it is a stirring display of British national solidarity — a good-news story amid a grim tide of bulletins about overwhelmed hospitals, inadequate testing, a rising death toll, and a depleted political establishment, with Prime Minister Boris Johnson in intensive care and several of his aides still struggling after contracting the virus.

[Analysis: Peaks, testing and lockdowns: How coronavirus vocabulary causes confusion.]

It is also a welcome balm, coming after three and a half years of bitter divisions over Brexit, a debate that cleaved the country socially, culturally and generationally. Coronavirus, many commentators have noted, is an equal-opportunity scourge: It strikes both “Leavers” and “Remainers.”

“During the Brexit debate, people used to say what we really need is a common enemy — and now we’ve got it,” said David Goodhart, a writer whose last book, “The Road to Somewhere,” explored the divide in British society between the rooted and the rootless. “Except this is an invisible enemy.”

The lockdown, Mr. Goodhart said, has exposed the “hidden indoor plumbing” of an affluent society: garbage collectors, delivery people, drugstore clerks and grocery store workers who keep food on the shelves. “It turns out that shelf stackers in supermarkets are absolutely vital,” he said.

Latest Updates: Coronavirus Outbreak

• Glimmers of hope, and new challenges, as the world struggles to beat back the virus.
• A top White House official warned in January that a pandemic could imperil millions of Americans.
• Britain is gripped by concerns for the health of its prime minister, and questions of succession.

See more updates

Updated 10m ago

More live coverage: Markets New York

Most poignantly, it has exposed the plight of seniors, who run by far the highest risk of succumbing to the pathogen. With that in mind, the government has urged people over the age of 70 to cut off all but the most necessary social contact for 12 weeks to reduce the risk of contracting the virus.

That deprives even the able-bodied of daily walks to their local shops. Confined to their houses, many have no idea how they are supposed to get food or other supplies. Lacking broadband connections, some have no face-to-face contact with friends or family members.

“The government has told 1.5 million people to stay inside, without any idea of who they are or how they’re supposed to do that,” said Connor Rochford, a medical doctor and former management consultant who started Hampstead Volunteer Corps with his partner, Sarah Dobbie, and another couple, Kate and Brendan Guy.

“They feel scared and they feel isolated,” he said. “Self-reliance is fine up to a point, but the ‘Keep Calm, Carry On’ ethic only goes so far.”

Since starting up on March 14, a week before Prime Minister Boris Johnson imposed the national lockdown, his group has amassed more than 600 volunteers. They are assigned to team leaders, like Ms. Sellars, who oversee areas of a few square blocks and parcel out the deliveries. So far, the group has helped 166 people, some with one-time requests, others with standing orders.

With little guidance from the government, the group has been forced to devise its own safety protocols. Volunteers wear face masks and sterilized gloves and keep a strict distance from the people they are helping. They are not allowed to enter their houses. The organizers have consulted crisis counselors for advice in dealing with people in particularly dire circumstances.

Money is a tricky issue: Some people are able to call ahead to stores and give their credit card information. In other cases, the volunteers front the expenses for groceries and get reimbursed when they drop them off.

For pensioners like Mr. D’lima, who pride themselves on their independence, it is not an easy adjustment. A few days earlier, he had lined up outside his overcrowded supermarket during a hailstorm. “I live alone so I always do my own shopping,” he said. “But my friend told me I shouldn’t go out.”

Some still refuse the helping hand. On her way to dropping off a prescription, Ms. Sellars stopped a quite elderly man in a raincoat on Hampstead’s High Street. He told her he was going to the post office, not realizing it was closed. When she offered to help him with his shopping, he stared at her incredulously.

“If you want to help me,” he snapped, “you can give me £1,000.”

As the man turned away, Ms. Sellars, who is 39, smiled sadly and said, “we call those people the Blitz generation.”

The heroism of the Blitz is much invoked these days. For some, the spirit of 1940 and 1941, when Britain was pounded nightly by German bombers, is evident in the stubborn self-reliance of people like the old man, determined to press on, however trying the circumstances. For others, it is apparent in the broader drama of Britons summoning the resilience that saw their parents and grandparents through that ordeal.

At 8 p.m. each Thursday, people gather in windows or on doorsteps to clap for the doctors and nurses of the National Health Service. The polite applause of the first week has given way to a clamorous din, as people bang pots and pans.

The Blitz, some point out, had its less heroic dimensions.

“It was not all Churchillian sticking together, but full of unpleasantness and crime,” said Simon Jenkins, author of “A Short History of London.” Still, he said, “myth is as important as reality.” Drawing a link to wartime Britain, Mr. Jenkins said, has been a valuable way for the government to try to shore up morale in this difficult period.

