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| Covid: PM sets out end of legal restrictions in England | Covid: PM sets out end of legal restrictions in England |
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| Boris Johnson has announced the end of coronavirus restrictions in England | Boris Johnson has announced the end of coronavirus restrictions in England |
| All Covid restrictions will end in England on Thursday and free mass testing will stop from 1 April, Boris Johnson has said. | All Covid restrictions will end in England on Thursday and free mass testing will stop from 1 April, Boris Johnson has said. |
| Unveiling his "living with Covid" plan, the PM told MPs the legal duty to isolate for those who tested positive would be dropped. | |
| From 1 April, he said the provision of free testing would be targeted to the most vulnerable. | |
| The £500 isolation payment for people on low incomes will also end this week. | The £500 isolation payment for people on low incomes will also end this week. |
| Covid provisions for increased statutory sick pay would apply for a further month, Mr Johnson told MPs. | Covid provisions for increased statutory sick pay would apply for a further month, Mr Johnson told MPs. |
| Opposition parties said the PM's blueprint out of the pandemic had moved too fast and voiced concern over the scaling back of free testing. | Opposition parties said the PM's blueprint out of the pandemic had moved too fast and voiced concern over the scaling back of free testing. |
| The PM will lead a televised Downing Street news conference at 19:00 GMT. He will be joined by England's chief medical officer Prof Chris Whitty, and Sir Patrick Vallance, the UK government's chief scientific adviser. | The PM will lead a televised Downing Street news conference at 19:00 GMT. He will be joined by England's chief medical officer Prof Chris Whitty, and Sir Patrick Vallance, the UK government's chief scientific adviser. |
| Mr Johnson told MPs the efforts the country had made over the past two years meant it was now ready to move away from government restrictions and to a position of personal responsibility. | Mr Johnson told MPs the efforts the country had made over the past two years meant it was now ready to move away from government restrictions and to a position of personal responsibility. |
| "Covid will not suddenly disappear so those who would wait for a total end to this war before lifting the remaining regulations would be restricting the liberties of the British people for a long time to come", Mr Johnson said. | "Covid will not suddenly disappear so those who would wait for a total end to this war before lifting the remaining regulations would be restricting the liberties of the British people for a long time to come", Mr Johnson said. |
| "This government does not believe that this is right or necessary. Restrictions pose a heavy toll on our economy, our society, our mental well-being and on the life chances of our children, and we do not need to pay that heavy cost any longer." | "This government does not believe that this is right or necessary. Restrictions pose a heavy toll on our economy, our society, our mental well-being and on the life chances of our children, and we do not need to pay that heavy cost any longer." |
| What is changing in England? | What is changing in England? |
| From 21 February: the government is dropping guidance for staff and students in most education and childcare settings to undertake twice weekly asymptomatic testing | From 21 February: the government is dropping guidance for staff and students in most education and childcare settings to undertake twice weekly asymptomatic testing |
| From Thursday 24 February: | |
| People who test positive for Covid will no longer be legally required to self-isolate | |
| But they will still be advised to stay at home and avoid contact with others for at least five full days | |
| Routine contact tracing will end so fully vaccinated close contacts and those aged under 18 will no longer be legally required to test daily for seven days | |
| Self-isolation support payments for people on low incomes who test positive for Covid will no longer be available | |
| From 1 April: | |
| Free mass testing for symptomatic and asymptomatic for the general public will end and will instead be targeted towards the most vulnerable | |
| People with Covid symptoms will be asked to exercise personal responsibility when deciding whether to stay at home, until then they are still advised to do so | |
| Current government guidance on Covid passports will end and it will no longer recommend venues use the NHS Covid pass | |
| You can read more about the changes here | |
| Mr Johnson said: "It's only because levels of immunity are so high and deaths are now - if anything - below where you would normally expect for this time of year that we can lift these restrictions. | Mr Johnson said: "It's only because levels of immunity are so high and deaths are now - if anything - below where you would normally expect for this time of year that we can lift these restrictions. |
| "It's only because we know Omicron is less severe that testing for Omicron on the colossal scale we've been doing is much less important and much less valuable in preventing serious illness." | "It's only because we know Omicron is less severe that testing for Omicron on the colossal scale we've been doing is much less important and much less valuable in preventing serious illness." |
| Limited free lateral flow tests for the most vulnerable groups would still be provided, the PM said, and ministers would work with retailers to ensure everyone who wanted a test could buy one. | |
