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Restrictions could come back in the autumn, former health secretary warns
Today Programme
BBC Radio 4
The government may have to reimpose lockdown restrictions if Covid cases continue to rise over the summer and into the autumn, former health secretary Jeremy Hunt has warned.
Hunt, who is now chairman of the Commons Health and Social Care Committee, says the situation is "very serious".
"The warning light on the NHS dashboard is not flashing amber, it is flashing red," he tells Radio 4's Today programme.
"Covid hospital patients are doubling every two weeks. That means we are heading for 10,000 Covid hospital patients by the end of August, which is about 20 times higher than this time last year. It is a very serious situation.
"I think coming into September we are almost certainly going to see infections reach a new daily peak going above the 68,000 daily level, which was the previous daily record in January.
"If they are still going up as the schools are coming back I think we are going to have to reconsider some very difficult decisions. How we behave over the next few weeks will have a material difference."
Today Programme
BBC Radio 4
The government may have to reimpose lockdown restrictions if Covid cases continue to rise over the summer and into the autumn, former health secretary Jeremy Hunt has warned.
Hunt, who is now chairman of the Commons Health and Social Care Committee, says the situation is "very serious".
"The warning light on the NHS dashboard is not flashing amber, it is flashing red," he tells Radio 4's Today programme.
"Covid hospital patients are doubling every two weeks. That means we are heading for 10,000 Covid hospital patients by the end of August, which is about 20 times higher than this time last year. It is a very serious situation.
"I think coming into September we are almost certainly going to see infections reach a new daily peak going above the 68,000 daily level, which was the previous daily record in January.
"If they are still going up as the schools are coming back I think we are going to have to reconsider some very difficult decisions. How we behave over the next few weeks will have a material difference."