Coronavirus case numbers decline just days after scrapping mask rules.
QUICK FACTS:
- The U.K. has confirmed 62,399 daily Covid-19 cases, latest government figures show, Sky News reports, representing the lowest number of cases reported since Dec 14, when there were 59,610.
- The figures compare with the 72,727 infections that were confirmed yesterday, and 78,317 reported this time last week, Sky News notes.
- The reduction in cases comes just days after U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson lifted face mask rules for the country, the PM telling Commons, “This morning, the Cabinet decided that we can return to Plan A in England.”
- “As a result, mandatory certification will end. Organizations can choose to use in voluntarily, but it will not be compulsory,” Johnson went on to say.
- “We are no longer asking people to work from home,” he added, saying, “The Cabinet concluded that once regulations lapse, the Government will no longer mandate the wearing of face masks anywhere.”
WHAT ELSE JOHNSON SAID WHEN HE LIFTED MASK MANDATES:
“We will trust the judgment of the British people and no longer criminalize anyone who chooses not to wear one,” Johnson said.
BACKGROUND:
- The restrictions were originally placed into effect in December to slow the spread of Omicron, Newsweek reports.
- While the mandates and restrictions have eased, the measure for those infected is still in effect until March 24, according to the BBC.
- After that time, Johnson announced he is looking to end that as well.
- According to the Associated Press, he will “seek to scrap it earlier if the virus data continues to improve.”
