Coronavirus: Boris Johnson set to leave self-isolation on Friday – but he still has symptoms
Boris Johnson will leave self-isolation tomorrow despite still showing symptoms of coronavirus.
The Prime Minister said last Friday that he had tested positive for Covid-19. He self-isolated for seven days as per Public Health England’s (PHE) guidance.
Johnson has continued to fulfill his prime ministerial duties during this period through conference calls and virtual meetings.
An official Downing Street spokesperson said today that he was still showing mild symptoms of the virus.
Despite that, the Prime Minister is still set to leave his flat at Number 11 Downing Street tomorrow and resume his duties in full.
The spokesperson said: “We are following the guidelines from PHE and from the chief medical officer which states that you need to self-isolate for a period of seven days so no change in that.
“We will follow the guidelines and we will follow the best UK medical and scientific advice, you can rest assured on that.”
Health secretary Matt Hancock also announced he had tested positive for coronavirus last Friday. Chief medical officer Chris Whitty also self-isolated with coronavirus symptoms.
And on Monday, Johnson’s most senior adviser Dominic Cummings began to self-isolate with coronavirus-like symptoms. He has not been tested.
The spate of cases prompted speculation that the entire cabinet would soon test positive for coronavirus. However, there have been no new confirmed cases among Johnson’s inner circle.
Hancock will give today’s daily press briefing at 5pm, after self-isolating for a week.
He is expected to give information about the UK’s much criticised testing regime.
The UK has now administered 151, 979 tests, putting it in the bottom 25 per cent of OECD countries.
On a per capita basis, South Korea has tested four times as many people as the UK, Germany almost three-times and the United States almost two times.