Britain delays easing of lockdown as virus spread speeds up

DANICA KIRKA and JILL LAWLESS

Associated Press

LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson put some of the country's next steps out of lockdown on hold Friday with just a few hours' notice, saying the number of new coronavirus cases was on the rise for the first time since May.

The government's top medical adviser warned that it was impossible to fully reopen society without the virus running out of control.

Johnson said statistics showed that the prevalence of COVID-19 in the community is likely increasing, with an estimated 4,900 new infections every day, up from 2,000 a day at the en...