UK extends COVID-19 lockdown as other countries plan to reopen in coming weeks
The U.K. and Japan expand their efforts to fight COVID-19 as Germany and Switzerland plan to reopen their economies; Greg Palkot reports from London.
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As the British government prepares to unveil a roadmap for exiting the coronavirus lockdown on Sunday, authorities in England have shared examples of people caught making non-essential journeys in recent days for the most outlandish reasons.
Warm weather over a bank holiday in the U.K. has drawn people to the northern region of Cumbria, including some who have traveled hundreds of miles for a day trip.
On Sunday, the Cumbria Roads Police said on Twitter that a driver from Edinburgh, Scotland, was stopped after trying to drive a distance of around 200 miles to Wigan, England, to "buy a puppy."
"The driver was issued a fine; however, 10 minutes later they ignored the instruction to return back home and was issued a second fine before being escorted back up north," police said.
The incident came after police documented several other instances of other non-essential trips.
Drivers in the U.K. have been caught making nonessential trips, including driving hundreds of miles to purchase puppies or speakers, according to police. (Cumbria Roads Police)
Another driver was stopped after attempting to drive from Manchester to the town of Dundee to also purchase a puppy, the force said.
"Again, not an essential journey. The driver agreed he wouldn’t have made this journey when lockdown commenced," police tweeted. "Nothing has changed."
Moments earlier, police said another motorist was stopped after driving from London to purchase an Audi from Manchester and then continuing northward to Carlisle to "purchase some speakers he’d seen on eBay."
"This is not acceptable," police said.
Among others pulled over on Saturday included a family of four caught heading out for a drive who were escorted out of the area, and a family who had made a 250-mile journey from London to Ambleside.
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"Unfortunately, London is not a reasonable distance to have traveled from so they were given a fine and sent back home," the force said.
Drivers in the U.K. have been caught making nonessential trips, including driving hundreds of miles to purchase puppies or speakers, according to police. (Cumbria Roads Police)
On Friday, police stopped a car with three men inside who claimed the only reason they were out was "to feed the ducks."
"Taken back to the motorway," the force tweeted. "Quackers."
Drivers in the U.K. have been caught making nonessential trips, including driving hundreds of miles to purchase puppies or speakers, according to police. (Cumbria Roads Police)
Since the lockdown began, the force has issued dozens of fines to drivers caught violating the lockdown orders for non-essential travel, Sky News reported.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will announce the stages for lifting the country's lockdown during a pre-recorded television address on Sunday, as the British government has replaced its “stay at home” coronavirus slogan with a new “stay alert” message, a move that has met with widespread criticism.
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Johnson is expected to announce modest changes, including quarantining anyone flying into the country for 14 days except those from Ireland, amid rising evidence that Britons are increasingly flouting the “stay at home” message.
British police warned Saturday that they are “fighting a losing battle” on this front. Other incidents of individuals breaking the lockdown include a man who took a 224-mile round trip last month to pick up windows bought online.
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Britain's lockdown, which began March 23, has reduced the transmission of the virus but the country's daily death toll remains uncomfortably high, and, as a result, most restrictions are expected to remain.
The U.K., which has recorded the most coronavirus-related deaths in Europe at 31,662, is still seeing a relatively high number of infections.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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