(3 Jan 2022) U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday said the spread of the omicron coronavirus variant was going to cause "considerable" pressure on the NHS in coming weeks.
Speaking to journalists whilst on a visit to a vaccination centre in Buckinghamshire Johnson said he appreciated "the pressures that our hospitals are under", but insisted that the public could help by "trying to contain the pandemic" by following the government's "Plan B", and getting a booster coronavirus vaccination.
"Plan B" was brought in late last year after coronavirus infections began to rise, bringing with it mandatory face coverings in most public indoor venues, the use of COVID passes in certain settings, and asking people to work from home if they can.
Despite rising omicron cases across the U.K., Johnson on Monday balked at the idea of bringing in more restrictions, saying he believed "the mixture of of things that we're doing at the moment is, I think, the right one."
He did however comment on news that U.K. schoolchildren would be required to wear masks in schools when the new term begins later this week, but said "We won't keep them on a day more than is necessary."
The highly transmissible omicron variant has caused Britain’s daily new caseload to soar over Christmas and the New Year, with 137,583 infections and 73 deaths reported for England and Wales only on Sunday, with numbers for Scotland and Northern Ireland to be announced after the holiday weekend.
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