UK can expect tens of thousands of deaths in second wave – government scientist

Professor John Edmunds warned of ‘very severe numbers of cases throughout the UK’ around Christmas and into the new year (Niall Carson/PA)

The UK can expect tens of thousands of deaths from the second wave of coronavirus in what is a “bleak” situation, a UK government scientist has said.

Professor John Edmunds, a member of the Government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) and from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, told MPs that immediate action was needed – and not just regionally – to stem the rising tide of Covid-19 cases.