Coronavirus: Former Peterborough council leader urges people to take virus seriously after tough recovery

Marco Cereste, who is currently cabinet member for waste, street scene and the environment at the authority, said he has recovered after a six week struggle that saw him sapped of his energy and struggling to breathe.

“You’ve got to take it seriously and stick to the rules. It’s really dangerous, especially when you are older,” he said.

Cllr Cereste, Conservative member for Hampton Vale, has not been officially tested for Covid-19 as his symptoms had disappeared when the Government recently expanded the list of people eligible for testing to anyone over the age of 65 with symptoms.

He said he had been advised to go to hospital by NHS 111 due to the severity of his symptoms but declined because his wife was also suffering badly and he did not feel able to be separated from his children.

The former council leader believes he picked up the virus from one of his kids who made a much quicker recovery, and he said the symptoms he had matched those of Covid-19.

Describing how he had been affected, the 69-year-old said: “I had it about eight to nine days and said to my missus ‘if this is the virus this is great, I will get over it’. It wasn’t too pleasant but it wasn’t that bad.

“Then suddenly it was a Friday around April and I came down with it properly - it was shocking.

“I had hot and cold flushes, I lost my appetite - it felt like a severe bout of flu. I had a complete loss of strength and energy and just wanted to sleep all the time.

“Then to add to all that I had chest problems and was not able to breathe properly - that was the worst thing. I would not wish it on anybody.”

A partial easing of the lockdown is set to be announced by Boris Johnson on Sunday, but Cllr Cereste is warning people to stick to the rules with more than 30,000 people in the UK having died so far from the virus, according to government figures.

“It’s so dangerous and we all need to respect the Government’s rules because it’s bloody awful,” he added.