Government to ease Covid restrictions...

[rebbonk]

Maybe some good is going to come out of Johnson's present embarrassment?

Jan 14 (Reuters) - Prime Minister Boris Johnson is set to lift Plan B COVID restrictions in England, the Telegraph reported on Friday, as government scientists warn on dropping of Plan B prematurely.

COVID passports and work from home guidance are widely expected inside Whitehall to be lifted from Jan. 26 for England, the report said, adding that some rules on face masks may remain.

An announcement could come as soon as this week, it said.

On Friday, the government published minutes from a Jan. 7 meeting of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies that said the epidemic had the potential to continue to grow nationally.

The group also warned that if there were a reversal of current interventions like Plan B in England, before the peak in infection was passed it could lead to increase in overall impact of the wave on hospitalisations.

Plan B, introduced last month to slow the spread of the Omicron variant, includes ordering people to work from home, wear masks in public places and use COVID passes to enter some venues. read more

Johnson said last week that England could withstand a surge in COVID-19 infections without shutting down the economy, resisting imposing stringent lockdown measures.

Source: https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/uks-johnson-scrap-plan-b-covid-restrictions-telegraph-2022-01-14/

[dutchman]

Face mask rules and Covid passes to end in England



England's Plan B measures are to end from next Thursday, with mandatory face coverings in public places and Covid passports both dropped, Boris Johnson has announced.

The prime minister also said the government would immediately drop its advice for people to work from home.

The PM said England was reverting to "Plan A" due to boosters and how people had followed Plan B measures.

He told MPs scientists believed the Omicron wave had peaked nationally.

In a statement to MPs in the House of Commons, the prime minister said:

Mandatory Covid passports for entering nightclubs and large events would end, though organisations could choose to use the NHS Covid pass if they wished

• People would no longer be advised to work from home and should discuss their return to offices with employers
  
  
• Face masks will no longer be mandated, though people are still advised to wear coverings in enclosed or crowded spaces and when meeting strangers
  
  
• From Thursday, secondary school pupils will no longer have to wear face masks in classrooms and government guidance on their use in communal areas would be removed "shortly"

Boris Johnson also said the government intended to end the legal requirement for people who test positive for Covid to self-isolate - and replace it with advice and guidance.

The current regulations around self-isolation expire on 24 March. Mr Johnson said he expected not to renew them then - but suggested that date could be brought forward if the data allows.

Mr Johnson also said Health Secretary Sajid Javid would set out "in the coming days" plans to ease restrictions on care home visits in England.

[dutchman]

Too little, too late.

The economy is in a death spiral from which it will never recover.

[rebbonk]

To quote Mr Davis, "In the name of God, go!" Johnson is toast, he knows it, we all know it. All he's doing is prolonging the agony.

The man is a serial liar, untrustworthy, and an oxygen thief. - Other than that, he's OK.

[dutchman]

The trouble is there's no one suitable to replace him.

Betting favourites Sunak and Hunt were the architects of many of the policies which led to the current financial meltdown. (The less said about laughing girl the better).

And in fairness to Johnson he has at least proved he CAN run a piss-up in a brewery!

[rebbonk]

Agreed, there is realistically no one obvious to replace him. Truss is a waste of space, Sunak is an equally inept buffoon and Hunt is wringing wet.

I'd personally like to see Graham Brady given a shot at things.

[dutchman]

Sajid Javid casts doubt on Boris Johnson's pledge to end self-isolation in March



The Health Secretary has cast doubt on the Prime Minister's pledge to end self-isolation on March 24, as he warned Covid may be "with us forever".

Boris Johnson told the Commons on Wednesday: "The self-isolation regulations expire on March 24, at which point I very much expect not to renew them.

"Indeed, were the data to allow, I'd like to seek a vote in this House to bring that date forward."

But Sajid Javid, asked on Sky News if self-isolation rules will be scrapped in March, said "all the rules remain under review", and added: "We will decide as we get closer to March... based on the data at the time. We would like to see it scrapped by the end of March."

On the day where the work from home guidance was abandoned as England races out of Plan B, Mr Javid cut a less optimistic tone, saying: "Covid is not going away, it's going to be with us for many many years, perhaps forever but we need to learn to live with it."

An ally of Mr Javid insisted he has been clear he wants to remove all remaining restrictions as soon as possible, and keeping the isolation rules beyond March would require a new Commons vote.

[dutchman]

Schools defy Boris Johnson as they insist face masks must stay in class



Headteachers are defying the Government over face masks in the classroom as dozens insist they will remain in place.

More than 100 schools have already written to parents to say that children must continue wearing masks in lessons, despite the Prime Minister’s announcement that the measure is no longer necessary.

The Education Secretary insisted on Thursday that “all schools” should banish face masks so that children can “enjoy a normal experience” in the classroom.

He warned that Department for Education (DfE) officials will contact headteachers who are refusing to drop masks and explain why they must go.

It comes after union leaders reacted with anger at the new guidance on masks and accused the Prime Minister of flouting his “duty of care” to teachers.

Several schools say that masks in the classroom will continue “until further notice”, with some citing high Covid cases in their local area as the reason.

Others justify their stance by explaining that it will lead to fewer students and teachers becoming ill, while some say they need to carry out an internal “risk assessment” before making a decision.

Officials at the Department for Education (DfE) then wrote to every headteacher in England to reiterate that masks were only introduced as a “temporary measure” and that they were “no longer recommended in classrooms”.

But The Telegraph has learned that school leaders are now in open revolt against the Government’s position.

[dutchman]

Sack 'em all. No compensation, no references, no gold-plated pension!

[rebbonk]

Unfortunately, this is what happens when you carry out a mass brain-washing campaign. People are absolutely terrified of something that has an over 99.7% survival rate. And even then, the small %age of deaths are likely to be those with comorbidities. People have lost not only the ability to critically think for themselves but also their common sense.

It is going to take a lot more than a few words from a proven serial liar and a cabinet of complicit fools to reverse what has happened.