NHS chiefs mount last ditch attempt to stop Boris Johnson’s bonfire of Covid rules

110

View
comments

Free Covid tests and self-isolation rules must continue, NHS leaders said today as England prepares to shelve its remaining restrictions.

The chief of the NHS Confederation Matthew Taylor warned ministers they cannot ‘wave a magic wand’ and pretend the virus has disappeared.  

Representing the views of hospitals, he said ‘now is not the time to take risks’ and that another spike in admissions would derail attempts to get through the backlog.

He warned uncertainty over long-term immunity from vaccines and past infections and the risk of future variants meant it was still too early to scrap the rules.

Instead, Mr Taylor said the last restrictions should be lifted in an ‘incremental’ way but only when the ‘evidence’ allowed for this. 

Other healthcare leaders backed his calls, also urging ministers to be ‘gradual’ in dropping the last measures. 

But Boris Johnson is thought to be planning a bonfire of the final Covid rules under his ‘living with’ Covid like flu strategy, to be announced next week.

The Prime Minister has already said self-isolation rules will go next week, a month earlier than planned.

And Whitehall sources say free lateral flow tests are set to be dumped in March amid a drive to save billions on Covid measures. Asked about the reports today, ministers refused to deny they would be dropped saying the public should ‘wait and see’.

Free swabs for universities were axed today, education leaders said, in the first sign the multi-billion programme is being scaled back. 

Covid cases, hospitalisations and deaths have been trending downwards for weeks, as the Omicron wave subsides.

Mr Taylor — who heads up an organisation representing hospital trusts — said: ‘Hospital admissions and deaths linked to coronavirus continue to fall nationally.

‘This is allowing the NHS to bring back many routine services that it was asked to deprioritise during the peaks of the pandemic, including some non-urgent elective procedures.

‘With the success of the vaccine and new Covid treatments, this offers real hope as we learn to live with the virus.

‘But the Government cannot wave a magic wand and pretend the threat has disappeared entirely.

‘So much is uncertain still, including our long-term immunity and the emergence of future strains, which requires a solid testing infrastructure and clear guidance around self-isolation to remain in place.

‘A lot is at stake for the NHS’s recovery ambitions if the Government is too gung-ho in its plans for exiting the pandemic, which is why health leaders are calling for a cautious and evidence-led approach. This must not be driven by political expediency.’

Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, he added: ‘The strong sense from our members is that things are starting to return to normal — we are starting to make some inroads into that enormous challenge.

‘But this is not the time to take risks. We need to operate in an evidence-based and incremental way. 

‘And that’s why the overwhelming majority of NHS leaders want to see the continued access to free testing. We want to see the continuation of survey every week which tells us about the level of prevalence which exists. We don’t want to get rid of the legal requirement to self isolate and we want the requirement for people to wear masks in the clinical setting.’

‘None of those things need disrupt daily life but they will enable us hopefully to continue to move out of this pandemic without taking unnecessary risks.’

NHS leaders have resisted attempts to dump Covid measures throughout the pandemic, insisting it is not the right time.

They have also been among the first to warn that tougher restrictions may be needed once cases start to spike, to prevent healthcare being overwhelmed. 

Hospitalisations data shows pressure on wards has been easing for weeks with 10,000 Covid patients currently in hospitals in England — down from 17,000 at the peak of the wave.

But only about half of these patients are actually being treated primarily for the virus, data shows, with the rest in for other conditions such as a fall or broken bone.

In London and the East of England less than 40 per cent of Covid patients are being primarily treated for the virus. 

Other healthcare leaders joined the calls for ministers to slow down moves to scrap the final restrictions.

The chair of the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, Professor Dame Helen Stokes-Lampard, said learning to live with the virus ‘feels very sudden’.

‘We do have to learn to live safely with Covid in the medium term,’ she said in response to a survey on the issue.

‘(But) that does not mean pretending the threat to our health and in some cases life simply no longer exists.

‘We should take a more gradual, phased approach to relaxing the rules and carefully watch what happens to the rates of infection — particularly in healthcare settings or other environments where people are particularly at risk.

‘We also need the ONS survey of cases to continue so that we have accurate data on which to base future decisions.’

The head of the Royal College of Nursing, Pat Cullen, warned ending self-isolation was a ‘leap in the dark’.

‘Our members, for whom this pandemic is far from over, need to know there is a sound scientific basis for doing it,’ she said.

