Some 44 million people or three-quarters of the population of England are already living under the toughest restrictions
Nearly 56 million people in England will return to a full coronavirus lockdown, possibly until mid-February, to try to cut spiralling infection rates, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday.
The measures, which include the closure of primary and secondary schools, will come into effect Wednesday, he said in a televised address, after Scotland announced similar measures would come into force from midnight on Tuesday.
Some 44 million people or three-quarters of the population of England are already living under the toughest restrictions, as Britain grapples with one of the worst mortality rates from coronavirus in the world.
Also read: Coronavirus curbs widen England’s north-south rift
But they have failed to halt an upward trend in positive cases, which have been blamed on a more infectious new variant.
Mr. Johnson said that as of Monday, almost 27,000…