Boris Johnson has arrived back at Number 10 to resume charge of Britain’s fight against coronavirus today.
The Prime Minister will chair the daily 9.15 pandemic ‘war cabinet’ before hosting a second strategy meeting in the evening to sketch out the next phases of lockdown.
Allies last night claimed he is keen to ‘modify’ certain restrictions if the scientific guidance affords him the wriggle room.
Mr Johnson was whisked through the rear entrance of Downing Street at around 6.30 yesterday evening without fanfare, travelling in a humble Volkswagen people carrier rather than his ministerial Jaguar and police motorcade.
Exclusive MailOnline pictures show him greeting a security guard at the gate before heading inside the building flanked by his personal protection.
After 15 days recuperating from his own coronavirus battle at Chequers with pregnant fiancée Carrie Symonds, Mr Johnson has told colleagues he is ‘raring to go’.
His return relieves Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab of command after three weeks deputising for the stricken premier.
The PM comes back to Westminster facing restlessness on both Tory and Labour benches for the government to publish a lockdown exit strategy, as well as splits emerging in his own cabinet.
Boris Johnson has arrived back in Number 10 ahead of his return to work tomorrow following his battle with coronavirus, MailOnline can reveal
Mr Johnson was flanked by his security detail as he headed into the rear entrance of Downing Street
The Prime Minister was pictured entering via the back of Downing Street where he smiled to a security guard before heading inside
He returns to Westminster facing restlessness on both Tory and Labour benches for the government to publish a lockdown exit strategy
Mr Johnson, 55, was discharged from St Thomas’ Hospital in London two weeks ago after spending five nights inside including three in intensive care.
He made a brief stop-off at Number 10 to record a message to the nation – where he thanked NHS staff for saving his life – before heading to his grace-and-favour country home in Buckinghamshire.
There, he has steadily been increasing his workload by making calls with ministers, looking through his papers and hosting Zoom video conferences.
But his return to Downing Street, much earlier than some experts had predicted given the life-threatening severity of his illness, puts his hand firmly back on the tiller as the cabinet faces tough decisions over whether to ease the lockdown.
Mr Johnson is reportedly bullish about easing some of the restrictive measures and could do so early if given the green light by his scientific advisers.
An ally of the PM told the Telegraph: ‘May 7 is the day when the government is legally obliged to review the lockdown measures but if Boris wants to change the restrictions earlier than that, or at least announce something before that, then he could go sooner.’
Early measures are likely to include encouraging the construction industry to get back to work, following scientific advice that the virus spreads much less effectively outdoors.
The issue is set to be discussed at a meeting of the PM’s coronavirus strategy group Monday evening. However, a government source cautioned that any easing of the lockdown would be very gradual to avoid a deadly second wave of infection.
Ministers are close to ditching the ‘Stay at Home’ message in favour of a slightly less restrictive one, the source added.
They said: ‘We are moving on from Stay at Home. But that does not mean we are anywhere near going back to normal. We are all going to have to adapt to a new normal.
‘The Prime Minister’s big concern is avoiding a second peak, which would require a second lockdown. He is clear that we cannot afford to do anything which would mean losing control of the rate of infection because that would mean more people dying.
‘It would also mean a return to the lockdown, which would be damaging to public trust and terrible for business.’
The Prime Minister returned to work as:
- Officials said arrivals at ports and airports may face 14-day quarantine;
- Just 29,000 virus tests are being carried out a day – far below the 100,000 target promised by Health Secretary Matt Hancock;
- Mr Raab said an effective vaccine may not be available until next year;
- The Foreign Secretary also hinted that children may go back to school part-time at first;
- A leading government adviser dismissed concerns about the PM’s aide Dominic Cummings attending top scientific meetings;
- Professor Neil Ferguson also torpedoed the idea of allowing young people to resume normal life, saying it would cause 100,000 deaths;
- Environment Secretary George Eustice said furloughed workers would be encouraged to take jobs picking fruit and veg;
- Deaths in other European countries fell as EU leaders prepared to ease their lockdowns.
Mr Johnson was whisked through the rear entrance of Downing Street at around 6.30 this evening without fanfare, travelling in a humble Volkswagen people carrier rather than his ministerial Jaguar and police motorcade
Mr Johnson steps out of the dark minibus before heading inside one Downing Street’s vast network of inter-connected buildings
Number 10 did not confirm if Mr Johnson will front tomorrow’s daily coronavirus press briefing.