For some older people, the volunteer army is a throwback to a past they remember as more socially cohesive than today.

“It reminds me of my childhood in the Fifties,” said Jenni Towler, 69, who came to her door to pick up pain medication delivered by Ms. Sellars. “There was more interaction. We played together in the streets.”

“We’re all hunkered down and not allowed to be with each other,” she said. “But we don’t feel alone. I hope this will last and we will be more neighborly — not just send each other texts or emojis on our phones.”

For Ms. Sellars, volunteering has given meaning to a life unmoored by the pandemic. Her travel business, she is confident, will come back. But in the meantime, she said she had made friendships with people who otherwise would have been strangers on the sidewalk. Some leave her small gifts at the door. Getting to know them has given her a new perspective on the neighborhood where she was born.

“The big question is, what happens when this is over?” Ms. Sellars asked as she paused to gaze over the Victorian rooftops of Hampstead.

Then her cellphone rang, and she scribbled down an order to deliver a packet of soap to another urban castaway of the coronavirus.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiTmh0dHBzOi8vd3d3Lm55dGltZXMuY29tLzIwMjAvMDQvMDcvd29ybGQvZXVyb3BlL2Nvcm9uYXZpcnVzLXZvbHVudGVlcnMtdWsuaHRtbNIBUmh0dHBzOi8vd3d3Lm55dGltZXMuY29tLzIwMjAvMDQvMDcvd29ybGQvZXVyb3BlL2Nvcm9uYXZpcnVzLXZvbHVudGVlcnMtdWsuYW1wLmh0bWw?oc=5

2020-04-07 13:54:03Z
CAIiEI0gD0CNf5aNrs_ru_O4ZRQqFwgEKg8IACoHCAowjuuKAzCWrzww5oEY

Boris Johnson receives oxygen treatment in ICU amid questions about who's running the UK - CNN

Johnson's condition is stable and he "remains in good spirits," his spokesperson said. He has not required invasive or non-invasive ventilation and does not have pneumonia.

But the seriousness of the Prime Minister's condition at a time of national emergency, combined with the lack of a formal succession procedure for heads of government in the UK, has raised questions about who is leading the country.

Johnson has nominated his Foreign Secretary, Dominic Raab, to deputize for him "as necessary" but there is no recent precedent for a sitting UK prime minister becoming incapacitated for a lengthy period.

In its daily update to reporters, Downing Street moved to head off concerns, stressing that Raab was running the country from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office with the support of government officials.

Raab would chair meetings of the National Security Council if any were needed while he was deputizing for the Prime Minister, a spokesperson said. Raab, 46, and the UK's Cabinet have the authority and ability to respond in the PM's absence on military action, the spokesperson added.

Decisions relating to Covid-19 would be taken in the usual way through the daily morning meeting, chaired by Raab, and other ministerial groupings. But Raab would not have the power to hire and fire ministers or officials, the spokesperson said.

Few formal powers are invested specifically in the UK prime minister and key decisions are taken collectively by the Cabinet or its sub-committees. Many statutory powers are held by individual secretaries of state. But in recent decades, holders of the UK's top political office have adopted a more presidential style, and the sweeping nature of the ruling Conservative Party's most recent election victory was attributed to Johnson's personal appeal with voters.

"The Prime Minister has a team around him who ensure the work of government goes on," a senior Cabinet minister, Michael Gove, told the BBC earlier. He sidestepped a question about who would take decisions in the event of a nuclear attack, saying he would not discuss national security issues.

Conservative MP Tobias Ellwood, who chairs the House of Commons defense select committee, tweeted good wishes to Johnson but added: "It is important to have 100% clarity as to where responsibility for UK national security decisions now lies. We must anticipate adversaries attempting to exploit any perceived weakness."

Buckingham Palace and the Queen have been regularly updated on Johnson's condition, Downing Street said. The Prime Minister's two most senior officials, the cabinet secretary and his principal private secretary, will maintain contact with the palace on the Prime Minister's behalf, but the weekly audiences with the Queen would not continue for the time being.

The Prime Minister's spokesperson said that despite the lack of a formal succession procedure in the UK, there was an established order of ministerial precedence, with the top finance minister, Rishi Sunak following Raab. The "letters of last resort," sealed documents written by the Prime Minister to ballistic missile submarine commanders in cases of a nuclear attack, still stand. "The Prime Minister remains the Prime Minister," the spokesperson said.

The UK lockdown will remain in place with the government "focused on stopping the spread of the infection." The spokesperson said that if there were evidence that more needed to be done to slow the rate of transmission, "we would be prepared to do that."

