Africa & World

The news comes as Boris Johnson continues to fight for his political life as fury rages over lockdown parties in Downing Street and a member of his own cabinet demands an end to the drinking culture in his Government.

The end of restrictions means mandatory mask wearing at schools, on public transport and at indoor events, controversial covid passports, and demands that people work from home will finish on January 26.

All that will remain will be a requirement to isolate for five days with a positive covid test and the need to take lateral flow tests for international travel.

Health Secretary Sajid Javid was last night said to be “sure” that the restrictions will not be needed after the January deadline.

The Sunday Express learnt that the Prime Minister had already been handed an ultimatum before Christmas by senior Conservative backbenchers that he would face a leadership vote of confidence if he tried to bring in more restrictions.

The threat came after 101 Conservative MPs opposed the current restrictions in a Commons rebellion on December 14.

Conservative MPs have made it clear to Mr. Johnson that restrictions needed to end as soon as possible.

In recent days amid the revelations about parties, some have stressed that Mr Johnson’s resistance to scientists pushing for greater restrictions and “getting the policy right” was what prevented them from submitting a letter to 1922 Committee chairman Sir Graham Brady calling for a vote of confidence in his leadership.

But even close allies of the Prime Minister last night warned Mr Johnson that there needed to be a change of culture.

Writing for the Sunday Express, Leader of the House Jacob Rees-Mogg urged people to stand by the Prime Minister for delivering on Brexit and getting the country through the pandemic.

But he added: “It is clear that there is a drinking culture in Downing Street that would be questionable in ordinary time let alone during a period of restriction.”

Meanwhile, former Conservative minister Tobias Ellwood said the Prime Minister must “lead or step aside”, saying: “We need leadership.”

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said: “We’ve got a Prime Minister who is absent – he is literally in hiding at the moment and unable to lead, so that’s why I’ve concluded that he has got to go.

“And of course there is a party vantage in him going, but actually it is now in the national interest that he goes, so it is very important now that the Tory party does what it needs to do and gets rid of him.”

Health Secretary Sajid Javid is expected to formally announce in the coming days that he will not renew the restrictions when their sunset clause ends on January 26.

A source said he “feels confident about the decision” because of the falling number of cases and evidence that Omicron is not as dangerous as other variants.

The source added: “Sajid [Javid] is sure now that the restrictions will not go beyond the sunset clause date.”

The Health Secretary had already reduced isolation times for positive tests down to five days from 10.

It is understood that Downing Street had wanted to make an official announcement this weekend but high figures in the North West which is behind London in seeing cases fall meant that they felt it was too early.

Professor Robert Dingwall, a former pandemic government advisor and expert in social science at Nottingham Trent University, said of the propsed lifting of the rules: “This would be very welcome news.

“However, the experience of ‘Freedom Day’ last summer means we should wait to see the small print. Does this mean an end to lateral flow tests for asymptomatic people or for access to community events?

“Will the Department for Education remove all interventions in schools? Will there be a positive campaign to reverse two years of stimulating fear and anxiety?”

Leading scientists said they were more “optimistic” about the trajectory of coronavirus cases as a Government health advisor said cases appeared to be “plateauing” in the south of England.

Dr Susan Hopkins, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) chief medical adviser, said London, the South East and East of England were seeing the number of infections flatten, cases rising much slower in the north and there was a slowdown in hospital admissions.

She told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme cases were still relatively high, with one in 15 people in England infected and one in 20 elsewhere in the UK.

She said: “We see that infections are plateauing in the community, which is good, in London and the south east and the east of England.

“There are still risings, but much slower in the northern parts of the country.”

She added hospitals had been able to discharge patients “faster” due to Omicron being milder than previous coronavirus variants but that, with around 15,500 people in hospital last week, the NHS remains under “a lot of pressure”, with some trusts “unable to do much of their elective care”, a situation exacerbated by staff absences.

Her comments came as other experts said they were hopeful about the coronavirus situation, while the Welsh Government began to ease restrictions.

There were 81,713 cases and 287 deaths recorded on Saturday, compared to 146,390 cases and 313 deaths last week.

Consultant virologist and Cambridge University lecturer Dr Chris Smith said current coronavirus data gives him “great cause for optimism”.

He explained there could still be an uptick Omicron or “it may be that we are following the trajectory of South Africa, which we seem to be so far, which is they saw a much fewer translation of hospital cases into intensive care beds cases.

“So let’s hope that carries on.

“This gives me great cause for optimism because I think we are getting to a point now where thanks to vaccination, where 96 percent of the country we’re told now have antibodies against the coronavirus, thanks to vaccinations thanks to infection rate reinforcing our immunity we are getting to a point where the population have sufficient immunity that we can fend off the infection when we get it much better than we could previously.

“So we don’t see that strong connection of cases turning into consequences.”

Chief social policy adviser to the Scottish government Professor Linda Bauld added Omicron cases appear to be “stabilising”.