MPs welcome prospect of end to Covid restrictions

Boris Johnson was yesterday set to confirm that the majority of remaining Covid restrictions will be lifted from July 19. It comes after the move was delayed from June 21 over fears about the spread of the Delta variant.

Telford's Conservative MP, Lucy Allan, said that with a belief the NHS will no longer be at risk of being overwhelmed, it does not make sense to persist with the restrictions.

She said: "It is clear from the evidence that vaccines are even more effective than we had first hoped. It is increasingly obvious that the link between cases, hospitalisations, and deaths has been broken.

"Short of any unforeseen changes, the Government is confident that July 19 will mark the end of over a year of restrictions on our daily lives.

"This has been a long time coming and the delayed reopening on June 21 has allowed many more people to receive their first and second doses, increasing the immunity we have in the population.

"It is inevitable that cases will tick up as restrictions are relaxed, but we are now at the stage of the pandemic where we can be confident that this will not lead to the NHS being overwhelmed."

Ms Allan said that the country should move to a future where it manages Covid in the same way it does with flu.

She said: "It is important we now prepare to live with Covid as a recurring disease in the same way as we prepare for influenza each year.

"They are very different diseases, but we will be able to manage them in a similar way. It is logical that case numbers no longer drive policy as instead we seek to minimise death and serious illness.

"Whereas previously we had to be conscious of the growth of the virus leading to the NHS being overwhelmed, we can now plan more effectively as the vaccine programme has created a significant level of public immunity.

"Cases will increase as we relax restrictions but the best time to do this is in the summer, avoiding a spike in the challenging winter months."

Ms Allan also said that she believes that isolation rules should also be addressed.

She said: "The system of isolation now means that many vaccinated healthy adults and children are still being asked to isolate under rules that applied before we had the protection of the vaccine.

"It has caused huge disruption to schooling, workplaces and the economy, and it is crucial that we liberalise the rules so that we can resume our lives.

"It makes no sense to keep restrictions on those who have had a jab, and it reduces the incentive to do so.

"It is entirely understandable that some people will feel anxious and others will not yet have been double jabbed.

"It is important to remember why we consented to relinquish our freedoms – to save lives and protect the NHS. As we can now meet those objectives, it is time to get back to living our lives without restrictions.”

Shrewsbury & Atcham's Conservative MP Daniel Kawczynski, said that he believed the majority of people are ready to move back to normality.

He said: "I am very much in favour of the plan for July 19. Clearly people in this country have been through a year and a half of these most unprecedented restrictions and constraints on themselves, their families, their businesses and their schools.

"We have actually as a nation, stepped up to the plate in a way I would argue is more united and efficient than any other country in the world and that with the vaccination programme, puts the UK in pole position for economic recovery but also to get back to some sort of normality.

"We will of course have to monitor the number of cases and variants will have to constantly be under the microscope but at this juncture with the level of cases and hospitalisations this is something we are going to have to attempt to live with, and I believe the majority of the people of the constituency support that."

Conservative Wrekin MP Mark Pritchard added: "I hope freedom day is coming very soon. The local and national economy needs to build back better and can only do this as life returns to normal.

"The pandemic has touched everyone's life and family, but the fortitude and resilience of Shropshire and Telford and Wrekin has been impressive and an example to all."