The new health secretary Sajid Javid has warned the UK will have to learn to live with Covid. This was his view as he made his first official appearance in the House of Commons in his new role. He told MPs that there is no reason to delay and said he was confident lockdown restrictions in England could be lifted on 19 July.
Sajid Javid went on to say that the date 19th July 2021 would “mark not only the end of the line, but the start of exciting new journey for the country”. He also added that: “We owe it to the British people … not to wait a moment longer than we need to.”
You can read more about his first commons statement as Health Secretary here
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/sajid-javid-covid-19-july-b1874185.html
Sajid Javid made this announcement even though official figures show a rise in confirmed Covid19 cases of 22,868 in the UK. This is the highest daily rise since 30 January.
The Shadow Health Secretary Jonathan Ashworth warned Mr Javid that ministers would place more people at risk of developing debilitating “long Covid” symptoms if restrictions were lifted while case numbers remained so high