AFP reports that UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Wednesday he could begin to ease a nationwide coronavirus lockdown next week, but warned he would do nothing that would risk a new surge of cases.
He was speaking the day after Britain overtook Italy to become the worst-hit country in Europe, with more than 32 000 deaths related to Covid-19 - behind only the US in the global rankings.
Johnson said that "every death is a tragedy", calling the statistics "appalling", but said there was not yet enough data to make international comparisons.
In particular, he said he "bitterly regrets" the deaths in care homes, which stand at more than 6 000, but added that there had been a "palpable improvement" in the last few days.
The wider death rate is coming down, six weeks after the government imposed stay-at-home orders to stem the rate of infection, and the lockdown measures are up for review on Thursday.
Speaking in parliament for the first time since he himself was hospitalised with coronavirus, Johnson said the government would review the data and he would set out the next steps on Sunday.
"We'll want if we possibly can to get going with some of these measures on Monday. I think it would be a good thing if people had an idea of what is coming," he said.
However, the government has previously stressed that measures would only be lifted gradually.
Johnson repeated on Wednesday: "It would be an economic disaster for this country if we were to pursue a relaxation of these measures now in such a way as to trigger a second spike."
Sweden nears death toll of 3 000
Swedish officials on Wednesday said the country, which has taken a softer approach to curbing the spread of the new coronavirus, was nearing 3 000 deaths from Covid-19, AFP reports.
The country's Public Health Agency reported that a total of 23 918 cases had been confirmed and 2 941 deaths had been recorded, an increase of 87 deaths from the day before.
Sweden has not imposed the kind of extraordinary lockdowns seen elsewhere in Europe, instead opting for an approach based on the "principle of responsibility".
The Scandinavian country has allowed schools for under-16s, cafes, bars, restaurants and businesses to stay open while urging people and businesses to respect social distancing guidelines.
The Swedish approach has received criticism both domestically and internationally as its death toll has leapt much higher than its Nordic neighbours, which have all instituted more restrictive containment measures.
Uber lays off staff
Uber said on Wednesday it was cutting 3 700 jobs amid a huge slump in its ride-hailing operations during the pandemic, AFP reports.
The cuts amount to around 14% of Uber's global workforce, which does not include its contract drivers.
The company made the announcement in a regulatory filing, which also said chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi would waive his base salary for the remainder of the year.
The move comes a day ahead of Uber's earnings report, and follows a 17% staff cut by its US rival Lyft.
"Today's cost cutting move ahead of tomorrow's earnings is a painful, but unfortunately a necessary, move for Dara & co. to make in this unprecedented Covid-19 environment," said Daniel Ives at Wedbush Securities.
"On the other side of this dark valley, the Uber business model will likely look a lot different for the next few years (at least) and the company must rationalize costs and a smaller operation to focus on attaining profitability in this 'new normal' backdrop."