Sir Patrick Vallance said the figure was a "reasonable ballpark" despite just over 1,500 COVID-19 cases being confirmed through testing. Sir Patrick said annual excess deaths from seasonal flu were around 8,000. Sir Patrick said closing schools was still on the table - but it was not the action with the biggest impact. Sir Patrick said it was a "semantic difference" to argue whether the UK had shifted from a process of delaying and mitigating the spread of Covid-19 to an attempt to suppress it. Asked if the scientists advising the government included critical voices Sir Patrick said: "Yes, absolutely.

Source: Daily Mirror March 17, 2020 14:44 UTC