PM under pressure to announce lockdown as new laws rushed through after thousands ignore distancing warnings over the weekend
Boris Johnson is facing calls to strengthen social distancing guidelines (Picture: Getty Images/ Reuters)

The Prime Minister is facing increasing pressure to lockdown the UK after thousands of people spent the weekend ignoring social distancing advice amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Boris Johnson has said he will be thinking ‘very, very actively’ about how to stop people from continuing to gather at parks, markets and beaches despite calls for them to stay several metres apart.

The UK’s death toll from Covid-19 rose to 281 on Sunday, with a teenager, 18, becoming the country’s youngest fatality. Nearly 6,000 people have tested positive for the virus. There are growing fears the country is on the same path as Italy, the epicentre of the virus, where over 5,000 have died.

Johnson has reportedly been warned he is now at risk of sparking a ‘Cabinet revolt’ unless he launches a lockdown of the UK in the next 24 hours.

The Prime Minister is reluctant to shut down parks (Picture: Getty Images)
People in an exercise group jog in Hyde Park as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues. London, Britain March 21, 2020 REUTERS/Peter Nicholls
People are allowed outside to exercise, but should still keep a distance from one another (Picture: Reuters)
People jogging in Battersea Park, London, as Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said the Government is ready to impose tougher restrictions to curb the spread of the coronavirus if people do not follow the guidance on social distancing. PA Photo. Picture date: Monday March 23, 2020. See PA story HEALTH Coronavirus. Photo credit should read: Stefan Rousseau/PA Wire
The Prime Minister is reluctant to close parks (Picture: PA)

One source told Buzzfeed that there could be a ‘full scale mutiny’ among Cabinet ministers and senior advisers if the response is not upgraded today.

In response, a Downing Street spokesperson said further measures will be implemented the government believes people ‘haven’t stopped their interaction’.

Many MPs have already pledged their support for stricter rules to be enforced. Former Conservative Cabinet minister Julian Smith said he would support ‘any measure’ brought forward by the Prime Minister after many people ‘recklessly ignored government advice this weekend’.

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Labour MP and shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth also said ministers should be making ‘immediate preparations’ for the ‘next stage’ of regulation.

He said: ‘Far too many people are either confused by the government’s social distancing measures or choose to ignore them. This cannot continue in a public health emergency. Ministers must explain how they escalate the response.

‘We have called for and welcomed measures including banning mass gatherings and pub closures. But if social distancing measures are not working the government must take stronger action. We urge the government to make immediate preparations for the next stage and learn lessons from other European nations.

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People walk under cherry blossom trees in Battersea Park, as the number of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases grow around the world, in London, Britain March 22, 2020. REUTERS/Dylan Martinez
Families walk through Battersea Park despite the coronavirus pandemic (Picture: Reuters)
LONDON, ENGLAND - MARCH 22: People are seen walking in Greenwich park on March 22, 2020 in London, United Kingdom. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson urged that people don't visit their parents this Mothering Sunday to curb the spread of COVID-19, which has killed 233 people in the UK. (Photo by Peter Summers/Getty Images)
The public have been told to keep several metres away from one another (Picture: Getty Images)

‘If voluntary social distancing measures are not adhered to, the government must bring forward their plans for stronger action.’

His sentiments were echoed by Labour leadership hopeful, Sir Keir Starmer, who also called for ‘further compliance measures’, alongside a ‘national plan of action’ to support vulnerable people and the self-employed.

Labour MP Rosena Allin-Khan, who also works as an A&E doctor at St George’s Hospital in south London, also attacked the government’s approach, stating that her last shift had been ‘deeply, deeply eye-opening’.

She described seeing previously fit and healthy people in their 30s and 40s ‘attached to machines, fighting for their lives’. She continued: ‘The Prime Minister has been blasé about this from the start, waiting for others to make decisions so he doesn’t have to. It is costing lives.

‘Enough is enough. The NHS cannot cope and it won’t be long before doctors have to choose between who lives and who dies.’

WOLVERHAMPTON, ENGLAND - MARCH 12: NHS nurses wait for the next patient at a drive through Coronavirus testing site in a car park on March 12, 2020 in Wolverhampton, England. The National Health Service facility has been set up in a car park to allow people with NHS referrals to be swabbed for Covid-19. (Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)
The NHS is struggling to cope with the number of new cases (Picture: Getty Images)
Undated handout photo taken with permission from the twitter feed of @duckpilotuk showing commuters onboard a Piccaddilly Line train in London as trains remained packed on Monday morning despite passengers being urged not to travel unless they have a critical job. PA Photo. Issue date: Monday March 23, 2020. See PA story HEALTH Coronavirus Tube. Photo credit should read: @duckpilotuk /PA Wire NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used in for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder.
Cabinet ministers are calling on Boris Johnson to act now (Picture: PA)

During his Sunday press conference, Johnson indicated that he is reluctant to ban people from going outside for a walk or to exercise because of the physical and mental health benefits. However, he emphasised that those who did so should be acting responsibly.

The government later issued updated guidance making clear that essential travel did not include visits to ‘second homes, camp sites, caravan parks or similar, whether for isolation purposes or holidays’.

While people are still heading to open spaces, there are signs that city and town centres have been closing down, with McDonald’s, John Lewis, Primark and Timpson among the high street chains to announce they were closing their doors.

Meanwhile letters are going out to 1,500,000 people with underlying health conditions who are considered to be the most vulnerable to the coronavirus telling them to stay at home for the next 12 weeks.

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