Coronavirus: UK lockdown could come ‘very soon’ as emergency laws rushed in

The Coronavirus Bill follows appeals to the public to stay indoors largely being ignored during a sunny Mother’s Day.

Britain could be locked down to force people into self-isolation “very soon”, as the prime minister starts racing new laws to tackle coronavirus through the Commons in a day.

MPs are returning to the Commons after the weekend to debate the government’s Coronavirus Bill in all its stages, before it goes to the House of Lords and becomes law by the end of this week.

The Commons debate follows a stark warning from the prime minister that the UK is heading towards a lockdown, after appeals to the public to stay indoors were largely ignored during a sunny Mother’s Day.

At his latest Downing Street news conference, Mr Johnson said further measures would be considered in the next 24 hours to prevent the spread of coronavirus if people fail to stay two metres apart.

He admitted being outdoors was “crucial for health, physical and mental well-being”, but warned people not to think that “fresh air in itself automatically provides some immunity”.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock told Sky News’ Kay Burley@Breakfast on Monday: “We will enforce and bring in further strong measures if we need to – but I’d much rather people follow the rules themselves, it would be much more straight forward.”

“If we need to go further in terms of people’s interactions then we will.

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