Britain seeks to go out of lockdown

Photo: EPA

Britain is ready to start going out of lockdown but only after the vaccination of the vulnerable people, PM Boris Johnson said cited by news agencies. “We’ve got to be very prudent and what we want to see is progress that is cautious, but irreversible. If we possibly can, we’ll be setting out dates,” he pointed out.

With nearly a quarter of the UK’s population already vaccinated with a first dose of a Covid vaccine, Johnson is under pressure from lawmakers and businesses to start reopening the economy. “If because of the rate of infection, we have to push off something a little bit to the right - delay it for a little bit - we won’t hesitate to do that,” the PM said. Johnson is due to set the path out of lockdown on 22 February,

The UK has the world’s fifth-worst official death toll, currently 117,166, after the US, Brazil, Mexico and India. Britain has vaccinated 15.062 million people with a first dose and 537,715 with a second dose, the fastest rollout per capita of any large country. Hancock said he expected vaccine supplies to increase as manufacturing accelerated.

An influential group of lawmakers in Johnson’s Conservative Party is urging an end to the lockdown as soon as the most vulnerable nine groups are vaccinated. They want no more rules beyond 1 May.

More on this subject: Coronavirus

Similar articles

  • UK introduces vaccine passport to revive economy

    UK introduces vaccine passport to revive economy

    The British Finance Minister Rishi Sunak announced an idea to issue vaccine passports or relevant certificates that would allow the bearers of such documents to enter venues and attend events, Reuters said. Sunak added that this approach is seen helping the economic recovery from the pandemic slowdown.

    44
  • UK grants another 5bn pounds to businesses hit by pandemic

    UK grants another 5bn pounds to businesses hit by pandemic

    The British government is set to extend its support for local businesses with an additional aid package of some five billion pounds, Reuters reported. Shops, bars, clubs, hotels, restaurants, gyms and hair salons would be among nearly 700,000 firms that may apply for new direct cash grants of up to 18,000 pounds each.

    27