Last night, the Prime Minister announced that England should finally move to Step 4 in the government’s roadmap, the lifting of all COVID-19 restrictions, on 19 July. A final decision will be taken next week (12 July) after a review of the latest data. The plan apparently is to “move away from legal restrictions and allow people to make their own informed decisions about how to manage the virus.” So, more guidance, less law. Needless to say, the Prime Minister’s statement has already received a mixed reaction, with some commentators saying “about time” and others concerned that things are changing too quickly in light of rapidly increasing delta variant COVID-19 cases.
To coincide with the Prime Minister’s announcement, the government has published its “COVID-19 Response: Summer 2021”, outlining this next phase in the government’s efforts to manage the risks posed by COVID-19.
Our publication goes over the key changes from 19 July that employers need to be aware of.
