![]() He nonetheless still faces pressure from his MPs. Johnson’s announcement was clearly intended to buoy his MPs a day before the Commons breaks for recess, as he faces new revelations about a Downing Street social event in December 2020, now being reviewed by police.Īt prime minister’s questions, Johnson repeatedly talked up his decision to move rapidly away from tight Covid rules in England, both last summer and after indications this winter that the Omicron variant was less severe, saying he had got “the big calls” right. “Ministers need to ensure the public know that there are 500,000 people in the UK for whom the vaccine is less effective and therefore are not as ‘free’ as everyone else.” Gemma Peters, the chief executive of Blood Cancer UK, said the end of isolation rules would create “anxiety and anger” for those with suppressed immune systems. There was particular worry among groups representing clinically vulnerable or immunosuppressed groups, with the disability charity Scope saying some disabled people “have felt increasingly like they have been left to fend for themselves”. ![]() “Covid-19 has not gone away,” said Chris Hopson, the chief executive of NHS Providers, which represents NHS trusts in England, noting that infection levels remained high and there remained risks from variants and long Covid. ![]() Health chiefs said that while the end of compulsory self-isolation would ease NHS staff shortages, it could bring other pressures. Making self-isolation a matter of choice would “inevitably” mean this would happen much more often among people who could either work from home or afford to take time off, Reicher added. “We know that perceptions of risk are critical to adherence and that people won’t do things if they believe there is no need to do them, however much they are urged.” “Taking away the obligation to self-isolate is the final and most powerful way of saying ‘it’s all over’ and that infections don’t matter,” he said. Stephen Reicher, a professor of social psychology at St Andrews University and a member of the Sage subcommittee advising on behavioural science, said there was a risk Johnson’s move could affect ongoing Covid efforts such as the booster vaccination programme. Free Covid testing will continue for now, though it is expected to be scrapped at some point. “Obviously in the same way someone with flu, we wouldn’t recommend they go to work, we would never recommend anyone goes to work when they have an infectious disease,” Johnson’s spokesperson said. Some travel restrictions, such as passenger locator forms and quarantine for unvaccinated people who test positive after arrival, are likely to continue. If “the current encouraging trends in the data continue”, Johnson added, he would confirm the end of all domestic regulations, with the change formally beginning later that week. The plan was to “present our strategy for living with Covid” on 21 February, Johnson said, bringing cheers from many of his MPs just before prime minister’s questions. But in a surprise announcement to the Commons on Wednesday, Johnson hastened the timetable. Downing Street had signalled last month that it planned to drop all remaining legal constraints when the relevant regulations expire on 24 March.
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