US President Donald Trump said at a Monday news conference that his administration had been in contact with Johnson's doctors. The Prime Minister's spokesperson said the government was "grateful for all of the warm wishes the PM has received overnight" and "confident he is receiving the best care from the NHS. Any treatment he receives is a matter for his doctors."

Gove told BBC Radio 4's Today program earlier that Johnson was "receiving the very best care" at St. Thomas' Hospital in London, after being taken into intensive care at 7 p.m. local time (2 p.m. ET) on Monday. Gove later said he was self-isolating at home because a member of his family was showing coronavirus symptoms. Gove said on Twitter that he was not displaying any symptoms and was continuing to work.

The coronavirus has hit the top of the British government hard. The Health Secretary, Matt Hancock, said on March 27 that he had the virus, on the same day that chief medical officer, Chris Whitty, announced that he would begin self-isolation after displaying Covid-19 symptoms. Neil Ferguson, a top UK government adviser on the virus, said on March 18 he believed he had been infected.

Various other senior government ministers and advisers have been forced to self-isolate. Dominic Cummings, the Prime Minister's senior adviser, who self-isolated soon after Johnson's diagnosis, has not yet returned to work, Downing Street said.

Johnson was taken to hospital on Sunday evening. At the time, Downing Street said the decision was a precaution because he continued to suffer from a cough and a fever ten days after testing positive for the coronavirus. But his condition deteriorated on Monday, Downing Street said, and he was moved to the intensive care unit at St. Thomas' Hospital.

Gove told Sky News on Tuesday morning that Cabinet ministers were not told about the Prime Minister's deteriorating condition until nearly an hour after Johnson was taken into intensive care.

Asked whether the government had been up front with the public about Johnson's condition, and whether the Cabinet had been taken by surprise, he replied: "Yes we were. The [daily coronavirus] briefing that was given at 5 o'clock was given at a time when we didn't know about the deterioration in the Prime Minister's condition."

"We were informed subsequently. The Prime Minister was admitted to intensive care at 7 o'clock, and that information wasn't given to us in government -- to those in the cabinet -- until just before 8 o'clock."

Politicians around the world sent best wishes for the Prime Minister's recovery.

UK Treasurer Rishi Sunak said on Twitter that his thoughts were with Johnson and his pregnant fiancée, Carrie Symonds. "I know he'll be getting the best care possible and will come out of this even stronger," he said.

Symonds has also experienced Covid-19 symptoms but said over the weekend she was "on the mend."

The leader of the UK's House of Commons, Lindsay Hoyle, said: "I know the thoughts and prayers of everyone across the House are with the Prime Minister and his family right now. We all wish him a speedy recovery."

Keir Starmer, the newly elected leader of the UK's main opposition Labour Party leader, tweeted: "Terribly sad news. All the country's thoughts are with the Prime Minister and his family during this incredibly difficult time."

Former Prime Minister Theresa May, who was replaced by Johnson in the country's Brexit crisis, wrote on Twitter said her "thoughts and prayers" were with Johnson and his family. "This horrific virus does not discriminate," she added.

French President Emmanuel Macron sent his "support to Boris Johnson, to his family and to the British people at this difficult moment," wishing him a "speedy recovery at this testing time."

Irish leader Leo Varadkar, who has returned to work as a doctor during the outbreak, tweeted that Johnson was "in our thoughts" on Monday night and wished him "a rapid return to health."

President Donald Trump said on Monday: "We're very saddened to hear that he was taken into intensive care this a little while ago. He's been a really good friend. He's been really something very special. Strong. Resolute."

CNN's Angela Dewan also contributed reporting.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiUmh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmNubi5jb20vMjAyMC8wNC8wNy91ay9ib3Jpcy1qb2huc29uLWNvcm9uYXZpcnVzLXVrLWdici1pbnRsL2luZGV4Lmh0bWzSAVZodHRwczovL2FtcC5jbm4uY29tL2Nubi8yMDIwLzA0LzA3L3VrL2JvcmlzLWpvaG5zb24tY29yb25hdmlydXMtdWstZ2JyLWludGwvaW5kZXguaHRtbA?oc=5

2020-04-07 13:24:54Z
52780704870161

Boris Johnson receives oxygen treatment in ICU amid questions about who's running the UK - CNN

Johnson's condition is stable and he "remains in good spirits," his spokesperson said. He has not required invasive or non-invasive ventilation and does not have pneumonia.

But the seriousness of the Prime Minister's condition at a time of national emergency, combined with the lack of a formal succession procedure for heads of government in the UK, has raised questions about who is leading the country.

Johnson has nominated his Foreign Secretary, Dominic Raab, to deputize for him "as necessary" but there is no recent precedent for a sitting UK prime minister becoming incapacitated for a lengthy period.

