BORIS Johnson says he is in “good spirits" and is running the UK Government from his hospital bed as he praises NHS staff as the "best of Britain".
The Prime Minister was taken to St Thomas’s Hospital, across Westminster Bridge from the House of Commons, by private transport on Sunday night for precautionary tests after his coronavirus symptoms, a persistent cough and a temperature, continued after 10 days; they should normally clear up after seven.
In a message on Twitter, he said: "Last night, on the advice of my doctor, I went into hospital for some routine tests as I'm still experiencing coronavirus symptoms. I'm in good spirits and keeping in touch with my team, as we work together to fight this virus and keep everyone safe.
"I'd like to say thank you to all the brilliant NHS staff taking care of me and others in this difficult time. You are the best of Britain. Stay safe everyone, and please remember to stay at home to protect the NHS and save lives."
The PM's spokesman said the hospital tests were “routine” but declined to go into detail; nor did he confirm reports that Mr Johnson underwent oxygen treatment, urging caution about such reports. He insisted No 10 had thus far been “very transparent” about the PM’s condition.
“He had a comfortable night in St Thomas’s Hospital in London and is in good spirits. He remains in hospital under observation.
“I’m not planning to give a commentary on tests or his care. We will provide updates on the PM’s condition as soon as there is anything new to say.”
Asked if Mr Johnson was in a private ward or room, the spokesman replied: “He is in a NHS hospital; how and where he is treated is a matter for his doctors.”
The spokesman pointed out that the PM had been in touch with No 10 colleagues. Asked if he could run the Government from his hospital bed, he replied: “The PM remains in charge of the Government.
“Any information which the PM needs updates on and any decisions that require actions from the PM, that is what will happen. He is continuing to see the [red ministerial] box.”
Asked what would happen if Mr Johnson was unable to work, he replied: “That has not happened. The PM continues to run the Government.”
Pressed further, he said: “In any circumstance where the PM were unable to work, then the First Secretary of State[Dominic Raab] would assume those responsibilities. But as I have stressed that is not the case.”
Mr Raab, the Foreign Secretary, chaired the daily 9.15am Covid-19 briefing also known as the “war Cabinet”. The regular Cabinet will not take place tomorrow with No 10 pointing out how the Covid-19 meeting will centrally co-ordinate the Government’s response to the outbreak. Also, ministerial committees set up to deal with aspects of the pandemic would continue.
Mr Raab is expected to take the daily 5pm Downing St briefing alongside Professor Chris Whitty, England’s Chief Medical Officer, who has recovered following self-isolation after he showed symptoms of coronavirus.
Asked about reports out of Russia that Mr Johnson was on a ventilator in intensive care, the spokesman declared: “That is disinformation.”
Referring to false and misleading narratives, which had been disseminated since the start of the pandemic, he stressed: “It’s vital that any disinformation is knocked down quickly. The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport and the Cabinet Office continue to work closely with social media companies to press for further action to stem the spread of falsehoods and rumours.”
In other developments:
*the Queen's address to the nation on Sunday evening was watched by more than 23 million people;
*the Foreign Office has announced more flights to repatriate UK nationals stranded around the world, including ones from India, Nepal, the Philippines and South Africa - but travellers will have to pay up to £1,000 for a ticket;
*Labour’s Tony Lloyd, 70, the former Shadow Scottish Secretary, is in a Manchester hospital after contracting coronavirus, the party revealed, saying he was “stable and responding to treatment”;
*Mark Drakeford, Wales' First Minister, has called for an urgent Cobra meeting between the UK's four governments to review coronavirus lockdown measures;
*No 10 said sunbathing was banned under coronavirus-tackling measures but stressed it was up to the police to use "discretion" in enforcing the rules;
*industry figures show the number of new cars sold in the UK in March fell by 44 per cent or just over 200,000, compared with last year and
*the Duchess of Cornwall, 72, has been reunited with the Prince of Wales after coming out of self- isolation at their Scottish retreat at Birkhall in Aberdeenshire - just days before their 15th wedding anniversary.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel