Why a lockdown extension is seen as inevitable

This afternoon Dominic Raab will chair a Cobra meeting where the issue of lifting the lockdown will be raised. When Boris Johnson first announced social distancing measures he said the arrangement would be re-examined in three weeks’ time. Yet no one in government believes there is any prospect of an imminent lockdown lift – instead an extension is coming. If any change is on the menu it’s likely an enhancement of the current arrangement – such as limits on the use of cars – ahead of the sunny Easter Bank Holiday weekend. 

The view in No. 10 is that talk of an exit strategy is premature when the UK has not yet even reached its peak in coronavirus fatalities. Polling suggests that the majority of the general public still support the lockdown. There is a frustration in government at the media focus on a route out. While