UK PM Boris Johnson’s next coronavirus test: end lockdown, plan safe Christmas

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson will announce a massive increase in community coronavirus testing on Monday as part of a plan to reintroduce tiered restrictions in place of the England-wide lockdown that ends on December 2.

Areas under the highest level of curbs will have access to regular tests. People who come into contact with someone with the disease will be able to avoid quarantine by taking a test every day for seven days, Johnson’s office said.

The programme, which will be trialled in Liverpool, northwest England, is due to be announced by the prime minister in parliament, alongside tougher restrictions for the worst hit areas and guidelines for family visits “for a small number of days” over the Christmas holidays.

“The increase in new cases is flattening off, but we are not out of the woods yet,” Johnson will tell lawmakers, according to his office. “With the expansion in testing and vaccines edging closer to deployment, the regional tiered system will help get the virus back under control and keep it there.”

The prime minister is trying to balance the reopening of the economy in England – where restaurants, bars and many shops have been closed since November 5 – with the need to slow the spread of the pandemic, which has killed more than 55,000 people in the UK, including over 3,000 in the past week.

Under the new plan, non-essential retailers and gyms will be allowed to reopen, and a curfew on hospitality businesses will be moved to 11pm from 10pm, according to a person familiar with the guidelines. More areas will be placed into the higher tiers of restrictions, with stricter limits on household mixing. Details of exactly where will be announced on Thursday.