UK’s premier eyes end to lockdown as vaccines reach 1-3rd of adults

LONDON: Prime Minister Boris Johnson is set Monday to start unwinding England’s third and – he hopes – final coronavirus lockdown, as a quickening UK-wide inoculation drive relieves pressure on hardhit hospitals.

In a statement to parliament, Johnson is expected to confirm the reopening of all English schools on March 8 in the first big step towards restoring normal life, nearly a year after he imposed the first stay-athome order.

The Conservative prime minister, who was accused of acting too late and relaxing curbs too early last year, says he will lay out a “cautious but irreversible” plan to ensure no more lockdowns.

“Today I’ll be setting out a roadmap to bring us out of lockdown cautiously,” he said in a Downing Street release, ahead of his House of Commons appearance and a televised news conference later Monday.

“Our priority has always been getting children back into school which we know is crucial for their education as well as their mental and physical well-being, and we will also be prioritising ways for people to reunite with loved ones safely.”

Britain is one of the countries hardest-hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, with more than 120,000 deaths.

It was the first nation to begin a mass vaccination campaign, in December, but surging case numbers forced a return to lockdown in early January after an easing of curbs over Christmas.

More than 17 million people have now received at least a first vaccine dose -- one-third of the adult UK population. — AFP