Lockdown restrictions could be lifted initially in Britain’s islands in what would be a test case for the rest of the country, Michael Gove has confirmed.
But the cabinet office minister played down the idea of a region by region easing of the measures, designed to save lives by protecting the capability of the NHS.
Different rules in different parts of the UK would risk confusion in the fight against coronavirus and potentially lead to the disease spreading, he suggested.
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Ministers believe new technology to track and trace Covid-19 cases should be tested on islands, where the number of cases are already low and visitors can be more easily monitored.
Mr Gove told MPs on the Commons public administration and constitutional affairs committee there was “specific scientific justification” showing island communities could pilot contact tracing.
1/50 29 April 2020
Britain’s Labour leader Keir Starmer speaks during Prime Minister’s Questions, as members of Parliament observe social distancing due to the coronavirus, in the House of Commons, London, Wednesday, April 29, 2020
UK Parliament/AP
2/50 28 April 2020
NHS staff at the Mater hospital in Belfast, during a minute’s silence to pay tribute to the NHS staff and key workers who have died during the coronavirus outbreak
PA
3/50 27 April 2020
The sun rises behind redundant oil platforms moored in the Firth of Forth near Kirkcaldy, Fife. Global oil prices have crashed after the coronavirus pandemic reduced demand, with analysts warning that the oil majors may be looking at one of their biggest quarter-on-quarter profitability hits in history.
PA
4/50 26 April 2020
Frankie Lynch celebrates on the Mall where the finish of the London Marathon was due to take place today after running 2.6 miles instead of 26 miles to raise money for The Running Charity
Reuters
5/50 25 April 2020
A muslim woman walks past balloons outside the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery in London
Reuters
6/50 24 April 2020
An empty Brighton Pier, closed during the Coronavirus pandemic as temperatures reach 20 degrees in the South East
Rex
7/50 23 April 2020
Farmers work with vehicles to prepare a field next to a field of flowering rapeseed near Pontefract, West Yorkshire
AFP/Getty
8/50 22 April 2020
The Northern Lights, the Milky Way and a Lyrid meteor at the Bathing House near Howick, Northumberland, as the Lyrid meteor shower reached its peak
PA
9/50 21 April 2020
Badger the Border Collie surrounded by bluebells at Shrawley Wood in Worcestershire
PA
10/50 20 April 2020
A dog walker on Blyth beach in Northumberland
PA
11/50 19 April 2020
A piece of coronavirus themed street art grafitti in East London
AFP via Getty
12/50 18 April 2020
Members of the City Specialist Cleaning team spray disinfectant around posts in the town centre of Eastleigh, Hampshire
PA
13/50 17 April 2020
A taped-up bench in the hamlet of Diglea, Greater Manchester
AFP/Getty
14/50 16 April 2020
A woman wearing a protective face mask and gloves walks past graffiti in Bow, London
Reuters
15/50 15 April 2020
A burned down mobile phone mast in London. According to reports, at least 20 mobile phone masts across Britain are believed to have been vandalised and government and telecom sources are increasingly concerned about the impact of conspiracy theories linking coronavirus to 5G networks
EPA
16/50 14 April 2020
The new Nightingale Hospital in Washington, Tyne and Wear, being fitted out
PA
17/50 13 April 2020
Walkers enjoy the bluebells in Wanstead Park in London
PA
18/50 12 April 2020
A woman prays at the closed doors of Westminster Cathedral ahead of the Easter morning mass in London
PA
19/50 11 April 2020
A man jogs on an empty beach in Scarborough as the UK continues in lockdown to help curb the spread of the coronavirus
PA
20/50 10 April 2020
Military personnel testing people at a coronavirus test centre in the car park of Chessington World of Adventures
Reuters
21/50 9 April 2020
Posters drawn by children displayed in support of the NHS in a building near St Thomas’ Hospital in London
Getty
22/50 8 April 2020
A street cleaner in front of Coronavirus messaging on Picadilly Circus in London
Getty
23/50 7 April 2020
A jogger on the Millennium Bridge in London, as the UK continues in lockdown to help curb the spread of the coronavirus
PA
24/50 6 April 2020
A Royal Signals soldier practices during training held by the British Army. They are preparing them to support the Welsh Ambulance Service NHS Trust in the battle against coronavirus
Ministry of Defence/Reuters
25/50 5 April 2020
A police officer advises a woman to go home after spotting her enjoying the sun in Primrose Hill, London
AP
26/50 4 March 2020
New Leader of the Labour Party Keir Starmer speaks on the announcement of his victory in the leadership race of the Labour Party
AFP via Getty
27/50 3 April 2020
Health Secretary Matt Hancock and NHS staff stand on marks on the ground, put in place to ensure social distancing guidelines are adhered to, at the opening of the NHS Nightingale Hospital at the ExCel centre in London, a temporary hospital with 4000 beds which has been set up for the treatment of Covid-19 patients. PA Photo. Picture date: Friday April 3, 2020. Split into more than 80 wards containing 42 beds each, the facility will be used to treat Covid-19 patients who have been transferred from other intensive care units across London.
