UK Could Get ‘More or Less Back to Normal’ by Summer: Govt Scientific Advisor

A member of the government’s influential scientific committee has said that pending the continued successful rollout of the coronavirus vaccines, the UK could get “more or less back to normal” by Summer.

On Wednesday, the government announced that Britain had hit the milestone of giving the first dose of the vaccines to 10 million of its inhabitants. The news came as England’s Chief Medical Officer revealed that the country is now past the peak of the second wave of the Chinese coronavirus, with weekly deaths falling by 13 per cent and hospitalisations by 22 per cent. The UK is on target to vaccinate the country’s most vulnerable citizens — including those over 70 and frontline healthcare workers — an estimated 14.6 million, by February 15th.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, a member of the influential Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) Professor Andrew Hayward of University College London’s Institute for Epidemiology said that the lifting of many lockdown restrictions would be dependent upon inoculating the clinically fragile and those over 50.

“Once the most vulnerable people, particularly those over 50 and those with chronic illnesses, are vaccinated then yes I think we can see a significant return to normality.

“That in addition to the fact coronavirus is a seasonal disease, I think will make a big difference and allow us to open up.

“I think what we’ll see is a phased opening up as the vaccination levels increase, and then we will be more or less back to normal for the Summer, I would imagine,” Professor Hayward said on Thursday.

Since Mr Johnson put England into its third nationwide shutdown, ministers and the government have been reluctant to commit to an end date for restrictions.

However, two weeks ago, Prime Minister Boris Johnson pledged that before mid-February the government would look at the “potential of relaxing some measures”, saying that schools could start to reopen on March 8th, with reports claiming there would follow a slow release of some restrictions, including pubs and restaurants in May.

Vaccine Minister Nadim Zahawi also told Today on Thursday that in order for there to be any significant lifting of restrictions, everyone over the age of 50 would need to be vaccinated, but would not give a timescale of when he thought that was likely to happen.

The UK has been fairly successful with its vaccination programme globally, being the first Western nation to approve for use a vaccine and for having inoculated more than 13 per cent of its population. In comparison, the EU, which centralised its vaccine procurement and forbade the EU27 from signing contracts with drugs companies, has struggled to offer injections to just three per cent of its inhabitants.

Figures in the German media have condemned European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen for her handing of the vaccine rollout, with the political editor of Bild claiming the EU “created the biggest confidence-destroying programme in its history”.