Delay to isolation changes could see more than a million Brits forced to quarantine
Predictions of as many as 100,000 Brits a day registering positive Covid cases could leave more than a million Brits in isolation, putting the economic recovery at risk.
New Health Secretary Sajid Javid predicted daily cases could top six figures as the UK unlocks from restrictions.
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But with each Covid case resulting in an average of one additional individual forced to self-isolate per week, that means 1.4m Brits could be forced to stay at home.
Javid has said that from August 16, double-jabbed Brits would not need to isolate as long as tests come back negative.
But that delay – giving time for more Brits to be vaccinated – will make the “carnage” caused by self-isolation rules worse in certain industries, he has been warned.
Kate Nicholls, UK Hospitality’s boss, said the policy was already causing chaos as positive Covid cases result in whole reams of staff being ‘pinged’ by the NHS Covid-19 app.
Chris Hopson, Head of NHS Providers, also told the Financial Times – who first reported the figure – that the health service was also struggling with staff shortages as a result of ‘close contact’ self-isolation orders.
Former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith said last night that the government was “splitting the message”, claiming it “deliberately separated the good news from the bad”.
Keeping up self-isolation measures through to August “makes a mockery” of the idea that 19 July would see all restrictions end and it instead meant that “Freedom Day is delayed”, the former leader said.
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