The government has announced that England will fully return to Plan A on Thursday 27 January thanks to the success of the booster programme, with ministers urging anyone who has still not had a top-up jab to come forward.
Commenting on the announcement, Richard Fuller MP said:
The Prime Minister was right in December not to introduce more draconian restrictions to combat COVID and I welcome the government's decision to remove Plan B restrictions from next Thursday. I also welcome the announcement by the Secretary of State for Education that there will be no mandatory wearing of facemasks in classrooms from today.
Despite pressure from the Opposition, as well as the actions of the Scottish and Welsh administrations, the UK government’s response has been proven out. Statistics on caseloads and hospitalisation rates have been broadly similar in all areas of the UK notwithstanding different rules, and the much more restrictive response in France has not had any measurable impact on cases. We are now able to make these changes safely with cases and rates of hospitalisation now falling.
As a result, the UK economy is bouncing back strongly with GDP now greater than pre-pandemic, as well as numbers of people in employment and job vacancies both standing at all-time highs. Many thanks to our social care workers, NHS staff and the public for all their efforts to enable the UK to be the first major country to have the confidence to emerge from this Covid pandemic.
The announcement means from Wednesday 19 January, the government is no longer asking people to work from home if they can. People should speak to their employers about arrangements for returning to the office, and should follow the Working Safely guidance.
From Thursday 20 January, face coverings will no longer be advised in classrooms for both staff and pupils.
From Thursday 27 January:
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venues and events will no longer be required by law to use the NHS COVID Pass. The NHS COVID Pass can still be used on a voluntary basis as was previously the case in Plan A
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face coverings are no longer required by law in any setting. Public health guidance will remain in place, suggesting individuals should continue to wear a face covering in crowded and enclosed spaces, where you may come into contact with people you do not normally meet
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the Department for Education will remove national guidance on the use of face coverings in communal areas, with local directors of public health able to recommend the use of face coverings in education settings across their area only where the department and public health experts judge the measure to be proportionate due to specific health concerns. This is a temporary measure and directors of public health continue to advise individual settings experiencing outbreaks
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any local introduction of face coverings must be subject to routine review and removed at the earliest opportunity
