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The UK Action Plan 2:52
London (CNN) - Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson is receiving "standard oxygen treatment" and is breathing unaided, his spokesman said Tuesday, a day after he was transferred to intensive care with coronavirus.
Johnson's condition is stable and "he remains in a good mood," his spokesman said. It has not required invasive or non-invasive ventilation and does not have pneumonia.
But the severity of the prime minister's status in a time of national emergency, combined with the lack of a formal succession procedure for heads of government in the UK, has raised questions about who is leading the country.
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Johnson nominated his foreign secretary, Dominic Raab, to replace him "as needed," but there is no recent precedent for a UK acting prime minister to be incapacitated for an extended period.
In its daily update to reporters, Downing Street moved to avoid concerns, emphasizing that Raab was running the country from the Commonwealth and Foreign Affairs Office with the support of government officials.
Raab would preside over meetings of the National Security Council if necessary while in the prime minister's office, a spokesman said. Raab, 46, and the UK cabinet have the authority and capacity to respond in the absence of the prime minister in a military action, the spokesperson added.
Decisions related to covid-19 would be made in the usual way through the daily morning meeting, chaired by Raab and other ministerial groups. But Raab would not have the power to hire and fire ministers or officials, the spokesperson said.
Boris Johnson in intensive care by covid-19Who runs the UK?
Few formal powers are specifically invested in the UK Prime Minister and key decisions are made collectively by the cabinet or its subcommittees. Many statutory powers are in the hands of individual secretaries of state.
But in recent decades, headlines in the UK's main political office have adopted a more presidential style, and the radical nature of the conservative party's most recent electoral victory was attributed to Johnson's personal appeal to voters.
"The prime minister has a team around him that ensures that the government's work continues," Cabinet Minister Michael Gove told the BBC earlier. Gove sidestepped a question about who would make the decisions in the event of a nuclear attack, saying he would not discuss national security issues.
Conservative MP Tobias Ellwood, who chairs the House of Commons defense selection committee, tweeted good wishes to Johnson, but added: “It is important to have 100% clarity as to where the responsibility for decisions lies UK national security. We must anticipate adversaries trying to exploit any perceived weaknesses. "
Dominic Raab, UK Foreign Minister. February 8, 2020 in Japan. (Credit: Tomohiro Ohsumi / Getty Images)
Buckingham Palace and the queen have been regularly updated on Johnson's condition, Downing Street said. The prime minister's two top officials, the cabinet secretary and his chief private secretary, will maintain contact with the Palace on behalf of the prime minister, but weekly hearings with the queen will not continue at this time.
The queen has sent a message to Johnson's pregnant fiancé, Carrie Symonds, and to the Johnson family. "His Majesty said they were in his thoughts and that he wished the Prime Minister a full and speedy recovery," said Buckingham Palace.
The Duke of Cambridge also sent his best wishes. "Our thoughts go out to the Prime Minister and his family, who like many in the UK and around the world are affected by the coronavirus," said Prince William.
Johnson's spokesman said that despite the lack of a formal succession procedure in the UK, there was an established order of ministerial precedence, with Finance Minister Rishi Sunak after Raab. The "letters of last resort," sealed documents written by the prime minister to ballistic missile submarine commanders in the event of a nuclear attack, remain in effect. "The prime minister is still the prime minister," the spokesman said.
UK confinement will remain in place with the government "focused on stopping the spread of infection." The spokesperson said that if there was evidence that more needed to be done to reduce transmission speed, "we would be prepared to do it."
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United States President Donald Trump said at a press conference Monday that his administration had been in contact with Johnson's doctors. The prime minister's spokesman said the government was "grateful for all the warm wishes the prime minister received overnight" and "trusts that he is receiving the best attention from the NHS. Any treatment you receive is up to your doctors. ”
Gove previously told the BBC Radio 4 Today show that Johnson was "receiving the best care" at London's St. Thomas Hospital, after receiving intensive care at 7 pm local time (2 pm ET) on Monday. Gove later said that he was isolating himself at home because a family member was showing symptoms of coronavirus. Gove said on Twitter that he had no symptoms and was still working.
The coronavirus has hit the British high government hard. Health Secretary Matt Hancock said March 27 that he had the virus, the same day that medical director Chris Whitty announced that he would start isolating himself after showing symptoms of covid-19. Neil Ferguson, one of the UK's top government advisers on the virus, said on March 18 that he believed it had been infected.
Several other senior government ministers and advisers have been forced to isolate themselves. Dominic Cummings, a senior adviser to the prime minister, who isolated himself shortly after Johnson's diagnosis, has not yet returned to work, Downing Street said.
Johnson was rushed to the hospital on Sunday night. At the time, Downing Street said the decision was a precaution because he continued to suffer from a cough and fever ten days after testing positive for the coronavirus. But his condition deteriorated Monday, Downing Street said, and he was transferred to the intensive care unit at St. Thomas Hospital.
Gove told Sky News Tuesday morning that cabinet ministers were not informed of the deterioration in the prime minister's condition until nearly an hour after Johnson was taken to intensive care.
When asked if the government had been frank with the public about Johnson's condition, and if the cabinet had been caught off guard, he replied, "Yes. The briefing [on the daily coronavirus] that was held at 5 o'clock occurred at a time when we did not know about the deterioration of the prime minister's condition. "
“They informed us later. The prime minister was admitted to intensive care at 7 o'clock, and that information was not given to us in the government, to members of the cabinet, until just before 8 o'clock. ”
Words of support
Politicians from around the world sent their best wishes for the recovery of Boris Johnson.
Finance Minister Sunak said on Twitter that his thoughts were with Johnson and his fiancé, Symonds. "I know he will get the best care possible and come out even stronger," he said.
Symonds also experienced symptoms of covid-19 but said over the weekend that he was "on the road to recovery."
UK House of Commons Leader Lindsay Hoyle said: “I know that the thoughts and prayers of everyone in the House are with the Prime Minister and his family right now. We all wish him a speedy recovery. ”
Keir Starmer, the newly elected leader of the main leader of the UK opposition Labor Party, tweeted: “Terribly sad news. All thoughts of the country are with the Prime Minister and his family during this incredibly difficult time. "
Former Prime Minister Theresa May, who was replaced by Johnson in the country's Brexit crisis, wrote on Twitter that her "thoughts and prayers" were with Johnson and his family. "This horrible virus does not discriminate," he added.
The President of France, Emmanuel Macron, sent his "support to Boris Johnson, his family and the British people at this difficult time", wishing him a "speedy recovery at this time of trial".
Irish leader Leo Varadkar, who returned to work as a doctor during the pandemic, tweeted that Johnson was "in our thoughts" on Monday night and wished him "a quick return to health."
President Trump said Monday: “We are saddened to learn that he was taken to intensive care a little while ago. He has been a very good friend. It was really something very special. Strong. Resolved".
- CNN's Angela Dewan also contributed reporting.
Boris JohnsonDominique Raab