People with two jabs ‘won’t have to isolate for 10 days from July 19’
People with two jabs ‘won’t have to isolate for 10 days if they come into contact with Covid sufferers from July 19’
- Ministers are ‘hoping to replace 10-day self-isolation with lateral flow tests’
- Change follows a successful pilot scheme which has been ongoing since April
- From July 19 those alerted by Test and Trace can leave home with negative result
People who are fully vaccinated won’t have to isolate for 10 days if they come into contact with Covid sufferers from July 19, reports claim.
Under current Covid rules, those alerted by Test and Trace that they have been in contact with someone who tested positive for the virus must self-isolate for 10 days.
However, Downing Street is reportedly hoping to overhaul this measure and instead require those with two jabs to take lateral flow tests each day for the same period.
This follows a successful pilot scheme which has been in place since April, the Sun reported.
From July 19 – the long-awaited ‘Freedom Day’ – those who test negative during the 10 days will reportedly be able to leave the house.
It comes as ministers are set to shelve plans for the mandatory use of ‘Covid certification’ after ‘Freedom Day’.
People who are fully vaccinated won’t have to isolate for 10 days if they come into contact with Covid sufferers from July 19, reports claim. Pictured: Stock image
Covid passports will not be compulsory at music festivals, sports events and other mass gatherings when lockdown restrictions are lifted.
Plans for pubs and restaurants had already been put on the backburner following a backlash from MPs and the hospitality sector.
It has now been revealed that ministers have also dropped the idea of imposing them on mass events.
Organisers will, however, be permitted to run their own schemes, with the Premier League among those expected to introduce some form of certification to prove those attending football grounds do not pose a Covid risk.
The move comes amid growing confidence that Boris Johnson will press ahead with plans to lift social distancing rules next month despite a surge in Covid cases.
He told the Cabinet yesterday that our vaccination success means Britain will be able to ‘live with Covid’ because the link between virus cases and hospitalisations has been broken.
Yesterday saw another 20,479 cases – with the seven-day total up 70 per cent in a week – but one government source said Freedom Day would go ahead as planned even if cases are more than twice as high as they are now.
‘We need to get used to the idea of treating Covid more like flu,’ the source said. ‘People have the flu vaccine, which helps reduce serious illness, but we still get large numbers of cases and significant numbers of deaths.
‘When we get to July 19, cases look like they will be potentially very high, perhaps as many as 30,000 or 40,000 per day.
‘But that is not in itself a reason not to go ahead, provided hospitalisations and deaths remain at relatively low levels.’
Hospital admissions have risen by just over 10 per cent in the last week, with an average daily death toll of 17 – less than 2 per cent of the levels seen in January. Another 23 deaths were announced yesterday.
A Downing Street spokesman said: ‘Cabinet agreed that once we have completed the road map, we will be able to live with Covid in the future – even if cases continue to rise – thanks to the protections provided by the vaccine.’
In what appeared to be a co-ordinated series of interventions, Michael Gove said people will have to live with Covid in ‘the way that we live with flu’, which claims thousands of deaths each winter but does not require society and the economy to be locked down.
Home Secretary Priti Patel also addressed the issue, saying Britons would have to ‘adapt’ to living with coronavirus.
The shift follows the appointment of Sajid Javid as Health Secretary following Matt Hancock’s resignation.
In a declaration of intent, Mr Javid used his first Commons appearance on Monday to drive home the message that it was time to ‘start returning to normal’ after 15 months of crippling curbs.
Ministers now look almost certain to lift the main social distancing measures on July 19 – but debates continue over whether to carry on asking people to wear masks on public transport and work from home.
One issue that appears to have been settled is that of Covid passports.
Covid passports will not be compulsory at music festivals, sports events and other mass gatherings when lockdown restrictions are lifted next month
Whitehall sources say they will be shelved for domestic use, despite ongoing trials at Wimbledon and Wembley.
Pilot schemes have controlled access to mass events by requiring those in attendance to supply proof that they have been vaccinated or tested for Covid.
Ministers now believe that the success of our vaccination programme means such measures will not be required across Britain this summer, avoiding another potential clash with MPs.
‘It is looking unlikely that we will have to make Covid certification compulsory, even for mass events,’ a source said.
‘It will be needed for foreign travel and some events may choose to run their own schemes, but it does not look like we will need legislation at this stage.
‘The work has not been wasted. It will be needed for travel and we will have a system in place which could be used if we need it in the winter.’
