Here we go again, United Kingdom edition. . .
Multiple media accounts are reporting that Prime Minister Boris Johnson will reimplement Covid restrictions including a recommendation to work from home and the use of some sort of vaccine passport:
🚨 NEW: Two Whitehall sources have told PoliticsHome that additional Covid restrictions are set to be announced as early as today, in response to the rising R rate
– WFH recommended from tomorrow
– Some form of certification to be introduced
– R rate higher than delta— Noa Hoffman (@hoffman_noa) December 8, 2021
According to the reporting, Johnson wants to be “ahead of the curve”:
According to well placed Whitehall source:
– Domestic situation focus today, international coming later
– Travel restrictions being kept as is, treated separately, international restrictions can no longer mitigate
– Gov is being "ahead of the curve"— Noa Hoffman (@hoffman_noa) December 8, 2021
MInisters are expected to sign off on Johnson’s “Plan B” later this morning:
https://twitter.com/SebastianEPayne/status/1468528194777145344
Downing Street has not denied the reports but adds, “no decisions have been made”:
I've put this to Downing Street, who have not denied it. No10 source simply says "no decisions have been made".
— Tom Newton Dunn (@tnewtondunn) December 8, 2021
According to this report, Johnson “decided to do it last night,” however:
There is disquiet about how quickly this decision process is moving in Whitehall. I’m told the Covid Taskforce is yet to even submit papers to the PM and Health Sec on Plan B, which were due later in the week. A source tells me: “Boris decided to do it last night”.
— Tom Newton Dunn (@tnewtondunn) December 8, 2021
Cases in the UK are high, but deaths have not followed this wave. From the New York Times (cases on the left, deaths on the right):
And these potential new restrictions come at a time when the Johnson administration is under fire for disobeying their own restrictions last Christmas:
This is @PippaCrerar's latest scoop – there was a THIRD party in Whitehall last Christmas while Covid burned its way through the population. https://t.co/4PrBaNIvaJ
— fleetstreetfox (@fleetstreetfox) December 8, 2021
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