“The PM has
been discharged from hospital to continue his recovery, at Chequers,” the
spokesman said, referring to the prime minister’s country estate outside
London.
“On the
advice of his medical team, the PM will not be immediately returning to work.”
“The PM has been discharged from hospital to
continue his recovery at Chequers,” the spokesman said.
“He wishes to thank everybody at St Thomas’ (Hospital) for the
brilliant care he has received.
“All of his
thoughts are with those affected by this illness.”
Johnson, who
was admitted to the state-run central London hospital last Sunday and spent
Monday to Thursday in its intensive care unit, had earlier voiced his gratitude
to his carers there.
“I can’t
thank them enough. I owe them my life,” he said in a first public statement
since being hospitalised.
The news of
his continued improvement contrasted with the overall picture across Britain,
as it braces to pass the grim milestone of 10,000 hospital deaths from
COVID-19.
The country
is now seeing daily death tolls to match those previously seen in Europe’s
hardest-hit nations Italy and Spain, after recording nearly 1,000 fatalities on
each of the last two days.
The actual
figure, amid hopes of hitting a peak, may be far higher as the count does not
include those who have died in care homes and the community.
However, the
overall latest number of British hospital deaths – 9,875 – remains well short
of the totals in Italy, Spain and the United States.
Globally, the death toll from the virus soared past 109,000 this
weekend, with more than 1.7 million reported infections.
Britain’s
tally of confirmed cases has climbed close to 80,000, but that is thought to be
only a fraction of the true level of infections as testing for the virus has
been limited.
