The legal requirement to self-isolate will be removed from Thursday, and the end of free mass testing from 1 April are among the changes announced in England’s plan for “living with COVID”.
After almost two years living amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Prime Minister Boris Johnson confirmed that all remaining restrictions are to come to an end and unveiled the government’s plan for “living with COVID” to MPs in the House of Commons yesterday in a bid to move from “government restrictions to personal responsibility”.
Speaking at a Downing Street news conference on Monday evening, Mr Johnson said “today is not the day we can declare victory over COVID”, but admitted that the nation had passed the peak of Omicron, with falling cases and hospital admissions.
He described the pandemic as “two of the darkest, grimmest years in our peacetime history”, but now is the country could complete the “transition back towards normality”.
All the changes announced will be subject to approval by Parliament.
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Announcing the changes yesterday, the Prime Minister said: “Because of the efforts we have made as a country over the past two years, we can now deal with it in a very different way, moving from government restrictions to personal responsibility, so we protect ourselves without losing our abilities and maintaining our contingent capabilities so we can respond rapidly to any new variant.”
Here’s all the changes announced yesterday.
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Covid-19 has not gone away, but because of the efforts we have made as a country over the past two years we can now move from government regulations to personal responsibility.
From today, the government is dropping its guidance for staff and students in most education and childcare settings to undertake twice weekly asymptomatic testing.
From Thursday 24 February
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The legal requirement to self-isolate for those who test positive will end.
Vaccinated contacts of positive cases will no longer be asked to test for seven days.
There will no longer be a legal requirement for close contacts who are not vaccinated to self-isolate.
Contact tracing and venue check-ins on the COVID-19 app will also end.
The £500 self-isolation support payment for people on low incomes who test positive for COVID will no longer be available
COVID provisions for increased statutory sick pay will apply for a further month
On Thursday 24 March, it is expected that the government will issue and update wider guidance on workplace safety that had been changed for COVID.
From 1 April
Free universal testing for symptomatic and asymtomatic people will be scrapped and will instead be targeted at the most vulnerable.
The use of voluntarily COVID status certification will also no longer be recommended.
Remove the health and safety requirement for every employer to explicitly consider COVID-19 in their risk assessments.
People with COVID symptoms will be asked to exercise “personal responsibility” when deciding whether to stay at home.
The government says the country is ready to complete the “transition back towards normality” / Credit: Twitter (@manairport)
Speaking on the decision to end the legal requirement to self-isolate, Mr Johnson continued: “Until 1 April, we will still advise people who test positive to stay at home but after that we will encourage people with COVID-19 symptoms to exercise personal responsibility, just as we encourage people who may have flu to be considerate to others.”
On the end of universal free testing, the prime minister told MPs that the “biggest testing programme per person of any large country in the world” came “at vast cost”.
In an attempt to ensure people do not build up personal stockpiles of free lateral flow tests before the 1 April cut-off, individuals can now only order a box every three days, instead of every 24 hours.
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Mr Johnson added that it is “only because levels of immunity are so high” that the remaining restrictions can be lifted.
He said “vaccines and treatments” must now been seen as “our first line of defence”.
The government says ministers and scientific experts will continue to “track the virus in granular detail”, and that it remains “ready to respond” if a new variant emerges and places unsustainable pressure on the NHS, through surveillance systems and contingency measures such as increased testing capacity or vaccine programmes.
We have come so far as a country and today we are setting out our plan to live with COVID. pic.twitter.com/invJTnKEu5
The government’s plan for “living with COVID” has drawn criticism from opposition and a growing number of medical professionals, including Chaand Nagpaul – Chair of the British Medical Association – who said the decision is “premature” and “not based on current evidence” or “guided by data”.
He said the strategy neglected some of society’s most vulnerable, and instead of giving people more freedom, it was likely to cause “more uncertainty and anxiety”.
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Dr Nagpaul also called for “urgent clarity” on testing for NHS workers to protect staff and patients, and that “protections must be maintained for the most vulnerable, including the provision of enhanced face masks, and clear guidance for both patients and clinicians”.
The government’s scientific advisers on its SAGE committee also emphasised that there is “considerable uncertainty about the path the pandemic will now take in the UK”.
Chris Hopson – Chief Executive of NHS Providers, which represents hospital trusts – said many NHS figures were “concerned about the potential impact of these decisions”, and that it was “vital” the government was ready to restore phased out testing and surveillance systems should they be needed.