‘Rather than passing the buck and leaving it up to employers and individuals to decide, ministers must grip the issue and present a clear plan for health and social care staff,’ she added.

Mr Johnson is thrashing out the final details of his ‘living with Covid’ plan today, which will likely see the end of the remaining Covid restrictions.

Ministers will then go over the measures again this weekend — but amid falling cases, hospitalisations and deaths it is likely they will not be scaled back.

Asked on Sky News this morning whether the plan will include the end of free lateral flow tests, minister Mr Hinds said: ‘We will wait to see what the Government announcement is in full on all we are going to do to live with this virus, as we must, as we live with other viruses, other illnesses.’

He added: ‘Of course we are going to have to learn to deal with, to live with Covid as it moves from pandemic to endemic. 

‘There will be an announcement about that exactly, how we will go about that. 

‘We have been putting in huge investment in this country and particular in the vaccination programme. That is the number one part of our defence against Covid.’

Health Secretary Sajid Javid also refused to confirm whether free lateral flows would be scrapped yesterday, saying all measures would be ‘reviewed’.

He said: ‘We are looking at how we learn to live with Covid.

‘And that does mean the protections we’ve enjoyed over the last few months, that they all should be reviewed. So we’re looking at the very latest data and next week we’ll have more to say about it.’

It is thought that free PCR tests could also be scrapped from next month, which are currently available to anyone with symptoms of the virus.

Covid testing has formed the backbone of the UK’s strategy for fighting the pandemic, allowing people to check whether they have the virus and if they need to isolate.

It was ramped up under ‘Operation Moonshot’, which saw ministers mmake swabs widely available across the country.

But it saw the UK spend in the region of £6billion on lateral flow tests alone — with a pack of seven costing around £20.

It is not clear how much was spent on PCR swabs. 

Europe’s dark cloud of Covid FINALLY starts to lift: France reopens nightclubs, Netherlands will lift final restrictions next week and Germany plans ‘Freedom Day’ for mid-March

By Connor Boyd Deputy Health Editor for MailOnline

Europe is slowly emerging from a brutal winter of draconian Covid restrictions as hospital pressures on the continent ease despite record infection numbers from Omicron.

A French ban on nightclubs was lifted on Wednesday as well as limits on sporting events and concerts — three of the key remaining social curbs introduced in December in response to the new variant.

The Netherlands has announced an extraordinary U-turn that will see it lift virtually all virus restrictions next week just a month after coming out of one of the toughest lockdowns in the world.

Alpine neighbours Austria and Switzerland have also unveiled plans to drop most anti-Covid measures in March, with only the isolation of infected individuals and mandatory mask-wearing in vulnerable settings to remain.  

Germany will phase out its toughest Covid laws on the country’s ‘Freedom Day’ on March 20, including proof of vaccination to enter shops and supermarkets.

The reopening of the EU follows more dramatic announcements in England, Denmark, Sweden and Norway, where there are plans to abandon all virus-related rules.

Officials have taken confidence from the fact Covid hospital admissions and deaths have remained stable despite astronomical infection levels caused by the milder Omicron variant.

Vaccine passports in one form or another are expected to remain in many EU countries, however, even when social restrictions are released.

EU countries were quick to roll back measures or shut down completely in response to Omicron in December, which sparked violent riots in cities across the continent.

The World Health Organization’s European director has stated that vaccine and natural immunity, combined with a milder variant, means there could now be ‘a long period of tranquillity’ in the pandemic. 

France 

France’s nightclubs reopened for the first time in three months on Wednesday night, as well as a ban on standing audiences at concerts and sporting matches.

A rule prohibiting customers from eating or drinking at the counter of pubs and cafes – or snacking in the cinema or on public transport – was also dropped. 

Compulsory face masks in restaurants, cinemas and gyms is due to elapse on February 28, but they will still be mandated on trains, buses and taxis and in shops. 

France is recording 100,000 new Covid cases per day now after peaking at an unprecedented 500,000 in January.

Hospital admissions are also trending downwards and there are a little over 200 daily deaths  — compared to 900 at the peak of the first wave in 2020. 

France’s health minister Olivier Veran said on Wednesday all remaining mask rules could be lifted and vaccine pass rules ‘significantly eased’ by mid-March if the numbers continue in the right direction.  

The country still required people to have a certificate of vaccination to enter public  places like restaurants, cafes, cinemas and long-distance trains.

