The UK could end up being one of the worst-hit European countries in the coronavirus pandemic, a senior scientific adviser to the government warned on Sunday.
Sir Jeremy Farrar, director of the Wellcome Trust who sits on the British government’s scientific advisory committee SAGE, said Britain is facing the highest death toll in the region as further waves of the deadly virus cannot be ruled out.
“ The numbers in the UK have continued to go up. I do hope we are coming close to the number of new infections reducing. But yes the UK is likely to be one of the worst if not the worst affected country in Europe,” Farrar told the BBC.
As of Saturday, the death toll in the UK stands at 9,875, increasing rapidly day on day. The death toll in neighbouring European countries stands at 19,468 in Italy – among the worst hit countries in the world, and Germany at 2,871.
Farrar said that Germany had introduced testing at a “ remarkable” rate which helped it gain a “ critical six to eight weeks” to prepare its health system for the pandemic.