Coronavirus school closures WILL happen but not yet, warns Northern Ireland’s First Minister
CORONAVIRUS will close British schools eventually, Northern Ireland's First Minister has warned.
Arlene Foster said today "there will come a point where we have to close schools", as the killer bug spreads throughout the UK.
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She added: "There will come a point where we will have to say people should social distance themselves from other people, they should stay in their own homes.
"The timing of all of these things is where the science comes in and the modelling which has been done and which continues to be done by those scientists will inform the decision that we have to take, both at UK level and indeed at Northern Ireland level as well."
Last night, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said schools would not close yet despite almost 600 people catching the virus across the UK, with 20 positive cases in Northern Ireland.
It came as he confirmed Britain would move to the "delay" phase to try and stem the spread.
He said: "At all stages we have been guided by the science and we will do the right things at the right time.
"We are not closing schools now, the scientific advice is that this could do more harm than good at this time.
"Of course we are keeping this under review and this may change as the disease spreads.
"Schools should only close if they are specifically advised to do so."
There will come a point where we have to close schools.
Arlene Foster
Ireland yesterday announced all schools there would close until the end of March to stem the infection taking hold.
Northern Ireland's open land border with the Republic means children attending classes just a few miles away will be ordered to stay at home.
Mrs Foster said the infection is more advanced in Ireland, with community transfer of the virus between patients with no links to overseas travel.
She warned it could take healthcare workers away from hospitals and expose grandparents looking after children at home to increased risk from the potentially deadly virus.
More than 350,000 people have signed a petition urging Mr Johnson to close schools over the deadly bug.
CASES CLIMB
Up to 10,000 people could have the virus at the moment in the UK - and won't know it, experts predicted.
Yesterday saw a huge rise in cases, with it jumping from 456 to 596, and two more dead.
Boris described the outbreak the "worst public health crisis in a generation" and "it will spread further" as he revealed new measures to try.
He told the nation to stay at home if they have a cough, adding: "Many more families are going to lose loved ones before their time."
The PM admitted there would be “severe disruption”, but the Government was ready to adapt to keep people safe."
Teachers country-wide are preparing "home-learning packs" as schools could close for a month-long Easter break due to coronavirus.
The deadly bug has now been confirmed as a pandemic - with the UK taking steps to stop the spread.
Many Brits have already been told to work from home, with a lot of workplaces and offices already preparing for how to deal with an Italy-style lockdown.
Brits told to self-isolate for a week if they have a 'mild' cold or a cough
BRITS are being told to do their duty for the country's coronavirus effort and self-isolate for seven days if they have a mild cough or cold.
Anyone with even mild symptoms should not leave home for seven days from when their symptoms start to stop the virus spreading.
People staying at home for seven days should stay at least two metres away from people whenever possible, according to Public Health England's guidelines.
They should also sleep alone - as well as wash their hands regularly for 20 seconds with soap and water.
Denmark became the second European country to go into a total lockdown after Italy's draconian measures.
The Scandinavian country will shut all schools and universities and tell all employees with non-critical jobs to work from home.
And Donald Trump banned all flights in and out of the US from Europe, starting today.
