BORIS Johnson has urged Brits to continue to follow the Covid rules and says he is ready to reveal a roadmap out of lockdown.
The Prime Minister released a video message in which he praised the UK’s vaccine roll out while also stressing that infections rates in the country are still higher than they have ever been.
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Mr Johnson said that on February 22 he would “set out the beginnings of our roadmap” for climbing out of lockdown as “ more and more people acquire immunity.”
However, the PM added: “I want to stress that it is still early days and we have rates of infection in this country (that are) still very, very high and (have) more people – almost twice as many people – in our hospitals with Covid now than there were back at the peak in April.
“So, do remember how tough it still is, how high that rate of infection is and that we must, must work together to get it down – that’s the fundamental thing to get right.
“Stay at home, protect the NHS and save lives.”
More than 10 million people have been vaccinated in the UK since December.
Downing Street said Mr Johnson and French president Emmanuel Macron agreed there needs to be “a collaborative effort between governments” on the Covid-19 vaccine rollout.
A Number 10 spokeswoman said: “The Prime Minister emphasised the important role world leaders will play in ensuring that vaccines are rolled out effectively so that we can defeat the pandemic.
“The leaders agreed that a successful global vaccination programme will require a collaborative effort between governments.”
Meanwhile, it has emerged that SAGE experts warned Number 10 last month that a “complete” border closure was needed to prevent mutant Covid strains from coming into the UK.
Minutes from a meeting held on January 21 revealed the scientists said the only other way to stop the new variants spreading was for all travellers to be quarantined on arrival.
Boris Johnson announced six days later that only people arriving from countries on a “red list” will be required to self-isolate in a hotel for 10 days – despite the advise from the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE).
It was confirmed last night that this policy will not come into force until February 15.
The SAGE warning from the meeting in January was released today after it was leaked last week.
On Tuesday, the Prime Minister’s official spokesman said SAGE “did not actually advise the Government to completely close borders or call for a blanket quarantine on travels”.
This comes after a mutant strain, first found in Kent, plunged England into a third lockdown last month.
Other deadly variants from South Africa and Brazil have, like the UK strain, been found to be more infectious than the original coronavirus.
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