Jan 14 (Reuters) - Prime Minister Boris Johnson is set to
lift Plan B COVID restrictions in England, the Telegraph
reported https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2022/01/14/plan-b-restrictions-scrapped-boris-johnson-plots-fightback
on Friday, as government scientists warn on dropping of Plan B
prematurely.
COVID passports and work from home guidance are widely
expected inside Whitehall to be lifted from Jan. 26 for England,
the report said, adding that some rules on face masks may
remain.
An announcement could come as soon as this week, it said.
On Friday, the government published minutes from a Jan. 7
meeting of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies that
said the epidemic had the potential to continue to grow
nationally.
The group also warned that if there were a reversal of
current interventions like Plan B in England, before the peak in
infection was passed it could lead to increase in overall impact
of the wave on hospitalisations.
Plan B, introduced last month to slow the spread of the
Omicron variant, includes ordering people to work from home,
wear masks in public places and use COVID passes to enter some
venues.
Johnson said last week that England could withstand a surge
in COVID-19 infections without shutting down the economy,
resisting imposing stringent lockdown measures.
(Reporting by Maria Ponnezhath in Bengaluru; Editing by Sandra
Maler)