In the UK, almost all corona restrictions will fall this Monday. While Boris Johnson relies on the vaccine effect, many experts consider “Freedom Day” to be a game with human lives.
For Great Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson it is “Freedom Day”, from the point of view of scientists a fatal opening step in the midst of the corona pandemic: In England, almost all corona restrictions will be lifted from this Monday, including mask requirements and distance rules. Experts fear another large corona wave – the number of cases is already increasing across Great Britain. Health Minister Sajid Javid became aware of a corona infection on Saturday, and Johnson is also in quarantine.
For most English people, Monday means a return to normalcy: discos are allowed to reopen, theaters and sports stadiums are allowed to occupy all seats. The mask requirement is no longer required in local transport and shops – except in London, where Mayor Sadiq Khan of the Labor Party wants to maintain a stricter corona course than the central government.
Boris Johnson hopes for the responsibility of the individual
Johnson justifies the controversial opening step with the high vaccination rate in Great Britain. Instead of officially ordered orders, he wants to rely on the “responsibility of the individual” in the future.
The development in England, where the highly contagious Delta variant of the corona virus is rampant, should be closely monitored abroad. Even now there are demands in Germany that a “day of freedom” should be determined based on the example of England. North Rhine-Westphalia’s Family Minister Joachim Stamp (FDP) suggested in the “Bild am Sonntag” that all restrictions be lifted on October 3rd.
US expert: Johnson plays with life
In the UK itself, the easing is hotly contested. Labor spokesman for health, Jonathan Ashworth, spoke of a “ruthless” approach. “We are against openings without any precautionary measures,” he told the BBC.
Experts such as the US scientist William Haseltine even accuse Johnson’s government of a “murderous” corona strategy. Relying on so-called herd immunity will result in “thousands, if not tens of thousands” of deaths, he said at an online meeting of international scientists on Friday.
The government itself expects 100,000 new infections per day
The meeting was convened after the publication of an open letter in The Lancet, in which more than 120 scientists called on the government in London to abandon its easing plans. In the meantime, 1,400 other experts have signed the letter.
The government in London denies the allegation of relying on herd immunity. However, she also admits that the number of daily corona infections could rise to 100,000 in the coming weeks. On Saturday alone, the country’s health authorities reported more than 54,000 new infections with the corona virus. Health Minister Javid also announced on Saturday that he was infected.
Prime Minister and Finance Minister in self-isolation
Johnson and Treasury Secretary Rishi Sunak also have to isolate themselves, as Downing Street announced on Sunday. A government spokesman had initially stated that the politicians only had to be in partial quarantine – they were allowed to continue their work in Downing Street. After a storm of outrage on the Internet, the government corrected this information: Both Johnson and Sunak would comply with the quarantine in full, it said.
The quarantine regulation is currently causing a dispute in the UK. Anyone who is informed by the British health service NHS that they are a direct Corona contact person must isolate themselves according to the current status. In the week of July 7th alone, this affected more than 530,000 people.
Industry urges the quarantine requirement for vaccinated people to be lifted
Several companies, including the automaker Nissan, had sued the settlement of massive staff shortages. The government in London wants to lift the quarantine requirement for fully vaccinated people on August 16. The pressure from the industry to implement this earlier, however, is growing: Several Sunday newspapers warned of food shortages on Sunday should there be further major staff shortages.
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