Beloved plant-based independent street food business Herbivorous is set to close imminently
Danny Jones
We hate writing this, but we have news of yet another local hospitality closure as beloved Manchester-born and pioneering plant-based brand Herbivorous has confirmed they’ll soon be calling it a day.
If you can hear us sighing through the screen, apologies – we’re just getting really fed up of saying farewell to our favourites, so god knows how rubbish those involved feel.
As you can see, the team behind the multi-location vegan street food specialists began by writing: “It’s a long one so stay with me… It seems you can’t open social media at the moment without reading about another hospitality business closing down.
“Throughout 8 years of Herbivorous years we’ve come up against many challenges from Covid 5 years ago to watching all the big vegan brands from London and beyond come to Manchester and largely disappear again to the closure of Hatch our busiest site, but with continually increasing costs its becoming really difficult to maintain a thriving business.”
Herbivorous started out life back in 2016 as a cult hit at the old outdoor food, drink and entertainment hub centring around a ‘container village’, the first of its kind in the city and soon to reopen under new owners and a new name.
Since then, co-founders Robyn and Damian have gone on to expand not just to one permanent site over in Withington but with outposts in Sheffield and York, having gained a strong reputation with stalls and pop-ups all over.
Their hospitality story might not have the ending we personally would hope for, but it’s been a brilliant one for so many foodie fans – us lot included.
Nevertheless, they go on to add in the emotional statement that external pressures such as a recent bereavement and their own ever-growing family have also contributed to the decision which, despite being an understandably hard one, “feel like the right time.”
“We are so incredibly proud of how far we’ve come from spending long days slinging duck wraps from our green vintage horse box at festivals to three Herbi locations across the North of England”, they continue, “and with that we’ve also met so many fantastic people!”
“Whether you worked for us at a few festivals over [the] summer or for years at our restaurant, we just wanted to say and massive thank you! The memories will stay with us forever and, of course, how can we not mention our fabulous customers!
“Thank you all so much for choosing Herbivorous over the years. Those of you who had our food at Festivals and then found us at one of our permanent locations, those of you who came back week after week to Hatch, Spark, Withington and beyond.”
They signed off by detailing their final business days, with their Sheffield Kommune spot having already shut for refurbishment; meanwhile, their spot in SPARK York will be wrapping up on Saturday, 19 April.
As for their flagship brick-and-mortar venue here in Greater Manchester, Herbivorous Withington will be shutting on Friday, 25 April.
Once again, there’s nothing we can say other than thank you for years of delicious food, that we’re guttted to see you go, and that everyone at The Manc Group wishes you the best whatever comes next.
AJ Tracey is playing a VERY intimate gig in Manchester next month
Thomas Melia
London rapper and respected grime artist AJ Tracey is ‘live and direct’ once again, announcing a whole host of UK dates, one of which is a rather intimate gig right here in Manchester.
It’s official: one of UK rap’s leading gents is getting back on the road and he’s showing a ‘Little More Love’ to lots of cities, including Manchester.
In a post on the UK star’s socials, AJ Tracey trades his music persona for that of a sports pundit as he announces the dates for his upcoming tour while impersonating an F1 commentator.
Anyone looking to attend Tracey’s ‘Not Even A Tour’ can catch the star up and down the country on his over 20-date tour with a stop in Manchester as soon as this month.
The rapper has reached phenomenal heights since dropping the unforgettable ‘Ladbroke Grove’ in 2019 and is heading out across the nation to make sure everyone knows about it.
Get ready to spit bars left and right as this rapper’s discography is stacked with serious tunes like ‘Dinner Guest’, ‘West Ten’, ‘Thiago Silva’ and more.
More recently, he collaborated with Walsall’s finest Jorja Smith for a flirty garage beat also known as ‘Crush’ with the video being the two artists talking it out in a good old fashioned caff.
The latest collaboration with Smith marks the start of a new era for Mr. Live and direct as it fell in line with the announcement of his third studio album.
Titled Don’t Die Before You’re Dead, we’re sure he’ll be “building a vibe” wherever he goes and probably previewing a few exclusive tracks from his upcoming project too.
This gig may come as quite a surprise for any hardcore fans of the ‘Ladbroke Grove’ star as the venue in which he’s performing is definitely intimate only, holding just over 250 guests.
This rap giant is bringing his unbelievable beats to none other than the legendary small-cap city centre live music venue, The Deaf Institute, at the end of this month.
It’s safe to say you won’t get many more chances, if any, to see him in such a tight-knit space again.
AJ Tracey is bringing ‘Not Even A Tour’ to Deaf Institute in Manchester on 30 April, with tickets on sale Friday 4 April from 12 noon.