Unlike other countries, a recent positive tests is not enough.  

The Netherlands

The Netherlands became the first EU nation re-enter a draconian, 2020-esque nationwide lockdown in December in response to the spread of Omicron.

The month-long shutdown saw all bars, restaurants, non-essential shops, cinemas and gyms closed until mid-January, while sporting events were forced to be played without crowds.

Citizens were only allowed four guests in their homes during Christmas period and just two after the festive season.

But just weeks after emerging from the lockdown, the country has announced a complete 180 that will see all social limits and curfews lifted in public places on February 25.

Masks will no longer be required in most places except on public transport and at airports. Quarantine for those with Covid is also being cut to five days.

The fourth wave in the Netherlands is coming down rapidly, with cases halving in the past week to around 60,000 per day. Daily deaths have been stable since early January, and are plateauing at just 13 currently.

Germany 

Germany announced its intentions to starting phasing out Covid restrictions on Wednesday, with the bulk of measures to be scrapped by late March.

The plan will see measures gradually lifted over three stages — with vaccinated people getting their freedoms back more quickly.

The first step will remove the 10-person limit on private gatherings among vaccinated or recently-infected people. It will also scrap vaccine passports in non-essential shops.

Step two will see the end of a requirement for vaccinated and recovered people to show a negative test to access restaurants, bars and hotels. Currently, only people with a booster shot do not need to take a test.

Nightclubs – which have been shut since December – could also open from March 4, although tests for the double  and un-jabbed would still be required.

By March 20, measures targeting at unvaccinated people could be lifted. The exact details of the plan have yet to be ironed out, but Germany’s Covid laws are due to expire on that date.

If ministers decide to keep masks or testing in certain spaces, they will need to pass a new law.

Germany’s Covid cases are still stubbornly high with an average of 160,000 being recorded each day. But hospital admissions have been plummeting since the start of the month.

Austria

Austria made headlines in autumn last year when it became the first country in Europe to introduce a lockdown solely for the unvaccinated.

While difficult to enforce, it in principle banned people who were not jabbed from leaving their homes for essential reasons from November 15 to January 31.

The country made vaccination legally compulsory this year, making those who refused to get the shot liable for fines of up to £3,000. It will come into force on March 5.

On the same date, Austria plans to drop its remaining curbs for all citizens. Only mask wearing in essential shops, on public transport and in hospitals and care homes will remain – along with isolation rules for Covid cases.

Switzerland

Like Austria, from Thursday in Switzerland the only curbs in place will be the obligation to self-isolate for five days after a positive test.

Face masks will be encouraged on public transport and in hospitals – which is expected to remain until the end of March at the latest.

Limits on private and public gatherings will be scrapped and masks will no longer be mandated in schools, shops, concert halls or at work. 

The Government said the remaining measures are aimed at protecting the most vulnerable, but it has raised the prospect of dropping them if the Covid situation continues to improve.

Health experts declared that Omicron had peaked on February 8, with infections falling steadily since.  

A total of 21,032 new cases were reported on Wednesday, with the seven-day average down by almost a quarter in  a week. 

‘The epidemiological situation continues to develop positively,’ the government said in a statement on Thursday.

‘Thanks to the high level of immunity in the population, it is unlikely that the healthcare system will be overloaded despite the continued high level of virus circulation.’ 

Denmark

Denmark became the first country in Europe to lift all domestic Covid restrictions at the start of the month, despite being met by scepticism by many scientists.

Rules on face coverings, vaccine passports and work from home guidance was scrapped as the country moved into unchartered territory. Only self-isolation rules remain.  

Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen credited the country’s high vaccination rate for allowing the removal of restrictions, saying the protection the jabs provided would suffice for the far less lethal Omicron variant. 

On the face of it, Covid hospitalisations appear to have reached record highs since the opening, while deaths are nearly level with previous peaks and trending upwards. 

But the country’s health officials say that soaring tolls are being driven by ‘incidental’ cases – where Covid is not the primary cause of illness.  

Sweden

Sweden — which was the European pariah early in the pandemic for choosing to use voluntary, rather than mandatory lockdowns — scrapped almost all of its few pandemic restrictions last week.

The country has stopped most testing for Covid, except symptomatic cases, and has halted the use of vaccine passes in any venue.

Bars and restaurants can operate curfew-free and with no limits on the number of guests, while attendance limits for larger indoor venues have also been lifted. 

