Can a 2-Week 'Circuit Breaker' Lockdown Curb COVID-19? The U.K. May Be About to Find Out

The coronavirus is having its way with the United Kingdom—a fact that is told starkly by the numbers. The 21st most populous country in the world, the U.K. is 11th in total number of COVID-19 infections—and climbing fast. Its daily infection rate is doubling every seven to eight days in some regions, more people are now hospitalized there than on March 23 (when the country went into general lockdown), and in some regions, hospital beds and intensive care units are at 90% capacity. With cold weather coming on and flu season beginning, things look darker still. “We could sleep-walk into a long and bleak winter,” warned opposition Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer in an address last week.