UK government will look at Leicester lockdown on Thursday, says health minister

LONDON (Reuters) - British Health Minister Matt Hancock said on Tuesday the government would assess whether lockdown measures in the English city of Leicester could be eased on Thursday, but warned that the number of coronavirus cases was still high.

A stringent lockdown was imposed in Leicester, in central England, two weeks ago - even as many restrictions were being lifted for the rest of the country - after a spike in cases of COVID-19 in the city.

"I set out that there is process for whether changes can be made in Leicester. The process is that we will look at 14 days of data ... on Thursday of this week and make a public announcement as soon as is reasonably possible about whether and if any changes can be made to the situation," Hancock told parliament adding that the number of positive cases was still well above the rest of the country.

(Reporting by Elizabeth Piper and William James; Editing by Alex Richardson)