In its daily update to reporters, Downing Street moved to head off concerns, stressing that Raab was running the country from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office with the support of government officials.

Raab would chair meetings of the National Security Council if any were needed while he was deputizing for the Prime Minister, a spokesperson said. Raab, 46, and the UK's Cabinet have the authority and ability to respond in the PM's absence on military action, the spokesperson added.

Decisions relating to Covid-19 would be taken in the usual way through the daily morning meeting, chaired by Raab, and other ministerial groupings. But Raab would not have the power to hire and fire ministers or officials, the spokesperson said.

Few formal powers are invested specifically in the UK prime minister and key decisions are taken collectively by the Cabinet or its sub-committees. Many statutory powers are held by individual secretaries of state. But in recent decades, holders of the UK's top political office have adopted a more presidential style, and the sweeping nature of the ruling Conservative Party's most recent election victory was attributed to Johnson's personal appeal with voters.

"The Prime Minister has a team around him who ensure the work of government goes on," a senior Cabinet minister, Michael Gove, told the BBC earlier. He sidestepped a question about who would take decisions in the event of a nuclear attack, saying he would not discuss national security issues.

Conservative MP Tobias Ellwood, who chairs the House of Commons defense select committee, tweeted good wishes to Johnson but added: "It is important to have 100% clarity as to where responsibility for UK national security decisions now lies. We must anticipate adversaries attempting to exploit any perceived weakness."

Buckingham Palace and the Queen have been regularly updated on Johnson's condition, Downing Street said. The Prime Minister's two most senior officials, the cabinet secretary and his principal private secretary, will maintain contact with the palace on the Prime Minister's behalf, but the weekly audiences with the Queen would not continue for the time being.

The Prime Minister's spokesperson said that despite the lack of a formal succession procedure in the UK, there was an established order of ministerial precedence, with the top finance minister, Rishi Sunak following Raab. The "letters of last resort," sealed documents written by the Prime Minister to ballistic missile submarine commanders in cases of a nuclear attack, still stand. "The Prime Minister remains the Prime Minister," the spokesperson said.

The UK lockdown will remain in place with the government "focused on stopping the spread of the infection." The spokesperson said that if there were evidence that more needed to be done to slow the rate of transmission, "we would be prepared to do that."

US President Donald Trump said at a Monday news conference that his administration had been in contact with Johnson's doctors. The Prime Minister's spokesperson said the government was "grateful for all of the warm wishes the PM has received overnight" and "confident he is receiving the best care from the NHS. Any treatment he receives is a matter for his doctors."

Gove told BBC Radio 4's Today program earlier that Johnson was "receiving the very best care" at St. Thomas' Hospital in London, after being taken into intensive care at 7 p.m. local time (2 p.m. ET) on Monday. Gove later said he was self-isolating at home because a member of his family was showing coronavirus symptoms. Gove said on Twitter that he was not displaying any symptoms and was continuing to work.

The coronavirus has hit the top of the British government hard. The Health Secretary, Matt Hancock, said on March 27 that he had the virus, on the same day that chief medical officer, Chris Whitty, announced that he would begin self-isolation after displaying Covid-19 symptoms. Neil Ferguson, a top UK government adviser on the virus, said on March 18 he believed he had been infected.

Various other senior government ministers and advisers have been forced to self-isolate. Dominic Cummings, the Prime Minister's senior adviser, who self-isolated soon after Johnson's diagnosis, has not yet returned to work, Downing Street said.

Johnson was taken to hospital on Sunday evening. At the time, Downing Street said the decision was a precaution because he continued to suffer from a cough and a fever ten days after testing positive for the coronavirus. But his condition deteriorated on Monday, Downing Street said, and he was moved to the intensive care unit at St. Thomas' Hospital.

Gove told Sky News on Tuesday morning that Cabinet ministers were not told about the Prime Minister's deteriorating condition until nearly an hour after Johnson was taken into intensive care.

Asked whether the government had been up front with the public about Johnson's condition, and whether the Cabinet had been taken by surprise, he replied: "Yes we were. The [daily coronavirus] briefing that was given at 5 o'clock was given at a time when we didn't know about the deterioration in the Prime Minister's condition."

"We were informed subsequently. The Prime Minister was admitted to intensive care at 7 o'clock, and that information wasn't given to us in government -- to those in the cabinet -- until just before 8 o'clock."

Politicians around the world sent best wishes for the Prime Minister's recovery.

UK Treasurer Rishi Sunak said on Twitter that his thoughts were with Johnson and his pregnant fiancée, Carrie Symonds. "I know he'll be getting the best care possible and will come out of this even stronger," he said.

