UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has told British people with even mild symptoms of the coronavirus to stay at home for at least seven days, warning that the virus "is the worst public health crisis for a generation."
Speaking at a press conference on Thursday, the UK prime minister confirmed that Britain had moved into the "delay" phase of its plan for combating the COVID-19 virus, with the number of confirmed cases growing on a daily basis.
"This is the worst public health crisis for a generation. Some people compare to seasonal flu. Alas, that is not right."
"Owing to the lack of immunity, this is more serious.
"Many more families are going to lose loved ones before their time," Johnson said.
Watch Boris Johnson: Families will lose loved ones
Johnson said that in the next few weeks the UK government could take more radical measures, including banning big public events like sporting fixtures, and telling the families of people with coronavirus symptoms to stay at home.
"There is no escaping the reality that these measures will cause severe disruption across our country for many months," he said.
UK Chief Scientific Advisor Sir Patrick Vallance said that while the number of confirmed cases in the UK was 590, the true number of cases was probably somewhere between 5,000 and 10,000.
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