| Mr Johnson said "targeted vaccines and treatments" would be in place for the most vulnerable, and to "guard against a possible resurgence of the virus" the government would accept the recommendation of the UK's vaccine advisory body that an additional Covid booster vaccination should be offered to all adults over the age of 75 and the most vulnerable over-12s this spring. | Mr Johnson said "targeted vaccines and treatments" would be in place for the most vulnerable, and to "guard against a possible resurgence of the virus" the government would accept the recommendation of the UK's vaccine advisory body that an additional Covid booster vaccination should be offered to all adults over the age of 75 and the most vulnerable over-12s this spring. |
| He added the government's Sage scientists advised there was "considerable uncertainty about the future path of pandemic" and warned there could be "significant resurgences" of the virus. | He added the government's Sage scientists advised there was "considerable uncertainty about the future path of pandemic" and warned there could be "significant resurgences" of the virus. |
| "They are certain there will be new variants and it is very possible they will be worse than Omicron," he added. | "They are certain there will be new variants and it is very possible they will be worse than Omicron," he added. |
| The government will "maintain our resilience to manage and respond to these risks" including by keeping the Office for National Statistics infection surveillance survey to keep track of surges when they happen. | The government will "maintain our resilience to manage and respond to these risks" including by keeping the Office for National Statistics infection surveillance survey to keep track of surges when they happen. |
| This is a significant scaling back on testing, going further than many health experts had been led to believe. | |
| There will be no access to tests for anyone who does not have symptoms. | |
| So the idea of getting rapid tests on prescription so people who are vulnerable can get family and friends to use them before visiting is not part of the plan. | |
| Instead, only those deemed at-risk or social care staff will get access to tests - and only then if they have symptoms. | |
| The at-risk group has not been defined, but is likely to be the most vulnerable who would benefit from antiviral treatments to reduce the risk of them needing hospital admission. | |
| A healthy 75-year-old would not be able to get tested even with symptoms. | |
| The big caveat is that the government will retain the ability to ramp testing back up if the circumstances demand it. | |
| These changes will come in on 1 April and by that stage infection levels could be at very low rates. | |
| The scaling back may not seem that significant. | |
| If infection rates are raging - considered unlikely - ministers could, of course, change approach. | |
| But Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer described the PM's plan as a "half-baked announcement from a government paralysed by chaos and incompetence". | But Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer described the PM's plan as a "half-baked announcement from a government paralysed by chaos and incompetence". |
| Labour's plan, he insisted, would keep the country prepared for new variants while the PM's approach would "leave us vulnerable". | Labour's plan, he insisted, would keep the country prepared for new variants while the PM's approach would "leave us vulnerable". |
| Sir Keir added that while there was "no doubt we need to move on from Covid", the government had not produced "a plan to live well with Covid". | Sir Keir added that while there was "no doubt we need to move on from Covid", the government had not produced "a plan to live well with Covid". |
| The SNP's Westminster leader Ian Blackford argued the government's decisions were "bereft of science or consultation". | The SNP's Westminster leader Ian Blackford argued the government's decisions were "bereft of science or consultation". |
| "It appears these dangerous choices are purely political and are being made up on the hoof, it is another symptom of a government in turmoil," he said. | "It appears these dangerous choices are purely political and are being made up on the hoof, it is another symptom of a government in turmoil," he said. |
| Mr Blackford asked for clarity on what funding would be available for testing in Scotland. | Mr Blackford asked for clarity on what funding would be available for testing in Scotland. |
| Chris Hopson, chief executive of NHS Providers which represents hospital trusts, said while it recognised the importance of having a living with Covid plan, it would be "very premature to see this as signalling a permanent victory" over the virus. | |
| He said many NHS figures were "concerned about the potential impact of these decisions" and it was therefore "vital" the government kept an "open mind" and be ready to restore phased out testing and surveillance systems should they be needed. | |
| Ministers should assess the impact of restricting access to free testing, he said, warning there was a risk of "significantly exacerbating health inequalities". | |
| Plan B measures - introduced in December to stem the spread of the Omicron variant - including the requirement to wear masks in public places and the use of Covid passes for large events, were abolished in England last month. But face masks are still mandatory on London's transport network. | Plan B measures - introduced in December to stem the spread of the Omicron variant - including the requirement to wear masks in public places and the use of Covid passes for large events, were abolished in England last month. But face masks are still mandatory on London's transport network. |
| Just over 91% of people in the UK aged 12 and over have had a first dose of a vaccine, 85% a second jab, and 66% a booster or a third dose, according to official data, which has been collated daily since the vaccine rollout began in December 2020. | Just over 91% of people in the UK aged 12 and over have had a first dose of a vaccine, 85% a second jab, and 66% a booster or a third dose, according to official data, which has been collated daily since the vaccine rollout began in December 2020. |
| On Monday, the UK recorded a further 38,409 confirmed daily cases and another 15 deaths within 28 days of a positive Covid test. |