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UK PM Boris Johnson tests positive for COVID-19

March 28th, 2020 | Tags:
United Kingdom Prime Minister, Boris Johnson announced his diagnosis in a remarkable video posted on social media, in which he said he would continue to lead the UK government's efforts from self-isolation in an apartment in Downing Street. Photo: politicshome.com
CNN

LONDON, UK- The UK's response to the coronavirus pandemic was upended on Friday when the Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his top health minister tested positive for the infection, and his chief medical adviser self-isolated after displaying symptoms.

Johnson announced his diagnosis in a remarkable video posted on social media, in which he said he would continue to lead the UK government's efforts from self-isolation in an apartment in Downing Street. Minutes later, his secretary of state for health, Matt Hancock, also said he had the virus and would work from home.

The Prime Minister said he'd been tested on the advice of England's chief medical officer, Chris Whitty. A matter of hours later, Whitty said he was going into self-isolation after displaying symptoms of Covid-19.

The extraordinary developments raised the question of how many officials leading the UK's response to coronavirus had themselves been exposed to it. Downing Street, the center of power in the UK, is a maze of cramped offices and narrow corridors, making it almost impossible for everyone working there to practice the government's own advice on social distancing.

On Thursday evening, after displaying symptoms but before learning the result of his test, Johnson appeared outside 10 Downing Street with his chief finance minister, Rishi Sunak, taking part in a national moment of appreciation for the UK's health service workers. A Downing Street spokesperson said the pair were careful to remain at a safe distance.

Johnson was a late convert to the strict measures now in place in the UK. Only a few weeks ago, he boasted of shaking the hands of coronavirus patients in hospital, and the UK faced criticism for a more cautious approach to the restrictive measures adopted by its European neighbors.

"Over the last 24 hours I have developed mild symptoms and tested positive for coronavirus," Johnson said in his Friday Twitter post. "I am now self-isolating, but I will continue to lead the government's response via video-conference as we fight this virus. Together we will beat this."

In a video, Johnson said he was experiencing a temperature and a persistent cough, which are key symptoms of the virus. He added that he was working from home and self-isolating. "But be in no doubt that I can continue, thanks to the wizardry of modern technology, to communicate with all my top team to lead the national fightback against coronavirus," he said.

Johnson will work in isolation from his four-bedroom apartment in Downing Street. The infection also raises concerns over Johnson's fiancee, Carrie Symonds, who is pregnant, and the myriad of other officials and advisers who work in close quarters in Downing Street.

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