Symonds has also experienced Covid-19 symptoms but said over the weekend she was "on the mend."

The leader of the UK's House of Commons, Lindsay Hoyle, said: "I know the thoughts and prayers of everyone across the House are with the Prime Minister and his family right now. We all wish him a speedy recovery."

Keir Starmer, the newly elected leader of the UK's main opposition Labour Party leader, tweeted: "Terribly sad news. All the country's thoughts are with the Prime Minister and his family during this incredibly difficult time."

Former Prime Minister Theresa May, who was replaced by Johnson in the country's Brexit crisis, wrote on Twitter said her "thoughts and prayers" were with Johnson and his family. "This horrific virus does not discriminate," she added.

French President Emmanuel Macron sent his "support to Boris Johnson, to his family and to the British people at this difficult moment," wishing him a "speedy recovery at this testing time."

Irish leader Leo Varadkar, who has returned to work as a doctor during the outbreak, tweeted that Johnson was "in our thoughts" on Monday night and wished him "a rapid return to health."

President Donald Trump said on Monday: "We're very saddened to hear that he was taken into intensive care this a little while ago. He's been a really good friend. He's been really something very special. Strong. Resolute."

CNN's Angela Dewan also contributed reporting.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiUmh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmNubi5jb20vMjAyMC8wNC8wNy91ay9ib3Jpcy1qb2huc29uLWNvcm9uYXZpcnVzLXVrLWdici1pbnRsL2luZGV4Lmh0bWzSAVZodHRwczovL2FtcC5jbm4uY29tL2Nubi8yMDIwLzA0LzA3L3VrL2JvcmlzLWpvaG5zb24tY29yb25hdmlydXMtdWstZ2JyLWludGwvaW5kZXguaHRtbA?oc=5

2020-04-07 13:24:45Z
52780704870161

Boris Johnson is 'stable' in ICU amid questions about who's running the UK - CNN

Johnson's condition is stable and he "remains in good spirits," his spokesperson said. He has not required required invasive or non-invasive ventilation and does not have pneumonia.

The Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab would chair meetings of the National Security Council if any was needed while he is deputizing for the Prime Minister. Raab and the UK's Cabinet have the authority and ability to respond in the PM's absence on military action, the spokesperson said.

Raab, 46, is running the country from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office with the support of government officials, but cannot hire and fire ministers. Decisions relating to Covid-19 would be taken in the usual way through the daily morning meeting, chaired by Raab, and other ministerial groupings.

Buckingham Palace and the Queen have been regularly updated on the PM's condition. The Cabinet Secretary and Principal Private Secretary will maintain contact with the palace on the Prime Minister's behalf, Downing Street said. But the weekly audiences with the Queen would not continue for the time being.

The spokesperson said that despite the lack of a formal succession procedure in the UK, there was an established order of ministerial precedence, with the top finance minister, Rishi Sunak following Raab. The "letters of last resort," sealed documents written by the Prime Minister to ballistic missile submarine commanders in cases of a nuclear attack, still stand. "The Prime Minister remains the Prime Minister," the spokesperson said.

The UK lockdown will remain in place with the government "focussed on stopping the spread of the infection." The spokesperson said that if there were evidence that more needed to be done to slow the rate of transmission, "we would be prepared to do that."

US Donald Trump said at a Monday news conference that his administration had been in contact with Johnson's doctors. The spokesperson said the government was "grateful for all of the warm wishes the PM has received overnight" and "confident he is receiving the best care from the NHS. Any treatment he receives is a matter for his doctors."

Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove told BBC Radio 4's Today program earlier that Johnson was "receiving the very best care" at St. Thomas' Hospital in London, after being taken into intensive care at 7 p.m. local time (2 p.m. ET) on Monday.

"And of course, one of the reasons for being in intensive care is to make sure that whatever support the medical team consider to be appropriate can be provided," Gove said.

Gove later said he was self-isolating at home because a member of his family was showing coronavirus symptoms. Gove said on Twitter that he was not displaying any symptoms and was continuing to work. He's the latest in a long line of British government ministers and advisers to be forced into isolation.

Johnson's hospitalization has highlighted the lack of a formal line of succession in the UK government. Johnson, 55, nominated the Foreign Secretary, Raab, who also holds the title of First Secretary of State, to deputize for him "where necessary." But there is no official deputy recognized by UK law or the country's largely unwritten constitution.

Few formal powers are invested specifically in the UK prime minister and key decisions are taken collectively by the Cabinet or its sub-committees. Many statutory powers are held by individual secretaries of state. But in recent decades, holders of the UK's top political office have adopted a more presidential style, and the sweeping nature of the ruling Conservative Party's most recent election victory was attributed to Johnson's personal appeal with voters.

