The UK Prime Minister, Boris Johnson has declared that up to six people can now meet outdoors after the government’s five coronavirus tests for loosening lockdown were met.
The PM revealed that the draconian restrictions are being eased slightly from next week after the ferocity of the outbreak subsided.
He is formally reducing the country’s COVID ‘alert’ status from four to three after taking advice from SAGE experts this afternoon.
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But the changes, which take effect on Monday, are being largely limited to outdoor activity, where the risks of spread are far lower.
Up to six people from different households will be allowed to mix, opening the prospect of reunions for family and friends – although they will still be told to obey social distancing rules. They will also be permitted to use gardens and private outdoor spaces, which was previously banned.
Non-essential shops and primary schools will start to reopen from next month, as had been suggested earlier in the week.
Mr. Johnson told the daily Downing Street briefing: ‘I cannot and I will not throw away all the gains we have made together.
‘So the changes that we have made are limited and cautious.’
The move comes despite concerns having been raised in Cabinet that a ‘barbecue clause’ could lead to a fresh flare-up in infections.
Nicola Sturgeon made her move first this lunchtime, by announcing tweaks in Scotland that mean people can meet up in their own gardens from tomorrow.
Mr Johnson said: ‘I know the toll that lockdown has taken on families and friends who have been unable to see each other.
‘So from Monday we will allow up to six people to meet outside – provided those from different households continue strictly to observe social distancing rules by staying two metres apart.
‘At the moment, as you know, people can meet in parks but not in private gardens. This was a cautious first step – but we know that there is no difference in health risk. So we will now allow people to meet in gardens and other private outdoor spaces.
‘These changes mean friends and family can start to meet their loved ones – perhaps seeing both parents at once, or both grandparents at once. I know that for many this will be a long-awaited and joyful moment.
‘But I must stress that to control the virus, everyone needs to stay alert, act responsibly, strictly observe social distancing rules, and stay two metres apart from those who you do not live with.‘
Mr Johnson stressed that ‘minimizing contact with others is still the best way to prevent transmission’.
He added: ‘You should also try to avoid seeing people from too many households in quick succession – so that we can avoid the risk of quick transmission from lots of different families and continue to control the virus.
‘And it remains the case that people should not be inside the homes of their friends and families unless it is to access the garden.’
Mr Johnson admitted there would be ‘anomalies‘ and ‘apparent inconsistencies‘ in the more complicated rules.
‘Inevitably there may be some anomalies, or apparent inconsistencies, in these rules – and clearly what we’re proposing is still just a fraction of the social interaction each of us would normally enjoy,’ he said.
‘I know many of you will find this frustrating and I am sorry about that. But I’m afraid it is unavoidable, given the nature of the invisible enemy we are fighting.’
The official review this afternoon gave the all-clear for schools to begin reopening next week.
The road map to easing the lockdown contained the possibility one household could form a social ‘bubble’ with one other in a mutual group, but it that has been quietly shelved.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said in a round of interviews earlier: ‘The good thing that we’ve learned from the science of this virus in the last few weeks is that the risk of transmission outdoors is much lower – it’s not zero, but it is much lower than indoors.
‘So, during the summer, in particular, a lot of the changes that you can expect to see will be based on the principle that outdoors is safer than indoors.‘
The R reproduction rate and the government’s new contact tracing regime are seen as crucial to loosen the lockdown safely.
But the back end of the tracing site crashed on launch this morning, amid complaints it has been a ‘complete shambles’.
Doctors and other staff reported major teething troubles as the much-trumpeted scheme finally got up and running, with some saying they had not even received passwords to start work – although the public-facing web forms were not affected.
Meanwhile, NHS chiefs have warned that ‘key bits’ of the system are not yet operational and it cannot be described as ‘world class’.
MPs say they were told by the head of NHS Test and Trace, Baroness Dido Harding, that the local tracking will not be fully in place until the end of June.
The chaotic beginning came as Matt Hancock laughed off criticism over the delay to the NHS app that was meant to accompany the regime.
The Health Secretary insisted it was right to press ahead without the phone technology, suggesting it was important to ‘get people used‘ to the principles.
Under the plans, anyone with symptoms will immediately self-isolate and book a test, either at a testing centre or delivered to their home. Their household should start a 14-day isolation period too.
