Coronavirus: Boris Johnson extends England restrictions over delta variant concerns
- The UK prime minister said the planned relaxation of Covid-19 restrictions would be delayed by a month because of the spread of the variant
- Britain’s daily infections have increased threefold over the past few weeks but by next month two-thirds of the population will be fully vaccinated
In a media briefing, Johnson voiced his confidence that he will not need to delay the plan to lift restrictions on social contact further, as millions more people get fully vaccinated against the virus. He said that by July 19, two-thirds of the British population will have been double-vaccinated.
“I think it is sensible to wait just a little longer,” he said. “Now is the time to ease off the accelerator, because by being cautious now we have the chance in the next four weeks to save many thousands of lives by vaccinating millions more people.”
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Accompanying the decision to delay the easing, Johnson said the government has brought forward the date by which everyone over the age of 18 will be offered a first dose of vaccine, from the end of July to July 19.
“It’s unmistakably clear the vaccines are working and the sheer scale of the vaccine roll out has made our position incomparably better than in previous waves,” he said.
Under the government’s plan for coming out of lockdown, all restrictions on social contact were set to be lifted next Monday. Many businesses, particularly those in hospitality and entertainment, voiced their disappointment ahead of the official announcement.
The delta variant first found in India is estimated by scientists advising the government to be between 40 and 80 per cent more transmissible than the previous dominant strain. It now accounts for more than 90 per cent of infections in the UK.