"The Prime Minister has a team around him who ensure the work of government goes on," Gove told the BBC. He said Johnson had a "stripped-back diary" last week to make sure he could follow the medical advice of his doctors.

Gove confirmed that Raab was now in charge of seeing through Johnson's plan to tackle the novel coronavirus. "Dominic [Raab] takes on the responsibilities of chairing the various meetings the PM would've chaired but we're all working together to implement the plan that the PM has set out," he said.

But Gove sidestepped a question about who held the "nuclear codes," saying he would not discuss national security issues.

Conservative MP Tobias Ellwood, who chairs the House of Commons defense select committee, tweeted good wishes to Johnson but added: "It is important to have 100% clarity as to where responsibility for UK national security decisions now lies. We must anticipate adversaries attempting to exploit any perceived weakness."

Johnson was taken to hospital on Sunday evening. At the time, Downing Street said the decision was a precaution because he continued to suffer from a cough and a fever ten days after testing positive for the coronavirus. But his condition deteriorated on Monday, Downing Street said, and he was moved to the intensive care unit at St. Thomas' Hospital.

Gove told Sky News on Tuesday morning that Cabinet ministers were not told about the Prime Minister's deteriorating condition until nearly an hour after Johnson was taken into intensive care.

Asked whether the government had been up front with the public about Johnson's condition, and whether the Cabinet had been taken by surprise, he replied: "Yes we were. The [daily coronavirus] briefing that was given at 5 o'clock was given at a time when we didn't know about the deterioration in the Prime Minister's condition."

"We were informed subsequently. The Prime Minister was admitted to intensive care at 7 o'clock, and that information wasn't given to us in government -- to those in the cabinet -- until just before 8 o'clock."

The coronavirus has hit the top of the British government hard. The Health Secretary, Matt Hancock, said on March 27 that he had the virus, on the same day that chief medical officer, Chris Whitty, announced that he would begin self-isolation after displaying Covid-19 symptoms. Neil Ferguson, a top UK government adviser on the virus, said on March 18 he believed he had been infected. Various other senior government ministers and advisers have been forced to self-isolate.

Politicians around the world sent best wishes for the Prime Minister's recovery.

UK Treasurer Rishi Sunak said on Twitter that his thoughts were with Johnson and his pregnant fiancée, Carrie Symonds. "I know he'll be getting the best care possible and will come out of this even stronger," he said.

Symonds has also experienced Covid-19 symptoms but said over the weekend she was "on the mend."

The leader of the UK's House of Commons, Lindsay Hoyle, said: "I know the thoughts and prayers of everyone across the House are with the Prime Minister and his family right now. We all wish him a speedy recovery."

Keir Starmer, the newly elected leader of the UK's main opposition Labour Party leader, tweeted: "Terribly sad news. All the country's thoughts are with the Prime Minister and his family during this incredibly difficult time."

Former Prime Minister Theresa May, who was replaced by Johnson in the country's Brexit crisis, wrote on Twitter said her "thoughts and prayers" were with Johnson and his family. "This horrific virus does not discriminate," she added.

French President Emmanuel Macron sent his "support to Boris Johnson, to his family and to the British people at this difficult moment," wishing him a "speedy recovery at this testing time."

Irish leader Leo Varadkar, who has returned to work as a doctor during the outbreak, tweeted that Johnson was "in our thoughts" on Monday night and wished him "a rapid return to health."

Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland's First Minister, said everyone's thoughts at her Scottish National Party were "with the Prime Minister and his family right now" while Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said his thoughts and prayers were with his "dear friend," adding: "The people of Japan stand with the British people at this difficult time."

President Donald Trump said on Monday: "We're very saddened to hear that he was taken into intensive care this a little while ago. He's been a really good friend. He's been really something very special. Strong. Resolute."

"We've contacted all of Boris's doctors, and we'll see what is going to take place, but they are ready to go," Trump continued. "When you are brought into intensive care that gets very, very serious."

"We are working with London with respect to Boris Johnson."

CNN's Angela Dewan also contributed reporting.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiUmh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmNubi5jb20vMjAyMC8wNC8wNy91ay9ib3Jpcy1qb2huc29uLWNvcm9uYXZpcnVzLXVrLWdici1pbnRsL2luZGV4Lmh0bWzSAVZodHRwczovL2FtcC5jbm4uY29tL2Nubi8yMDIwLzA0LzA3L3VrL2JvcmlzLWpvaG5zb24tY29yb25hdmlydXMtdWstZ2JyLWludGwvaW5kZXguaHRtbA?oc=5

2020-04-07 12:43:07Z
52780704870161

UK PM Johnson moved to intensive care as COVID-19 symptoms worsen - Reuters

LONDON (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was in intensive care on Tuesday after receiving oxygen support for serious COVID-19 complications while his foreign minister took over the helm of government as the outbreak accelerated.

