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British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has pledged to lead a cross-government drive and hold daily televised press conferences to update the public on the battle against the coronavirus as his government is under fire for lacking transparency in the fight. A prime minister office spokesperson said that since Monday, daily press conferences will be hosted by the prime minister and senior ministers on the coronavirus pandemic, supported by scientific and medical experts including the chief medical office and chief scientific adviser.
"The press conferences form part of the government's commitment to clarity and transparency in order to ensure the British people are fully informed about the steps they can take to protect themselves and others," the spokesperson said.
On Monday morning, Johnson will speak to British manufacturers including Unipart Group to ask them to support production of essential medical equipment for the National Health Service.
He will stress the vital role of Britain's manufacturers in preparing the country for a significant spread of coronavirus and call on them to step up and support the nationwide effort to fight the virus, the spokesperson said.
Government schedule showed that in the afternoon Johnson will also chair another meeting of the COBR emergency committee to coordinate the government's ongoing response to coronavirus.
The COBR, or COBRA, meetings are named after Britain's Cabinet Office Briefing Room A on Whitehall. It gathers ministers, civil servants, the police, intelligence officers and others appropriate to whatever they are looking into in an emergency response.
The meeting is expected to include discussion on current modelling of the outbreak and next steps on plans around shielding elderly and vulnerable people, household isolation and mass gatherings.
