A cabinet minister has admitted local lockdowns are an “option” amid reports the government is considering multiple contingency plans to tackle the spread of the new variant first detected in India.
According to The Times, local restrictions in hotspot areas could be based on the old tier four measures used at the end of 2020, with people being advised to stay at home and non-essential shops once again being ordered to close.
Another scenario could be postpone the lifting of all Covid restrictions in England on 21 June — the final stage in the government’s roadmap to unlocking the economy. Boris Johnson has already said the new variant has created the “risk of disruption and delay”.
Speaking on Sky News, George Eustice, the environment secretary, said the government would be in a position “shortly” before 21 June to assess whether the country can move to the final stage of the roadmap, but reiterated that a delay could not be ruled out.
He said: “We want to do that [move to next stage]. That’s always been the plan — we want each step to be an irreversible step but we can never rule out there may have to be a delay.”
Pressed on whether the government was actively looking at fully opening on 21 June while imposing local restrictions on areas struggling with the virus, Mr Eustice said: “That would be an option — we cannot rule anything out at this stage”.
“Our preferred outcome is that we really double down and get the vaccination rates up in those areas that are seeing problems so that we can give them the immunity that they need for this virus then we won’t have to have any such local lockdowns”.
According to The Times, businesses that are placed into local restrictions could receive grants of up to £18,000 while sectors affected by any delay to the government’s final stage of the roadmap, including nightclubs and festivals, could also receive a grant.
It comes after Matt Hancock told MPs the number of cases of the Indian variant had increased by 1,000 in just four days, with it now being “dominant” in the Lancashire areas of Bolton and Blackburn.
However, the health secretary insisted that while the B1617.2 variant seemed more transmissible, the evidence suggested vaccines were effective against it, adding that testing had been “surged” across Bolton.
