Covid rules have been lifted – but we are not free to live life as it was
Hospitals, refuse tips, travel hubs and cultural institutions all still have regulations in place
BRITAIN is supposedly “living with Covid” but large parts of life – from courts and museums to airports and local councils – are still being blighted.
The Government scrapped all Covid rules on Feb 24, including selfisolation after a positive test, the need to wear masks in most public spaces and recognition of the NHS Covid pass as a “vaccine passport”. Social distancing is no longer mandatory and lateral flow tests are no longer free.
People are still asked to wear masks outside healthcare settings. Visitors must sanitise their hands before entering theatres and there is social distancing in galleries and courts.
Hospital visits
Hospitals across the country are still banning loved ones from visiting patients even though the official NHS guidance is telling them to open up.
More than one in eight hospital trusts in England are still refusing to allow any visitors, while many more have some form of restrictions. Some only allow one named visitor per patient for the duration of their stay or allow entry for 30 minutes.
Some 15 trusts, including United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust and James Paget University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, are only allowing visits in exceptional circumstances, such as for patients at the end of life.
This week, the UK Health Security Agency revised its guidance. Emergency departments, ambulances, as well as primary care, inpatient and outpatient settings are all advised to remove social distancing. The isolation period for Covid-positive patients in hospitals can also be reduced from 10 to 7 days if the patient produces two negative lateral flow tests. Patients who are considered contacts of positive cases are no longer required to isolate if they are asymptomatic.
Tips
Households must still book before visiting rubbish tips in several areas, a system that has led to an increase in fly- tipping. The booking system was implemented widely when the country first went into lockdown as councils claimed it was necessary to maintain social distancing. However, many have continued with it. The Government has said households should be able to access tips “at all reasonable times” but many councils are ignoring this, including Kent, which has declared it will make the changes permanent, citing “environmental, operational and communication benefits”.
Visitors have to book using an online form up to a month in advance.
Medway council is turning away visitors without slots and requires them to provide name, address, email, vehicle make, model, colour and registration when booking.
Households in Merton, south London, are asked to bring a driving licence or recent council tax statement. The council only allows one person to exit a vehicle to reduce the number of people on site. Staff are instructed to maintain a 2m distance from customers at all times and no longer assist with unloading.
Passport delays
Holidaymakers have had to cancel trips because of delays in processing applications. The Passport Office and its courier, TNT, blame a surge in demand after the lifting of restrictions. The number missing in the post has doubled in less than a year, with some left waiting months for documents. The Post Office is advising people to allow up to 10 weeks for applications to be processed, up from three weeks pre-pandemic. It claims that over five million people delayed applying for a passport throughout 2020 and 2021.
Travel
Holidaymakers are still having to wear masks at airports and on flights even though the legal requirement no longer applies. British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, easyJet, Norwegian, Jet2 and Tui have relaxed the rules. However, they still require passengers to wear masks if the destination country mandates that people wear face coverings indoors. A passenger to the US, where there is still a mask mandate on aircraft, will have to cover nose and mouth for the duration of the flight.
Airlines are still encouraging passengers to wear masks even though it is not required and are urging them to pack masks in case the rules change. UK airports are also advising travellers to wear masks in terminal buildings, bus stations and railway platforms.
Courts
Courts and tribunals have relaxed their rules but some are still implementing social distancing. At Birmingham coroner’s court jurors are sitting 2m apart, meaning some are on picnic tables. Social distancing has reduced the capacity of the court so fewer people are able to listen to hearings.
East London coroner’s court still requires face masks and has social distancing. It said: “This court recognises that its premises pose an elevated risk for the transmission of Covid given the nature of persons attending, which include; relatives of the recently deceased, members of the frontline emergency services, undertakers, pathologists and doctors.”
Where possible, hearings are “partially remote”, whereby the coroner sits in open court and participants join over the video link.
Museums, galleries and theatres
The days when visitors could wander into a gallery or museum have not yet returned. During the pandemic, many introduced booking systems, requiring people to obtain tickets in advance so that visitor numbers could be managed. Some have not reversed the policy. The Tate Modern in London still requires booking before visiting the permanent collection. The British Museum also asks visitors to book in advance to guarantee entry. Experts warn that the system is deterring people from visiting cultural institutions, which have already lost revenue because of lockdowns.
Theatres are also sticking with some restrictions. The Old Vic says it would “strongly recommend and request that you wear a face mask at all times”. It asks visitors who are exempt to download a “mask exemption” badge on their phone and to display it to staff.