Covid 19 coronavirus: Swedish region opts for lockdown as infection rate surges

One of Sweden's most populous regions has declared a "personal lockdown", as the country reported the highest daily rate of coronavirus cases in Europe.

The region centred on Uppsala, Sweden's fourth biggest city, has used posters and an online campaign to call on everyone to "consider all human contacts as a potential risk" and avoid contact with anyone they do not live with.

Residents in the region of Uppsala are urged to avoid contact with anyone they do not live with.

It is the closest the country has come to a lockdown since the pandemic began.

"We are reaching the point of the maximum capacity of what we can handle," Mikael Köhler, the region's health chief, told Sweden's TT newswire. "It seems like the British variant has taken over and there's evidence that people are spreading the disease before they have any symptoms."

Sweden has reported the highest rate of new cases in Europe, with a seven-day average of 587 new infections per million people on Monday, more than France on 556 and Poland on 540, according to the latest figures on Our World in Data.

The country currently has 395 patients being treated in intensive care, overtaking the 392 being treated at the peak of the second wave in January, although still below the 558 treated at the peak of the first wave.

Sweden has gradually tightened restrictions since the second wave took off in October, with pubs and restaurants forced to close by 8pm, visitor limits at shops, gyms and museums, and a recommendation to wear face masks in public transport during rush hour.

But it has never imposed the more thorough lockdown measures employed in France, the UK, or its neighbours Denmark and Norway, with Anders Tegnell, the country's state epidemiologist, arguing that lockdown measures were not sustainable in the long run.

"Basically, Uppsala is saying what we all are saying: you need to cut down on your personal contacts as much as possible, especially people that you don't normally meet," said Tegnell on Tuesday. "Since they have such a difficult situation, they need to enforce it even more. We'll see how useful it is."

He insisted that additional restrictions, such as shutting down restaurants, bars, gyms, and non-essential shops would have only "an extremely marginal effect", adding: "There are no new restrictions that could have more effect than the ones we already have. It's important that we follow them."