UK government set to end Covid restrictions

The UK is preparing to end most Covid restrictions, according to Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

"We think you can shift the balance away from state mandation," Johnson told the BBC, adding that future outbreaks of the pandemic can be handled through a "vaccine-led approach," while the UK moves away from "banning certain courses of action."

Johnson said he hopes there would be no restrictions imposed in the future, but noted,"You've got to be humble in the face of nature."

The U.K.'s COVID-19 laws were scheduled to end March 24, though Johnson hinted that they might be ended sooner.

However, Chaand Nagpaul, chair of the British Medical Association, told the BBC that he opposes lifting restrictions, saying infection rates needed to fall further.

"You have at the moment more people dying, more people in the hospital, than you had before Plan B [restrictions] was introduced," Nagpaul said. "It does appear as if the government is trying to pretend that Covid doesn't exist in the day-to-day lives of so many people."

It is expected that Johnson will announce the end of restrictions this week while addressing Parliament.

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