Ministers considering reducing isolation from seven days to five, Boris Johnson suggests

Ministers are considering reducing the isolation period for fully vaccinated people who test positive for Covid from seven days to five, Boris Johnson has confirmed.

Speaking to journalists this morning, the Prime Minister said that officials need to “look at the science” to make their judgements.

He told broadcasters: “There’s a similar argument to be had about the quarantine period – whether to come down from seven days to five days.

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“The thing to do is to look at the science. We are looking at that and we will act according to the science.”

Prime Minister Boris Johnson in Uxbridge, west London, after a visit to a Boots Pharmacy coronavirus vaccination clinic.Prime Minister Boris Johnson in Uxbridge, west London, after a visit to a Boots Pharmacy coronavirus vaccination clinic.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson in Uxbridge, west London, after a visit to a Boots Pharmacy coronavirus vaccination clinic.

The comments come as Mr Johnson is facing pressure from his own backbenches to commit to easing restrictions, and just hours after one of his most senior Ministers said that the country is moving to a stage where we can “live with Covid”.

Michael Gove said there would still be “difficult weeks ahead” with the NHS facing real pressure, and it was not yet possible to say the current Omicron-driven wave of Covid-19 cases was abating.

The Levelling Up Secretary, who was one of the voices around the Cabinet table arguing for tougher measures when Omicron emerged, said the easing of restrictions would have to be guided by science, but “the sooner the better”.

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He told Sky News: “We are moving to a situation – we’re not there yet – but we are moving to a situation where it is possible to say that we can live with Covid, and that the pressure on the NHS and on vital public services is abating.”

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Mr Gove told BBC Radio 4’s Today: “It is the case that we are in the next two or three weeks – perhaps longer – facing real pressure on the NHS, and our first responsibility at the moment must be to support the NHS.”

But after the current “difficult period”, Mr Gove said he hopes “there will be better times ahead”.

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“There are other coronaviruses which are endemic and with which we live – viruses tend to develop in a way whereby they become less harmful but more widespread.

“So, guided by the science, we can look to the progressive lifting of restrictions and – I think for all of us – the sooner, the better.

“But we have got to keep the NHS safe.”