England lockdown eases next week, but no decision on the resumption of foreign travel

SOURCE- GUARDIAN – Life will start returning to “some semblance of normality” in June, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has pledged, as he gave the green light for pubs, shops, hairdressers and gyms to reopen across England from next Monday – but he refused to be drawn on when foreign holidays could resume.

The prime minister said moving to the next stage of the government’s roadmap out of lockdown was “fully justified” by the success of the vaccine rollout and the drop in cases and hospitalisations, allowing a raft of venues to operate for the first time in three months.

But he suggested that COVID status certificates and mass weekly testing could be key to further restrictions being eased, raising the prospect of such interventions remaining in place for months to come.

Hopes that foreign holidays may be allowed from 17 May were dampened, as Johnson said he did “not wish to give hostages to fortune” and was nervous about “the virus being reimported” from abroad given the surge in cases across Europe.

Before the Downing Street press conference, scientists from the government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) said next week’s reopening of venues, with outdoor service only at pubs and restaurants, was “highly unlikely” to overwhelm the NHS [National Health Service]. But they warned that further easing in May and beyond could unleash a third UK wave as deadly as the one seen during the winter, when more than half of the country’s total of COVID deaths occurred.