Boris Jonson has an open rebellion his hands over his consistent mishandling of the coronavirus crisis
The governments confusing transition from strict lockdown to a softer version is threatening to inflame the UKs centrifugal forces.
All of the UKs peripheral nations are now in open rebellion at plans to ease the lockdown which can potentially trigger a second peak of coronavirus infections.
The rebellion has been triggered by Prime Minister Boris Johnsons changing of the lockdown slogan from "stay at home" to "stay alert".
That message was strongly reinforced by the communities secretary, Robert Jenrick, earlier today.
Jenrick told the BBCs Andrew Marr Show: "Stay alert will mean stay alert by staying home as much as possible, but stay alert when you do go out, by maintaining social distancing, washing your hands, respecting others in the workplace and the other settings that youll go to".
Sturgeons example
Rebellion over the governments confused, and potentially dangerous, plan is led by Scotlands First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, who has insisted that Scottish people should continue to "stay at home".
Wales has followed Scotlands example, as demonstrated by Welsh First Minister, Mark Drakefords call for the continuation of the existing lockdown measures.
In an interview with BBC Ones Politics Wales program, Drakeford stressed that people "should stay home" except for the "limited" reasons already allowed.
Drakefords position was backed up by Welsh health minister, the Zambian-born Vaughan Gething, who claimed there had not been a "four-nations agreement" on Johnsons unilateral easing of the lockdown.
Meanwhile, Northern Irelands First Minister, Arlene Foster, said the British-occupied provinces "COVID-19 regulations" (referring to the disease caused by the coronavirus) "will stay largely as they have been".
Broader rebellion
Beyond the national level, Johnsons vague transition plans have even come under fire from within the governments core scientific advisory body.
Behavioral expert Professor Susan Michie, who is part of the governments Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage), warned some people might take the more generalized "alert" slogan as a "green light" to gather and socialize.
"I do not think this is a helpful message in terms of guiding behavior ... It does not give advice as to what people should do", Michie told the PA news agency.
The government has also come under fire from the direction of the police with the body representing police officers in London deriding the pandemic strategy as "wishy-washy".
Ken Marsh, from the Metropolitan Police Federation, told BBC Radio 4s Today program that if the authorities had been "more stringent" from the outset "we would have a better result now".
SOURCE: PRESS TV
LINK: https://www.ansarpress.com/english/17260
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