Nearly 700 Christian ministers in the UK have called on political leaders warning about the side-effects of “unnecessary and authoritarian restrictions” imposed on society to stop the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus.

The signatories said they are “troubled by policies which prioritize bare existence at the expense of those things that give quality, meaning and purpose to life.”

The letter was sent to UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson; First Minister Mark Drakeford of Wales; First Minister Nicola Sturgeon of Scotland; and First Minister Arlene Foster and Deputy First Minister Michelle O’Neill in Northern Ireland.