The upheaval of Johnson’s personal battle with the virus has shaken the government just as the United Kingdom enters what scientists say will be the most deadly phase of the pandemic, which has killed 5,373 people in Britain and 70,000 worldwide.

Johnson, 55, was admitted to St Thomas’ Hospital across the River Thames from the House of Commons late on Sunday after suffering persistent coronavirus symptoms, including a high temperature and a cough, for more than 10 days.

But his condition rapidly deteriorated over the next 24 hours, and he was on Monday moved to an intensive care unit, where the most serious cases are treated, in case he needed to be put on a ventilator. He was still conscious, his office said.

“He’s not on a ventilator, no,” Cabinet Office Minister Michael Gove told LBC radio on Tuesday. “The prime minister has received some oxygen support and he is kept under, of course, close supervision.”

“The prime minister is in intensive care,” Gove said. “He’s a man of great zest and appetite for life.”

But the absence of Johnson, the first leader of a major power to be hospitalised after testing positive for the novel coronavirus, at such a crucial time raised questions about who was truly in charge of the world’s fifth largest economy.

While Britain has no formal succession plan should a prime minister become incapacitated, Johnson asked Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, 46, to deputise for him “where necessary,” Downing Street said..

WHO LEADS?

Raab on Tuesday chaired the government’s COVID-19 emergency response meeting, though ministers refused to say who had ultimate control the United Kingdom’s nuclear weapons - a role held by the prime minister.

“There are well developed protocols which are in place,” said Gove, who himself went into self isolation on Tuesday after a family member displayed symptoms.

Before he was rushed to intensive care, Johnson had said that he was in good spirits and Raab had told a news conference that Johnson was still running the government, although Raab also said he had not spoken to him directly since Saturday.

British leaders do not traditionally publicise the results of their medical examinations as some U.S. presidents including Donald Trump have.

Raab, the son of a Czech-born Jewish refugee who fled the Nazis in 1938, takes the helm at a pivotal time. Government scientists see the death toll rising until at least April 12 and Britain must ultimately decide when to lift the lockdown.

“The government’s business will continue,” said Raab, a staunch Brexit supporter who has served as foreign minister for less than a year.

Johnson’s move to intensive care added to the sense of upheaval that the coronavirus crisis has wrought after its spread caused widespread panic, sowed chaos through financial markets and prompted the virtual shutdown of the global economy.

FILE PHOTO: Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson leaves Downing Street, as the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues. London, Britain, March 25, 2020. REUTERS/Hannah Mckay

The United Kingdom is in a state of virtual lockdown, a situation due to be reviewed early next week, and some ministers have suggested it might need to be extended because some people were flouting the strict rules.

The pound dipped in Asian trading on news of Johnson’s intensive care treatment but then rallied in London trading. Against the dollar, sterling traded to a high of $1.2349, up 0.9% on the session.

BORIS

Even before coronavirus, Johnson had had a tumultuous year.

He won the top job in July 2019, renegotiated a Brexit deal with the European Union, fought a snap election in December which he won resoundingly and then led the United Kingdom out of the European Union on Jan 31 - promising to seal a Brexit trade deal by the end of this year.

The government has said it is not planning to seek an extension to that deadline in light of the epidemic.

Johnson has faced criticism for initially approving a much more modest response to the novel coronavirus outbreak than other major European leaders, though he then imposed a lockdown as projections showed half a million people could die.

He tested positive for the virus on March 26.

After 10 days of isolation in an apartment at Downing Street, he was admitted to hospital. He was last seen in a video message posted on Twitter on Friday when he looked weary.

Slideshow (14 Images)

Downing Street said repeatedly on Monday that Johnson remained in charge and was reading documents, but the move to intensive care revealed the gravity of his condition.

James Gill, a doctor and a clinical lecturer at Warwick Medical School, said the news of Johnson’s admission to intensive care was “worrying” but not completely out of line with other people suffering complications.

“So far we have seen a deterioration in line with other cases of COVID-19 infections,” he said. “Admission to ITU is worrying news, (but) this is not all together uncommon with this disease, and may be looked at from a positive that the PM is getting the very best care that the NHS has to offer.”

U.S. President Donald Trump said all Americans were praying for his recovery, and other world leaders sent messages of support.

