Boris Johnson begs Brits to stay home this weekend in new Covid warning

BORIS Johnson has begged Brits to stay home this weekend, urging everyone to "think twice" before leaving the house.

The PM vowed Britain would eventually beat Covid "jab by jab", but warned people that the nation is still facing a perilous situation.

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Mr Johnson said: "We've already vaccinated hundreds of thousands more people than any other country in Europe.

"But until the job is done, we must keep this virus under control."

The PM reiterated the message that one in three people can carry coronavirus without any symptoms, branding them "silent spreaders, unwittingly infecting others."

"That could, I'm afraid, be you."

Mr Johnson added: "It's safest to assume you have Covid, so please, really think twice before leaving the house this weekend."

It comes after a fresh advertising blitz from Downing Street, warning Brits that "catching up can cost lives" after pictures from last weekend showed packed parks and beaches.

The Sun revealed yesterday one of the new ads is expected to say that grabbing a coffee "could cost lives" - after ministers warned against people using exercise rules to see their mates.

Mr Johnson is also set to give a press conference at 5pm this evening, after the UK hit the massive vaccine milestone of dishing out 3 million doses of the jab.

The PM will be flanked by his top experts, chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance and chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty.

He has vowed to vaccinate 13 million people in the top four most vulnerable categories in order to start relaxing the lockdown.

The nation is also on tenterhooks for an update on the new Brazil variant - which caused a flight ban to come in overnight.

Flights have been cancelled between the UK and Portugal, along with all of South America - and only British citizens or those with residence rights will now be allowed in.

It comes as:

• Grant Shapps warned people not to book their summer holidays yet - as Britain was still in the middle of a pandemic
• A total travel ban was slapped on Portugal and all of South America in order to stop the Brazilian variant of the virus making its way to the UK
• But one of two new variants from Brazil could have already made its way to the UK, according to Professor Wendy Barclay, a leading British scientist

Public Health England and Porton Down labs are looking at the new Brazil strain - which Boris Johnson said was "concerning earlier this week - and are expected to give an update later, which may form part of the press conference.

A spokesperson for No10 said there would be an "update" on the Brazilian strain this evening.

Downing Street has said evidence currently suggests that the concerning new Brazilian variant of coronavirus may be more transmissible but does not affect vaccines.

Transport Secretary this morning Grant Shapps said this morning he did not believe the mutation is in Britain yet.

"There haven't been any flights that I can see from the last week from Brazil, for example," he told the BBC.

And he said the Government's top scientists think the vaccine will still work effectively on the new variant.

Mr Shapps said: "We had a look at this particular mutation, as opposed to many other thousands very carefully, saw there may be an issue, not so much that the vaccine won't work, in fact scientists think it will work, but just the fact it is more spreadable."

Brazil has seen Covid deaths double as its hospitals run out of oxygen while a new strain of the deadly virus has been detected in the Amazon.

Health officials and scientists have suggested the mutation could be behind the surge over the last three weeks which has seen daily records set for cases and deaths.

Hospitals in the country are being overwhelmed as Brazil has recorded the second highest death tally in the world with 205,000.

It is feared the new strain could be fueling the spread as Brazilian scientists believe the Covid mutation could increase the rate of transmission - like the variants detected in South Africa and the UK.