England's lockdown likely won't end before March 8
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has indicated that England's lockdown restrictions will remain in place until at least early March.
In a statement to lawmakers at the U.K. House of Commons on Wednesday, Johnson said officials "do not yet have enough data to know exactly how soon it will be safe to reopen our society and economy." But he expressed hope that schools could reopen from March 8, so long as his government meets its target of vaccinating everyone in the top four priority groups by mid-February.
The prime minister also announced new restrictions for travelers arriving in England from countries deemed to be high-risk. He said the United Kingdom remains in a "perilous situation" with more than 37,000 people hospitalized with COVID-19 -- almost double the amount during the previous peak in April.
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During a press conference later Wednesday, Johnson told reporters that March 8 was the "earliest" date by which the government could "responsibly" allow schoolchildren to return to classrooms.
The comments come after the U.K. became the fifth country in the world to record more than 100,000 deaths from COVID-19.
England entered its third national lockdown of the coronavirus pandemic on Jan. 5.
Although Johnson is the prime minister of the U.K., his administration is only responsible for COVID-19 restrictions in England because public health legislation is devolved to national governments within the U.K., meaning that Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are responsible for their own coronavirus-related policies.