Reporting by Paul Sandle, Michael Holden, Costas Pitas and Kate Kelland; Writing by Kate Holton and Guy Faulconbridge; Editing by Angus MacSwan

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiS2h0dHBzOi8vd3d3LnJldXRlcnMuY29tL2FydGljbGUvdXMtaGVhbHRoLWNvcm9uYXZpcnVzLWJyaXRhaW4taWRVU0tCTjIxTzBEUdIBNGh0dHBzOi8vbW9iaWxlLnJldXRlcnMuY29tL2FydGljbGUvYW1wL2lkVVNLQk4yMU8wRFE?oc=5

2020-04-07 11:49:25Z
52780704870161

Boris Johnson receives oxygen treatment in ICU amid questions about who's running the UK - CNN

Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove said in an interview with the BBC that the Prime Minister was "not on a ventilator" but had "received oxygen support."

He told BBC Radio 4's Today program that Johnson was "receiving the very best care" at St. Thomas' Hospital in London, after being taken into intensive care at 7 p.m. local time (2 p.m. ET) on Monday.

"And of course, one of the reasons for being in intensive care is to make sure that whatever support the medical team consider to be appropriate can be provided," Gove said.

Gove later said he was self-isolating at home because a member of his family was showing coronavirus symptoms. Gove said on Twitter that he was not displaying any symptoms and was continuing to work. He's the latest in a long line of British government ministers and advisers to be forced into isolation.

Johnson's hospitalization has highlighted the lack of a formal line of succession in the UK government. Johnson, 55, nominated the Foreign Secretary, Dominic Raab, who also holds the title of First Secretary of State, to deputize for him "where necessary." But the is no official deputy recognized by UK law or the country's largely unwritten constitution.

Few formal powers are invested specifically in the UK prime minister and key decisions are taken collectively by the Cabinet or its sub-committees. Many statutory powers are held by individual secretaries of state. But in recent decades, holders of the UK's top political office have adopted a more presidential style, and the sweeping nature of the ruling Conservative Party's most recent election victory was attributed to Johnson's personal appeal with voters.

"The Prime Minister has a team around him who ensure the work of government goes on," Gove told the BBC. He said Johnson had a "stripped-back diary" last week to make sure he could follow the medical advice of his doctors.

Gove confirmed that Raab was now in charge of seeing through Johnson's plan to tackle the novel coronavirus. "Dominic [Raab] takes on the responsibilities of chairing the various meetings the PM would've chaired but we're all working together to implement the plan that the PM has set out," he said.

But Gove sidestepped a question about who held the "nuclear codes," saying he would not discuss national security issues.

Conservative MP Tobias Ellwood, who chairs the House of Commons defense select committee, tweeted good wishes to Johnson but added: "It is important to have 100% clarity as to where responsibility for UK national security decisions now lies. We must anticipate adversaries attempting to exploit any perceived weakness."

Johnson was taken to hospital on Sunday evening. At the time, Downing Street said the decision was a precaution because he continued to suffer from a cough and a fever ten days after testing positive for the coronavirus. But his condition deteriorated on Monday, Downing Street said, and he was moved to the intensive care unit at St. Thomas' Hospital.

Gove told Sky News on Tuesday morning that Cabinet ministers were not told about the Prime Minister's deteriorating condition until nearly an hour after Johnson was taken into intensive care.

Asked whether the government had been up front with the public about Johnson's condition, and whether the Cabinet had been taken by surprise, he replied: "Yes we were. The [daily coronavirus] briefing that was given at 5 o'clock was given at a time when we didn't know about the deterioration in the Prime Minister's condition."

"We were informed subsequently. The Prime Minister was admitted to intensive care at 7 o'clock, and that information wasn't given to us in government -- to those in the cabinet -- until just before 8 o'clock."

The coroavirus has hit the top of the British government hard. The Health Secretary, Matt Hancock, said on March 27 that he had the virus, on the same day that chief medical officer, Chris Whitty, announced that he would begin self-isolation after displaying Covid-19 symptoms. Neil Ferguson, a top UK government adviser on the virus, said on March 18 he believed he had been infected. Various other senior government ministers and advisers have been forced to self-isolate.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiUmh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmNubi5jb20vMjAyMC8wNC8wNy91ay9ib3Jpcy1qb2huc29uLWNvcm9uYXZpcnVzLXVrLWdici1pbnRsL2luZGV4Lmh0bWzSAVZodHRwczovL2FtcC5jbm4uY29tL2Nubi8yMDIwLzA0LzA3L3VrL2JvcmlzLWpvaG5zb24tY29yb25hdmlydXMtdWstZ2JyLWludGwvaW5kZXguaHRtbA?oc=5

2020-04-07 10:45:39Z
52780704870161