British Parliament is voting Tuesday on whether to introduce the so-called vaccine passports. Here’s what’s at stake for Boris Johnson.
has pledged that England would stay largely free of Covid-19 restrictions, arguing that the U.K.’s successful vaccination campaign should permit British society to remain the most open in Europe.This week, British authorities estimated that infections caused by Omicron are at about 200,000 a day in the U.K. and are doubling roughly every two to three days. In response, Mr.
The new rules are a measure of the concern among British authorities over the speed of the spread of Omicron in the U.K. As of Monday, 4,713 cases of Omicron had been confirmed through testing in the U.K. But health officials estimate the number infected with Omicron to be much higher, and say the variant is currently responsible for 20% of all coronavirus infections in the country, rising to 44% in London. One in 60 people had Covid-19 in England in the week ending Dec. 1, according to the latest data from the Office for National Statistics.
Omicron’s quick spread in the U.K. resurfaces a familiar conundrum for Mr. Johnson as he weighs the necessity of rapid public intervention against his desire to keep the country as open as possible. In previous waves of the pandemic, Mr. Johnson has held off longer than European leaders before imposing restrictions.
Unlike in previous Covid waves, Mr. Johnson is coming into this one politically hobbled. Until a couple of months ago, the prime minister was comfortably ahead of Labour in the polls and dominant over his own party after securing a large majority in a 2019 election and presiding over a rapid vaccine rollout earlier this year.
Mr. Johnson’s personal rating has fallen to record lows. Currently, 66% of Britons have an unfavorable opinion of him, according to pollster YouGov.
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