PA
28/50 2 April 2020
A child at Westlands Primary School paints a poster in support of the NHS in Newcastle-under-Lyme
Reuters
29/50 1 April 2020
Staff wearing PPE of gloves and face masks, as a preactionary measure against Covid-19, disinfect an ambulance after it arrived with a patient at St Thomas’ Hospital in north London
AFP via Getty
30/50 31 March 2020
Llandudno Pier remains closed and deserted of tourists during the pandemic lockdown in Wales
Getty
31/50 30 March 2020
Waves break against the pier at Tynemouth, on the North East coast
PA
32/50 29 March 2020
Waves crash over a car on the seafront during windy conditions in Broadstairs, Kent
PA
33/50 28 March 2020
Derbyshire Police dye the “blue lagoon” in Harpur Hill, Buxton black, as gatherings there are “dangerous” and are “in contravention of the current instruction of the UK Government”
PA
34/50 27 March 2020
A road sign advising drivers to ‘stay home protect NHS saves lives’ is visible on the M80 near Banknock as the UK continues in lockdown to help curb the spread of the coronavirus
PA
35/50 26 March 2020
A postman wears a mask and gloves to deliver letters in Broadstairs, Kent, after Prime Minister Boris Johnson has put the UK in lockdown to help curb the spread of the coronavirus. PA Photo. Picture date: Thursday March 26, 2020. The UK’s coronavirus death toll reached 463 on Wednesday.
PA
36/50 25 March 2020
Members of the public out exercising on Brighton beach at sunset
Getty
37/50 24 March 2020
Military vehicles cross Westminster Bridge after members of the 101 Logistic Brigade delivered a consignment of medical masks to St Thomas’ hospital
Getty
38/50 23 March 2020
Commuters travel on the London underground during the Coronavirus pandemic
Getty
39/50 22 March 2020
People walk on the seafront after recent incidents of members of the public ignoring government advice on social distancing on in Hove
Getty
40/50 21 March 2020
A general view of an empty Trafalgar Square in London. There have as of now been 3,983 diagnosed coronavirus cases in the UK and 177 deaths
Getty
41/50 20 March 2020
Swans swim on the banks of the River Severn in Worcester
PA
42/50 19 March 2020
A piece of art by the artist, known as the Rebel Bear has appeared on a wall on Bank Street in Glasgow. The new addition to Glasgow’s street art is capturing the global Coronavirus crisis. The piece features a woman and a man pulling back to give each other a kiss
PA
43/50 18 March 2020
Students tend to Spring Lambs at Moreton Morrell College in Warwickshire
PA
44/50 17 March 2020
Caerphilly Castle in South Wales joins Tourism Ireland’s Global Greenings campaign to mark St Patrick’s Day
PA
45/50 16 March 2020
Shoppers form long queues ahead of the opening of a Costco wholesale store in Chingford
Getty
46/50 15 March 2020
Players sing songs in the changing room after their game of football at Hackney Marshes in London
Reuters
47/50 14 March 2020
Empty shelves in the laundry aisle of an Asda store in London
PA
48/50 13 March 2020
Runners and riders compete in the JCB Triumph Hurdle during day four of the Cheltenham Festival at Cheltenham Racecourse. Thousands of people attended where Gold Cup day amid great uncertainty as sports events up and down the United Kingdom are postponed and cancelled due to the Coronavirus outbreak
PA Images via Reuters Connect
49/50 12 March 2020
A worker makes her way along rows of daffodils, removing any rogue varieties, at Taylors Bulbs in Holbeach, Lincolnshire. The fourth generation family company plant over 35 million bulbs every year, and have held The Royal Warrant as Bulb Growers to Her Majesty The Queen since 1985
PA
50/50 11 March 2020
Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak poses for pictures with the Budget Box outside 11 Downing Street ahead of Britain’s first post-Brexit budget
AFP/Getty
1/50 29 April 2020
Britain’s Labour leader Keir Starmer speaks during Prime Minister’s Questions, as members of Parliament observe social distancing due to the coronavirus, in the House of Commons, London, Wednesday, April 29, 2020
UK Parliament/AP
2/50 28 April 2020
NHS staff at the Mater hospital in Belfast, during a minute’s silence to pay tribute to the NHS staff and key workers who have died during the coronavirus outbreak
PA
3/50 27 April 2020
The sun rises behind redundant oil platforms moored in the Firth of Forth near Kirkcaldy, Fife. Global oil prices have crashed after the coronavirus pandemic reduced demand, with analysts warning that the oil majors may be looking at one of their biggest quarter-on-quarter profitability hits in history.
