UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday urged people to move to the next stage of considerable easing of lockdown restrictions that allows greater indoor interactions with a "heavy dose of caution", as the UK continues to monitor rapidly rising cases of the B1.617.2 variant of COVID-19 first identified in India.
Britons may be elated at the prospect of going on a vacation or visiting the local pub, but fear of the B1.617.2 variant of the coronavirus spreading more rapidly looms.
In what is step three of a four-step roadmap set by Johnson for easing the legally binding lockdown restrictions, the hospitality sector including pubs, restaurants and cinemas and most businesses can resume close to normal service in England, Wales and most of Scotland. Exercise classes and indoor sports can also reopen from Monday onwards.
Up to 30 people are allowed to congregate outside and up to six people or two households can now socialize indoors. International travel can resume on Monday too, but quarantine protocol is to be followed upon return depending on whether travellers have been to a country put on a green, amber or red list.
The latest easing of lockdown, described by scientists as a very finely balanced political decision amid low overall coronavirus infection rates, even as case numbers of the B1.617.2 variant of concern doubled to to over 1,300 in a week, comes as the National Health Service hit another milestone in the vaccination programme.
Experts believe the variant, which is very highly transmissible, does spread more easily but early data suggests that vaccines still work against it.
Cases of the variant have more than doubled in a week in the UK. Testing and vaccination efforts in the areas hardest hit by the variant—northern England—are being ramped up. According to Health Secretary Matt Hancock, the 'Indian' variant is more transmissible than the UK’s main strain and “it is likely it will become the dominant variant.” While the hospitality and entertainment industries look forward to fully reopening, Johnson warns that if the public isn't cautious, the B1.617.2 variant could put a dampener on the plans. Mark Walport, a member of the government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies told Sky News, “As far as possible, socialize outside, maintain social distancing. If you’re going to hug, hug cautiously.” The UK's Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the government will decide on June 14 whether to go ahead with the final lifting of restrictions a week later, a CNBC report reads.
The opposition says, the government imposing a ban on travellers from India weeks after banning travellers from neighbouring nations—Bangladesh and Pakistan is the reason behind the new variant causing a surge in cases.
The Department of Health and Social Care said that the latest data from Public Health England’s real-world study shows the vaccines have reduced hospitalisations and deaths, saving more than 11,700 lives and preventing 33,000 hospitalisations in England by the end of April.
The rate of daily new infections has plummeted to an average of 2,000, compared with nearly 70,000 a day during winter. Almost 70 per cent of adults in Britain have received at least one dose of the vaccine.
It confirms that vaccinated people are far less likely to get COVID-19 with symptoms and are even more unlikely to get serious COVID-19, to be admitted to hospital, or to die from it and there is growing evidence that vaccinated people are less likely to pass the virus to others.
With PTI inputs
