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New restrictions to slow the spread of COVID-19 outbreaks in England will only be implemented as a last resort, as a last resort, Health Minister Sajid Javid has said, stressing that despite the increase in hospitalisations, the number of patients in intensive care units remains stable.
The rapid spread of the Omicron variant across the UK has increased infections to high levels, with cases reaching 190.000 cases of infection for Friday.
The UK has not implemented new measures for England, whose population accounts for more than 80% of the UK population.
Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have imposed restrictions such as reducing the number of people allowed to gather together, closing nightclubs and implementing social distancing measures in pubs.
"Restrictions on our freedom must surely be a last resort," Javid said in an article published in today's edition of the Daily Mail. "We must give ourselves the best chance to live with the virus, but also to avoid harsh measures in the future."
Javid had said on 27 December that no new restrictions would be imposed in England before the end of 2021. His article suggests that sanctions are not imminent for 2022.
He said that despite what he described as a worrying increase in Omicron cases during this period, Britain enters the new year in a stronger position than the country was in twelve months ago, given the high rate of vaccination against COVID.
\N"Numbers in intensive care units are stable and in the current period are not following the trajectory seen in the same period last year during the wave of alpha variant transmission," he wrote.
At the same time, Javid admitted that because of the time between infections and hospitalisations, a large increase in people needing care from the National Health Service (NHS) was inevitable.
"This development is likely to test the limits of the NHS's ultimate capacity to function much more than a typical winter," Javid observed, urging people to do what they can to protect themselves."
Source: Cyprus Times
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