Identified as a contact case, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will have to isolate himself but only when he is not working because he is participating in a pilot program, Downing Street announced on Sunday.
Boris Johnson thus escapes forced isolation at home which would have been particularly unwelcome when almost all of the restrictions linked to the coronavirus were lifted on Monday, renamed “Freedom Day”.
“A pilot program of daily screening”
Boris Johnson and Finance Minister Rishi Sunak “have been contacted by the public health service because they have been in contact with someone who tested positive for Covid,” said a spokesperson for Downing Street. Health Minister Sajid Javid announced on Saturday that he had tested positive for Covid-19.
Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak will however escape complete isolation because “they will participate in a pilot program of daily screening” which “allows them to continue working from Downing Street”. “They will only conduct essential government business during this period,” the spokesperson said.
Restrictions lifted in the UK
One of the countries most affected in Europe by Covid-19, which killed more than 128,600 there, the United Kingdom has seen contaminations climb for weeks, exceeding 54,000 cases on Saturday.
Despite these figures, Boris Johnson announced the lifting of almost all remaining restrictions in England from Monday, including the obligation to wear a mask or social distancing, preferring to rely on the “individual responsibility” of each. .