Yesterday, the Prime Minister outlined his road map for relaxing Covid restrictions, setting a timeline for most measures to be removed by the summer.

There will be four steps in total, with the first starting on 8th March with the re-opening of schools, and at least five weeks between each to allow for enough time to collect data on how it is affecting the Covid case rate.

The Government will assess the impact of relaxing restrictions against its ‘Four Tests’ before deciding whether to relax restrictions further.

The four tests are:

1. The vaccine deployment programme continues successfully;

2. Evidence shows vaccines are sufficiently effective in reducing hospitalisations and deaths in those vaccinated;

3. Infection rates do not risk a surge in hospitalisations which would put unsustainable pressure on the NHS;

4. The assessment of the risks is not fundamentally changed by new variants of concern.

You can find more information about the Government’s proposals here: https://gov.uk/…/covid-19-response-spring-2021-summary

Many people will be anxious to know when they can see loved ones again and return to their lifestyles prior to the pandemic. I hope this announcement will offer reassurance, but I fully appreciate others will be equally anxious about the risk Covid-19 will continue to pose.

No vaccine is 100% effective and there remains the risk the virus will mutate into a form which evades vaccines, so it is important we all continue to follow the guidance and reduce our social contact to save lives.