British PM's move to end virus curbs hits snag over free testing

LONDON • British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's "living with Covid-19" plan, scrapping restrictions and cutting access to free tests, drew 11th-hour objections yesterday that it was premature and would leave the country vulnerable to new viral variants.

As Hong Kong builds isolation units and Europe retains social distancing and vaccine rules, Mr Johnson was moving to repeal in England any pandemic requirements that impinge on personal freedoms, such as self-isolating after a positive Covid-19 test.

But the plan, geared to help deflect discontent over his scandal-ridden leadership among lawmakers in his Conservative Party that has threatened his grip on power, ran into difficulty just hours before he was due to launch it.

A Cabinet meeting of top ministers was delayed just before it was supposed to sign off on the new strategy, and the leaders of Scotland and Wales - both sharply critical of Mr Johnson's rule - said the policy would make it harder to tackle new virus variants in a timely way, heightening risks to the public.

"Testing has played a pivotal role in breaking chains of transmission and as a surveillance tool helping us detect and respond to emerging variants," Welsh First Minister Mark Drakeford said on Twitter. "It's essential that this continues."

Scotland First Minister Nicola Sturgeon tweeted: "To allow significant dismantling of the testing infrastructure built up in last two years would be inexcusable negligence given ongoing risks."

Just a day after Queen Elizabeth tested positive for the virus, Mr Johnson was expected to drop legal requirements to self-isolate and replace them with voluntary guidance, bringing Covid-19 in line with how Britain treats most other infections.

The government is also expected to reduce access to free tests, a move blasted by scientists after mass testing helped Britain to spot new variants during the pandemic.

That decision seemed to have a sparked a row between the health and finance ministers before a Cabinet meeting over what level of testing should continue and how it should be financed.

Mr Johnson has said he does not want people to "throw caution to the wind" but the vaccine roll-out means the government wants to move from state mandate to encouraging personal responsibility, a big priority for Conservative lawmakers.

Medical leaders have urged Mr Johnson not to be "gung-ho" with the nation's health, and government advisers have said that dropping restrictions could lead to rapid epidemic growth.

REUTERS