Plan B on hold despite 100k cases a day fears

BRITAIN faces fresh Covid restrictions this winter unless people get their booster jabs and ‘modify’ their behaviour, Sajid Javid said last night.

In a stark warning, the Health Secretary said that Covid infections were on course to top 100,000 per day in the coming weeks – higher than at any point during the pandemic.

Mr Javid has rejected calls from an NHS lobby group for the immediate introduction of Covid restrictions.

But he said it was critical that eligible people come forward for their Covid booster jabs, following a disappointing take-up to date, saying that the virus remains ‘a potent threat’.

And he urged people to wear masks in crowded places and to think more carefully about their social contacts following a summer of relative freedom.

Speaking at a No10 press conference, he said: ‘Am I saying that if we don’t do our bit, get vaccinated, all those behavioural changes that we could make, that we are more likely to face restrictions as we head into winter? I am saying that.

‘I think we’ve been really clear, we all have a role to play. If not enough people get their booster jabs, if not enough of those people that were eligible for the original offer don’t come forward, if people don’t wear masks when they really should... it’s going to hit us all.’

Boris Johnson published a ‘Covid winter plan’ last month, which focused heavily on rolling out booster shots.

But the package included a ‘Plan B’ of measures to be rolled out if the situation starts to get out of control.

This would involve the return in England of mandatory face masks in shops and on public transport, and the introduction of vaccine passports in venues such as nightclubs. Ministers will also consider bringing back the work from home order.

However, Mr Javid yesterday rejected calls to implement Plan B now. He acknowledged that the NHS was facing a tough winter, but said: ‘We won’t be implementing Plan B at this point, but we will be staying vigilant.’

Steve Baker, deputy chairman of the Covid Recovery Group of Tory MPs, rejected calls for more stringent measures. He said: ‘We cannot allow the liberties of the people of this country to become a tool of NHS capacity management.’

But Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, said it was ‘better to act now, rather than regret it later’.