England moved to step three of its lockdown roadmap on May 17th.
The rule of six has been extended to indoor areas, which means people can visit friends and family at home and stay with them overnight for the first time this year.
Groups of up to 30 people are allowed to gather outdoors, and larger weddings and funerals are now permitted. Pubs and restaurants can finally reopen, and cinemas are reopening too.
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If everything goes according to plan (and the rise of the Indian variant in the UK means that remains a pretty significant “if”) the fourth and final phase of the roadmap will follow less than a month later on June 21st.
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What will change on June 21st?
The government hopes to lift “all legal restrictions on social contact” by June 21st. This means that there are no longer any restrictions on how many people you can meet indoors or outdoors.
However, some social distancing rules may remain in place, and the wearing of masks may still be mandatory in some public places.
Nightclubs and music venues are reopening and larger events can resume without a limited crowd. “This will be made contingent on the results of a scientific events research program to test the results of certain pilot events in the spring and summer, where we will test the use of tests and other techniques to reduce the risk of infection,” the government said.
From May 17th, up to 30 people can attend weddings. Restrictions on the number of guests could be lifted completely on June 21 (Photo: KirylV / Shutterstock)
This program will also guide decisions about whether all boundaries can be lifted at weddings and other life events.
Will the lockdown actually be eased on June 21st?
Before each stage of the roadmap, the government must ensure that four tests are passed:
- The vaccine delivery program continues successfully
- There is evidence that vaccines are sufficiently effective in reducing hospital stays and deaths among those vaccinated
- Infection rates do not risk a surge in hospital admissions that would not put sustained pressure on the NHS
- The assessment of the risks is not fundamentally changed by new problem areas
Although Boris Johnson originally said there was nothing to suggest the roadmap needed to be delayed, fears mounted as the Indian variant of Covid cases climbed around the time of the May 17 easing.
The rise in infections with the B1617.2 strain – which is feared to be more contagious than the Kent variant – raised concerns that the Indian variant might prove more resistant to the existing Covid vaccines.
However, later research has shown that the bumps provide strong protection against the stress, which Dr. Jenny Harries, the head of the UK Health Security Agency, led to say that the situation “looks good”.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said he was “increasingly confident” that the roadmap was back on track, while his cabinet colleague Priti Patel said the data was “positive”.
The Minister of Health stated: “I am increasingly confident that we are on the way to the roadmap as this data shows that the vaccine is just as effective after two doses and we all know that the vaccine is our way out.”