Nor did they reveal if he will face off against Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer at PMQs on Wednesday.
Sir Keir has been urging the government to publish a road map out of lockdown, writing a letter to the PM calling for ‘an adult conversation about what comes next’.
Grumblings are also echoing through the Conservative ranks, with six Tory donors and a slew of MPs demanding restrictions be loosened.
Wealthy Conservative backer John Cauldwell, the founder of Phones4U, writes in today’s Mail: ‘Proposing a phased lifting of restrictions based on geography, he writes: ‘I worry that if the lockdown is not lifted soon, we may lose some industries forever.’
There are growing signs the public is getting agitated with life under lockdown amid a slight increase in travel and scenes of people pouring into parks in the warm weather.
In Mr Johnson’s absence, ministers have displayed a united front in refusing to fuel speculation of when the country can take baby steps out of lockdown.
Mr Raab, whose role as first secretary saw him fill in for Mr Johnson, this morning scolded ‘irresponsible’ demands for the government to sketch out an exit strategy.
He will take back the reins days after Britain’s deaths passed the grim 20,000 milestone, now standing at 20,732 after a further 413 fatalities were reported today.
The number of cases also rose by 4,463 to 152,840 following 29,058 tests, a figure the re-energised PM will be keen to ramp up to hit the government’s 100,000 target by the end of April.
Why IS it taking so long for deaths and infections to come down? New cases decline by just a third in three weeks
The UK has taken three weeks to reduce daily coronavirus cases by around a third in a ‘disappointingly’ slow decline that may be due to ‘inadequate access to personal protective equipment’.
The daily number of infections has fallen from 5,903 at its peak on April 5 to 4,913 yesterday.
This rate of decline lags behind other countries in Europe – including Germany and heavily-hit Spain and Italy – when compared to the three weeks following each nation’s peak of infections.
Professor Paul Hunter of the University of East Anglia said one of the reasons could be due to greater access to personal protective equipment abroad.
It comes as leading British scientists poured cold water on hopes of ending the lockdown, warning the cases figure first needs to be in the hundreds, not thousands.
The UK yesterday passed the 20,000-death milestone in the outbreak as a further 813 deaths took the official total toll to 20,319, while cases hit 148,377.
Prof Hunter from Norwich School of Medicine at UEA told MailOnline: ‘If you look at most of the other countries, not all, but certainly most are showing a much steeper decline than we are.
‘We are definitely seeing a slower impact than most of our European neighbours.’
Mr Johnson will also return to find his cabinet split over how to map a path out of the lockdown after a source insisted: ‘Boris is tightening his grip. You are going to see much greater clarity, energy and purpose now.’
A survey by the Institute of Directors shows that confidence among company bosses is at the lowest level recorded, with 70 per cent pessimistic about the outlook for the economy.
IoD chief Jon Geldart said there was a growing clamour for information about ‘how and when’ the lockdown would be eased to allow firms to ‘make plans for riding out this tempest’.
He added: ‘It’s in everyone’s interests to get the economy off life support when it’s safe to do so. Business leaders know this will not happen all in one go, but that’s why it’s even more important to tell them what they need to prepare for.’
Mr Raab insisted the ‘Stay at Home’ message was still needed and said it would ‘create more uncertainty in the public’s mind’ if ministers started talking about how it might be eased.
But behind the scenes, senior figures are now working on a new message.
A ‘quad’ of senior ministers, comprising Mr Raab, Mr Hancock, Michael Gove and Chancellor Rishi Sunak has been holding a daily strategy meeting at 6pm to discuss ‘the next phase’ of the battle against the virus.
Election guru Isaac Levido has been tasked with devising a slogan, which could be unveiled within days following focus group testing.
Mr Johnson will today begin holding one-to-one talks with each member of the Cabinet to discuss developments which occurred during his absence.
Mr Johnson has not been involved directly in government decisions since he was taken into a central London hospital and spent three days in intensive care.
But he gradually increased his workload and Mr Raab yesterday dismissed suggestions he would only be back part time initially.
He told Sky News: ‘He’s in really good spirits. He’s taken the time and taken the doctors’ advice to rebuild his strength.
‘He’s going to be back at work full time, properly at the helm. And as you can imagine with the Prime Minister, he’s raring to go.’