went to the hospital. in new york, alexandra field, cnn. the uk reported more than 49,000 new infections friday. despite those escalating numbers, boris johnson said that the uk would stick with its current covid plan, no lockdowns and no mask mandates. while that is drawing swift backlash from scientists who urge officials to plan for new measures that can be rapidly deployed if needed. johnson said the surge in new cases wasn't outside what was predicted. he made those comments while visiting a vaccination clinic in west london encouraging people over 50 to get their boogser w booster when they were called. joining me now is keith neal from darby england. thank you so much for being with us. what is behind this rise in cases there? >> quite simply people mixing and people are infectious, some who will be asymptomatic or