‘As we know this pandemic, I would say it’s over,’ Minister of Health Lena Hallengren said last Wednesday.

‘It’s not over, but as we know it in terms of quick changes and restrictions it is,’ she said, adding that Covid would no longer be classified as a danger to society. 

Sweden’s Health Agency said that mass community testing of asymptomatic people was too expensive to justify being extended. 

Norway

Following in the footsteps of its Scandinavian neighbours, Norway dropped most of its Covid measures on Saturday — including social distancing, mask wearing and quarantining obligations. 

‘The coronavirus pandemic is no longer a major health threat to most of us,’ Norway’s Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said Saturday. 

‘The Omicron virus causes far less serious illness and we are well protected by vaccines,’ he added. 

The one-metre rule in public spaces was scrapped, as were masks. Infected adults no longer have to quarantine if they test positive but are advised to stay home for four days.    

Portugal

The Portuguese Government announced on Thursday that it will scrap most of its Covid restrictions ‘in the coming days’.

Key changes include ending mandatory isolation for close contacts of positive cases, working from home guidance and limits on indoor mixing. 

The negative test requirement for major events, sports venues, bars and nightclubs will also be dropped.

Covid passports are also being abandoned except in hospitals and at the country’s borders. Masks must continue to be worn indoors, including on public transport and in supermarkets.

The government further said that it expects to lift all remaining coronavirus measures within the next five weeks. 

Officials have said that bringing the Covid death rate to 20 per 100,000 will be a sign they can safely open up. Currently the rate is around 180 per 100,000.  

Belgium

Belgium has said it will downgrade its coronavirus warning alert from ‘Code Red’ to ‘Code Orange’ later this month. 

The switch will mean the current rules mandating WFH will be abandoned — although remote working will still be encouraged and power will ultimately lie with employers. 

Curfews on pubs and restaurants and limits on the number of customers who can mix at the same table will also go, with only staff still needing to wear masks.

Face coverings will no longer be mandatory in any indoor public space but the Government will encourage their use. Nightclubs will also be allowed to reopen.

But large-scale events will be limited to 80 per cent capacity.      

Spain

Spain still has some of the strictest Covid measures in place in Europe.

The country dropped the mandatory use of face masks outdoors on Thursday, a measure first imposed in May 2020 and reintroduced to fight Omicron.

Masks still have to be worn inside public places such as bars and restaurants, however.

A one-and-a-half metre rule is still in place in enclosed public spaces and at some large outdoor events, including football matches.

The popular British summer holiday destination has recently dropped its requirement for teenagers to be fully vaccinated to enter the country, but the rule is still in place for adults.

Ireland

Covid curbs in Ireland are broadly similar to the UK.

Hospitality returned to normal on January 22, as ministers cancelled the 8pm curfew on pubs, allowed nightclubs to reopen and lifted the requirement to show vaccine passports.

People have also been permitted to socialise normally since this date, as social distancing rules, restrictions on the numbers of people able to attend indoor and outdoor events and limits on household visits came to an end. 

However, people in Ireland still have to wear masks in shops and on public transport and self-isolate if they have Covid symptoms or a confirmed infection.

And pupils aged six and above are still required to wear face coverings, socially distancing is in place and all children in a class are tested if there are two or more confirmed cases within their classroom.

Finland

Finland eased restrictions on hospitality this month, although strict curfews are still imposed and capacity limits are in place.

Restaurants are permitted to operate until 9pm, but are only allowed to seat 75 per cent of the customers they have space for. And bars must stop serving alcohol at 5pm and close at 6pm,

All hospitality venues must also enforce social distancing. 

However, there is some variation in hospitality rules between different regions of the country. 

But in a glimmer of hope, the recommendation to work from home will be lifted on February 28. Although, health chiefs advise people to keep working from home after this date if they can. 

Italy

Strict rules are still in place in Italy, with vaccine passports required to sit indoors at restaurants, bars, museums and cinemas, as well as for outdoor activities, such as skiing and sport events. 

The over-50s are also required to get a vaccine or face hefty fines. 

And capacity is limited to 50 per cent at outdoor venues and 35 per cent at indoor venues. 

People are also required to wear FFP2 – considered the gold-standard face mask – on public transport. However, the requirement to wear masks outdoors was lifted on February 11However, ministers announced last week that a timeline for the easing of restrictions would be set out in the coming weeks, as Covid measurements continue to trend downwards.