Boris Johnson scraps remaining COVID restrictions in England

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Monday he is scrapping the remaining domestic COVID-19 restrictions in England. 

This also entails doing away with the requirement for people with the infection to self-isolate starting Thursday and the end to the routine tracing of contacts of those infected. While individuals will be advised to stay home if they are sick, they will no longer get extra financial support.

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Addressing the House of Commons, he said that England was “moving from government restrictions to personal responsibility” to fight the pandemic and the virus just like any other contagious illness such as the flu.

The scrapping of these restrictions, Johnson added, marked an end to “two of the darkest, grimmest years in our peacetime history”.

Starting April 1, lab-confirmed PCR tests for the virus will be available free only to older people and the immune-compromised. The government will also stop offering the public free rapid virus tests, though they will be available for purchase, reported AP.

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“Today is not the day we can declare victory over COVID, because this virus is not going away. But it is the day when all the efforts of the last two years finally enabled us to protect ourselves whilst restoring our liberties in full,” the PM said at a news conference, according to a report by Associated Press. 

“We now have sufficient levels of immunity to complete the transition from protecting people with government interventions to relying on vaccines and treatments as the first line of defence,” Johnson said.

Notably, this relaxation of norms only applies to England, which comprises 56 million of the U.K.’s 67 million population.

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While making these announcements, Johnson also warned of the possibility of “new variants” possibly worse than omicron and said that the Queen testing positive was proof that the virus was still prevalent. 

The government’s plan to contain the pandemic includes timely vaccination, treatment, and a strong surveillance system. Those above 75 years of age will also be offered a fourth vaccine shot, along with others who are vulnerable to serious disease. 

The government plan foresees keeping the virus in check with vaccines and treatments. Everyone 75 and older will be offered a fourth vaccine dose, along with those 12 and up who have conditions that make them vulnerable to severe disease.

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Some scientists, however, believe that scrapping the restrictions is a hazardous step that could result in an increase in illnesses and undermine the country’s defences against future strains that are more virulent.

“The decision about when and how to reduce restrictions is enormously difficult,” said Andrew Pollard, director of the Oxford Vaccine Group, which produced the AstraZeneca vaccine.

He said it was critical to maintain “surveillance for the virus, an early warning system if you like, which tells us about new variants emerging and gives an ability to monitor whether those new variants are indeed causing more severe disease than omicron did.”

Most virus restrictions were repealed in January by Johnson’s Conservative government, which scrapped vaccine passports for venues and ended mask mandates in most settings in England except hospitals.

Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, all of which have their own public health standards, have also opened up, albeit at a slower pace.

(With Associated Press inputs)