当地时间3月14日，英国《每日电讯报》网站发表独家文章称：鲍里斯•约翰逊承认，拖延首次封城（2020年3月）是个错误！
![]()
文章援引约翰逊身边人士的消息，约翰逊承认，去年延误了首次全国性封城措施是一个错误，不过该人士也坚持认为首相的决策失误是由科学顾问团队呈报的数据导致的。如果约翰逊有重来一次的机会，他的措施会“更严、更早，更快”。
Boris Johnson accepts it was a mistake to delay the start of the first national lockdown, close allies have said, while insisting the Prime Minister was let down by scientific advisers. Johnson would act “harder, earlier and faster” if he had his time again.
去年的3月23日，英国迎来疫情后的首次封城措施。如今，距离首次封城接近一周年。根据英国政府11日发布的数据显示，该国当天新增新冠确诊病例6753例，累计确诊4241677例；新增死亡病例181例，累计死亡125168例。
文章写到，封城一周年之际，约翰逊因为成功促使英国的疫苗接种计划推广而受到赞赏，但是他最终需要面临这个问题：为什么英国的死亡数据在全欧洲最高，全世界排第五。
As the first anniversary of lockdown approaches, Johnson has rightly won plaudits for the runaway success of Britain’s vaccine rollout, but knows he will eventually have to confront the question of why the UK has suffered the highest death toll in Europe and the fifth-highest in the world.
![]()
这是3月11日在英国伦敦拍摄的威斯敏斯特教堂改造的新冠疫苗接种中心外的指路牌。新华社发（雷伊•唐摄）图源：新华网
据《每日电讯报》了解，有关封城的关键时间点是在2020年3月14日星期六，也就是实际开始实施封城措施的9天以前，约翰逊看到了一些“证据”：即相关部长和科学团队此前“误算”了英国医疗系统多久之后会不堪重负。
The Telegraph has learnt that the pivotal moment in imposing lockdown came on March 14 last year – nine days before lockdown started – when Mr Johnson was shown evidence that ministers and scientific advisers had badly miscalculated how quickly the NHS would be overwhelmed.
当天，在一次匆忙召开的会议上，唐宁街10号的分析师告诉了约翰逊，此前的“压平曲线”政策不管用，而医院距离“过载”仅有3周时间，对此约翰逊十分震惊。
The Prime Minister was “stunned” to be told by a Number 10 data analyst at a hurriedly-convened Saturday meeting that his policy was not working and that hospitals were as little as three weeks away from being past capacity.
![]()
这是3月8日在英国伦敦拍摄的空荡荡的考文特花园。英国政府8日发布的数据显示，该国当天新增新冠确诊病例4712例。新华社记者 韩岩 摄 图源：新华网
而在那之前，约翰逊一直基于政府部门提供的过时计划制定决策。不过，直到3月23日他才颁布“居家令”，有科学家称如此延误可能导致第一波疫情期间死亡人数翻倍。
Mr Johnson had, until then, been making decisions based on out-of-date projections provided by Government departments. But he waited until March 23 to issue his “stay at home” order, a decision which scientists have claimed doubled the death toll in the first wave.
在《每日电讯报》网站上，还有另一篇文章写道：
新冠疫情封锁措施一年后：为什么鲍里斯•约翰逊花了那么久的时间后才告诉我们要待在家中？
![]()
文章还原了去年3月14日的情形：
知情者说：我们的首要任务是确保医疗系统可以应对，但新冠疫情不仅仅会越过图表数据上英国医疗系统的红线，而是会直接“击穿”！不过尽管如此，首相依然没有直接采取完全的封城措施。随后的周一，相关科学顾问把防疫口径变得更严厉了一些：有明显证据显示，应该尽快加强保持社交距离的措施。
"Our priority had always been to make sure the NHS could cope," said another insider, "but the new analysis showed Covid wasn't going to just pass that line on the graph, it was going to really smash through it." The Prime Minister did not, however, fully lock the country down straight away. The following Monday, Sage toughened its stance, saying “there is clear evidence to support additional social distancing measures being introduced as soon as possible”.
![]()
3月8日，在英国伦敦关闭的店铺旁放置着提醒人们保持社交距离的标识。 新华社记者 韩岩 摄 图源：新华网
去年3月18日，首相顾问康明斯曾建议于20日开启全国封城，但是首相拒绝了。19日，英国电视上播出了意大利疫情的影像：死者过多，火葬场不堪重负，军用卡车不得不将遗体运走。随后，民众对于封城的支持度上升了。
Dominic Cummings is understood to have recommended that the country go into lockdown by March 20, but again Mr Johnson put off the decision. On March 19 public support for lockdown leapt up when television footage showed bodies being driven out of Bergamo in Italy in military trucks because the local crematorium could not cope with the numbers of dead.
直到去年3月23日，彼时英国疫情累计死亡人数翻三倍达到335，累计确诊病例6650，约翰逊才不再犹豫下达封城令。
The death toll had leapt threefold to 335, with 6,650 cases. Mr Johnson decided he could delay no longer.
据央视新闻报道，由于鲍里斯推迟全国防疫封锁，耽误了最佳的防疫时机，最终导致英国成为在学校封闭、公共活动暂停、限制国内或国际旅行等方面的时间在欧洲属于最长的国家之一，意味着经济等各方面的损失也是最大。
目前，第三轮新冠疫情正席卷欧洲大部分国家。随之而来的是，由于疫苗接种项目停滞不前而陷入困境的多个国家正经历感染率和确诊病例数量的急剧上升。现在多个国家正计划在未来几天实施新的严格封锁措施。
![]()
A third wave of the Covid pandemic is now advancing swiftly across much of Europe. As a result, many nations – bogged down by sluggish vaccination campaigns – are witnessing sharp rises in infection rates and numbers of cases. Several countries are now set to impose strict new lockdown measures in the next few days.
综合来源：新华网，央视新闻，Telegraph，观察者网，中国日报网英语点津
