All students in England will return to the classroom on March 8, and some businesses will reopen next month, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday as he unveiled a four-step plan to take the country out of its Covid-19 lockdown.
In addition to the return of schools, the first step in easing lock-in also provides the opportunity to open outdoor sports facilities from March 29, allowing people to meet again to play football, tennis and golf among other sports.
During step 1, up to six people from different households are also allowed to meet outside – or two households can gather in a larger group for outdoor activities such as a picnic.
The four steps are spread over at least five weeks of art so that notifications of infection rates can be conducted, with all current restrictions potentially being monitored by June 21st.
Johnson told MPs in the House of Commons that England could not “Continues indefinitely” with lockdown due to the impact on the economy and people’s lives.
The Prime Minister said the four-step plan constituted one “Careful and irreversible” ease of locking. The opposition’s Labor Party has backed the plan.
During the so-called step 2, which begins at the earliest at 12, non-essential retail and other services such as gyms, hairdressers, nail salons, zoos, libraries and drive-in cinemas may reopen.
Bodegas are also reopening outdoors, and players are not required to buy a substantial meal to drink alcohol, as was the case under previous government Covid rules.
From May 17, Stage 3 will give up to 10,000 fans access to stadiums for professional sporting events, while pubs and restaurants will also be allowed to reopen for indoor service.
During this phase, the so-called “Rule of sex” will be axed, and up to 30 people can gather in a group outside, while 30 people can also attend weddings and funerals.
During the fourth and final step, from June 21, nightclubs could reopen and the restrictions on events such as weddings would be eased.
The conditions for each step with restrictions to be lifted include that vaccine distribution remains effective, that hospitalizations are not increased, and that new variants of the virus do not pose a threat.
Johnson’s path to lifting restrictions comes as health officials on Monday confirmed that nearly 18 million people in the UK have received their first dose of a Covid-19 vaccine.
Meanwhile, the national average number of people testing positive for the virus has dropped by 16.2 percent compared to the previous week.
On Monday, the UK reported 10,641 new cases of Covid-19 and a further 178 deaths within 28 days of positive testing. In all, more than 120,000 people in the country have died from the virus.
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