Italians ridicule Boris Johnson’s Coronavirus strategy for UK

By Rebecca Ann Hughes • Published: 16 Mar 2020 • 19:33

Boris Johnson’s take on managing the Coronavirus in the UK has differed radically from Italy’s insistence on isolation and social distancing. Johnson recently announced that “many more families are going to lose loved ones” due to the Coronavirus, but has been far behind other European countries in imposing concrete measures to stop the spread. Many Italians have been voicing their disbelief at the UK’s strategy through sarcastic comments on social media.

The numbers of positive cases and of deaths due to Coronavirus continue to rise in Italy, making Italians particularly sceptic of Boris Johnson’s strategy for the UK. Although new measures for Britain were revealed today, many Italians feel they have been imposed late.

One image posted on social media reads:

Italy: “Stay at home, everything will be alright.”
United Kingdom: “Happy Hunger Games.”

https://www.facebook.com/PastoriziaOfficial/photos/a.221409651791550/593023791296799/?type=3&theater

A cartoon titled “Herd immunity, Made in England”, depicts Boris announcing, “and when you are all dead, we will have resolved the problem of Coronavirus!”

Many Italians are concerned about their friends and family living in places where the “stay at home” measures have not been imposed. They hope the new recommendations set out by the UK government today to work from home and avoid pubs, clubs and theatres, will prove a step in the right direction.