PA
4/50 26 April 2020
Frankie Lynch celebrates on the Mall where the finish of the London Marathon was due to take place today after running 2.6 miles instead of 26 miles to raise money for The Running Charity
Reuters
5/50 25 April 2020
A muslim woman walks past balloons outside the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery in London
Reuters
6/50 24 April 2020
An empty Brighton Pier, closed during the Coronavirus pandemic as temperatures reach 20 degrees in the South East
Rex
7/50 23 April 2020
Farmers work with vehicles to prepare a field next to a field of flowering rapeseed near Pontefract, West Yorkshire
AFP/Getty
8/50 22 April 2020
The Northern Lights, the Milky Way and a Lyrid meteor at the Bathing House near Howick, Northumberland, as the Lyrid meteor shower reached its peak
PA
9/50 21 April 2020
Badger the Border Collie surrounded by bluebells at Shrawley Wood in Worcestershire
PA
10/50 20 April 2020
A dog walker on Blyth beach in Northumberland
PA
11/50 19 April 2020
A piece of coronavirus themed street art grafitti in East London
AFP via Getty
12/50 18 April 2020
Members of the City Specialist Cleaning team spray disinfectant around posts in the town centre of Eastleigh, Hampshire
PA
13/50 17 April 2020
A taped-up bench in the hamlet of Diglea, Greater Manchester
AFP/Getty
14/50 16 April 2020
A woman wearing a protective face mask and gloves walks past graffiti in Bow, London
Reuters
15/50 15 April 2020
A burned down mobile phone mast in London. According to reports, at least 20 mobile phone masts across Britain are believed to have been vandalised and government and telecom sources are increasingly concerned about the impact of conspiracy theories linking coronavirus to 5G networks
EPA
16/50 14 April 2020
The new Nightingale Hospital in Washington, Tyne and Wear, being fitted out
PA
17/50 13 April 2020
Walkers enjoy the bluebells in Wanstead Park in London
PA
18/50 12 April 2020
A woman prays at the closed doors of Westminster Cathedral ahead of the Easter morning mass in London
PA
19/50 11 April 2020
A man jogs on an empty beach in Scarborough as the UK continues in lockdown to help curb the spread of the coronavirus
PA
20/50 10 April 2020
Military personnel testing people at a coronavirus test centre in the car park of Chessington World of Adventures
Reuters
21/50 9 April 2020
Posters drawn by children displayed in support of the NHS in a building near St Thomas’ Hospital in London
Getty
22/50 8 April 2020
A street cleaner in front of Coronavirus messaging on Picadilly Circus in London
Getty
23/50 7 April 2020
A jogger on the Millennium Bridge in London, as the UK continues in lockdown to help curb the spread of the coronavirus
PA
24/50 6 April 2020
A Royal Signals soldier practices during training held by the British Army. They are preparing them to support the Welsh Ambulance Service NHS Trust in the battle against coronavirus
Ministry of Defence/Reuters
25/50 5 April 2020
A police officer advises a woman to go home after spotting her enjoying the sun in Primrose Hill, London
AP
26/50 4 March 2020
New Leader of the Labour Party Keir Starmer speaks on the announcement of his victory in the leadership race of the Labour Party
AFP via Getty
27/50 3 April 2020
Health Secretary Matt Hancock and NHS staff stand on marks on the ground, put in place to ensure social distancing guidelines are adhered to, at the opening of the NHS Nightingale Hospital at the ExCel centre in London, a temporary hospital with 4000 beds which has been set up for the treatment of Covid-19 patients. PA Photo. Picture date: Friday April 3, 2020. Split into more than 80 wards containing 42 beds each, the facility will be used to treat Covid-19 patients who have been transferred from other intensive care units across London.
