Boris Johnson moves out of intensive care

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been moved out of intensive care.

The BBC quoted a spokesman for the prime minister saying he was moved from intensive care on Thursday.

“[He] has been moved this evening from intensive care back to the ward, where he will receive close monitoring during the early phase of his recovery,” the spokesman reportedly said.

Fifty-five-year-old Johnson was admitted to hospital on April 5, 2020, 10 days after he tested positive for coronavirus.

After Johnson was hospitalised, Dominic Raab, UK foreign secretary, took over the reins of government.

Although the prime minister maintained his position as the head of government when he was first admitted in hospital, that changed when he was moved to intensive care.

Speaking on Raab’s stepping in for Johnson, Lord Kerslake, the former head of the civil service, was quoted as saying: “The government and the cabinet secretary have clearly identified Raab as the first minister but that was done some time back without any notion that it would come to this.

“Raab will step into the key functions such as chairing Cobra meetings and chairing cabinet. There will also have been general plans that would have been refined over the last few days since the prime minister’s illness became clear.”

As of April 9, 2020, more than 240,000 people have been tested for coronavirus in the UK. Of that figure, more than 65,000 people have tested positive, with more than 7,000 deaths recorded.