The British government announced Wednesday the introduction of additional restrictive measures related to the spread of the Omicron strain of coronavirus in the country. Prime Minister Boris Johnson held a briefing with advisors a few hours after the riot in Parliament and announced new restrictions.
“It is becoming increasingly clear that the Omicron variant is spreading much faster than the previous Delta variant,” the Prime Minister said. “We cannot yet say that Omicron is less dangerous… It may lead to a significant increase in hospitalizations and, unfortunately, deaths.”
Formally, no new level of quarantine is being introduced in any region of the UK – the infection rate is not that high. However, due to the spread of the “Omicron” variant, the authorities need more time to carry out their large-scale vaccination campaign and are therefore implementing new measures as part of “Plan B”.
As before, Johnson said the administration will base decisions on additional restrictive measures on four factors. According to the government’s medical advisor, Professor Chris Whitty, the number of hospitalizations had been declining until recently, but has now stabilized.
The spread of “Omicron” is not currently having a significant impact – the influx of those infected with the new strain into hospitals is expected in 2-3 weeks, according to the professor’s estimates. Boris Johnson added that the restrictions will be lifted once it becomes clear that the vaccination campaign is helping to overcome the new strain.
Meanwhile, Pfizer has announced that its booster vaccine promises to be effective against “Omicron”. Three doses from Pfizer, the company claims, citing the results of a small study, provide the same amount of antibodies against “Omicron” as two doses against other variants of the coronavirus.
The WHO has also previously stated that currently available vaccines should prevent severe forms of COVID-19 in patients infected with “Omicron”.