PA
28/50 2 April 2020
A child at Westlands Primary School paints a poster in support of the NHS in Newcastle-under-Lyme
Reuters
29/50 1 April 2020
Staff wearing PPE of gloves and face masks, as a preactionary measure against Covid-19, disinfect an ambulance after it arrived with a patient at St Thomas’ Hospital in north London
AFP via Getty
30/50 31 March 2020
Llandudno Pier remains closed and deserted of tourists during the pandemic lockdown in Wales
Getty
31/50 30 March 2020
Waves break against the pier at Tynemouth, on the North East coast
PA
32/50 29 March 2020
Waves crash over a car on the seafront during windy conditions in Broadstairs, Kent
PA
33/50 28 March 2020
Derbyshire Police dye the “blue lagoon” in Harpur Hill, Buxton black, as gatherings there are “dangerous” and are “in contravention of the current instruction of the UK Government”
PA
34/50 27 March 2020
A road sign advising drivers to ‘stay home protect NHS saves lives’ is visible on the M80 near Banknock as the UK continues in lockdown to help curb the spread of the coronavirus
PA
35/50 26 March 2020
A postman wears a mask and gloves to deliver letters in Broadstairs, Kent, after Prime Minister Boris Johnson has put the UK in lockdown to help curb the spread of the coronavirus. PA Photo. Picture date: Thursday March 26, 2020. The UK’s coronavirus death toll reached 463 on Wednesday.
PA
36/50 25 March 2020
Members of the public out exercising on Brighton beach at sunset
Getty
37/50 24 March 2020
Military vehicles cross Westminster Bridge after members of the 101 Logistic Brigade delivered a consignment of medical masks to St Thomas’ hospital
Getty
38/50 23 March 2020
Commuters travel on the London underground during the Coronavirus pandemic
Getty
39/50 22 March 2020
People walk on the seafront after recent incidents of members of the public ignoring government advice on social distancing on in Hove
Getty
40/50 21 March 2020
A general view of an empty Trafalgar Square in London. There have as of now been 3,983 diagnosed coronavirus cases in the UK and 177 deaths
Getty
41/50 20 March 2020
Swans swim on the banks of the River Severn in Worcester
PA
42/50 19 March 2020
A piece of art by the artist, known as the Rebel Bear has appeared on a wall on Bank Street in Glasgow. The new addition to Glasgow’s street art is capturing the global Coronavirus crisis. The piece features a woman and a man pulling back to give each other a kiss
PA
43/50 18 March 2020
Students tend to Spring Lambs at Moreton Morrell College in Warwickshire
PA
44/50 17 March 2020
Caerphilly Castle in South Wales joins Tourism Ireland’s Global Greenings campaign to mark St Patrick’s Day
PA
45/50 16 March 2020
Shoppers form long queues ahead of the opening of a Costco wholesale store in Chingford
Getty
46/50 15 March 2020
Players sing songs in the changing room after their game of football at Hackney Marshes in London
Reuters
47/50 14 March 2020
Empty shelves in the laundry aisle of an Asda store in London
PA
48/50 13 March 2020
Runners and riders compete in the JCB Triumph Hurdle during day four of the Cheltenham Festival at Cheltenham Racecourse. Thousands of people attended where Gold Cup day amid great uncertainty as sports events up and down the United Kingdom are postponed and cancelled due to the Coronavirus outbreak
PA Images via Reuters Connect
49/50 12 March 2020
A worker makes her way along rows of daffodils, removing any rogue varieties, at Taylors Bulbs in Holbeach, Lincolnshire. The fourth generation family company plant over 35 million bulbs every year, and have held The Royal Warrant as Bulb Growers to Her Majesty The Queen since 1985
PA
50/50 11 March 2020
Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak poses for pictures with the Budget Box outside 11 Downing Street ahead of Britain’s first post-Brexit budget
AFP/Getty
At the same time restrictions would be lifted to test the success of the new tracing regime, he said.
The results would help ministers “judge what is right for the country overall”, he added.
Mr Gove also confirmed ministers were considering a sector by sector approach to lifting the lockdown.
Industries which involve outdoor working could get back to work sooner than those which require staff to be indoors, he said.
Island communities have been pushing for special dispensations, arguing they have fewer cases of the disease and are much more likely to be able to control its spread.
Many also warn of the damage the lockdown is doing to their already fragile economies.
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A new NHS contact tracing app is expected to be ready for use in the next two to three weeks.
But experts have already suggested it will not initially be rolled out nationwide.
Instead, it will be tested in small geographical areas, to ensure it can successfully prevent a second peak of Covid-19 cases.
During his evidence session with MPs, Mr Gove also admitted that he read a secret report into the NHS’s inability to cope with a flu pandemic only last week.
The confidential government report sets out the lessons learnt from Exercise Cygnus, a three-day simulation carried out in 2016.
Mr Gove, who attends the daily coronavirus “war cabinet”, said he had read recommendations prompted by the report before last week.
