Successfully Launching COVID-19 Vaccination Program, UK Prepares To Loosen Restrictions

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson. (Wikimedia Commons/Administration of the President of UK)

JAKARTA - British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will lay out plans to reopen the UK economy and international travel on Monday, April 5 local time.

This plan was adopted by the UK, after successfully launching a COVID-19 vaccination program. PM Johnson plans to gradually ease restrictions over the next few months.

PM Boris Johnson is expected to confirm the re-opening of retail, outdoor activities to salons on April 12. In addition, we are also waiting for an explanation of the vaccine passport and international travel.

Under current plans, international travel will not resume until May 17 at the earliest. The Financial Times said Johnson was not expected to set a specific timeframe.

The gradual loosening of rules will also be helped by the increased availability of testing, with everyone in the UK entitled to have a rapid COVID-19 test twice a week to prevent an outbreak and find people who are asymptomatic.

"As we continue to make good progress in our vaccine program and with our roadmap to carefully reduce restrictions, regular rapid testing is even more important to ensure that efforts are not wasted," Johnson said in a statement.

The UK can pursue recovery after administering the AstraZeneca and Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines to more than half of the adult population. The reopening of schools in March has also not caused a spike in cases, although there has been an increase in more testing.

To note, Britain is currently the fifth highest death toll from COVID-19 in the world after the United States, Brazil, Russia, and India with nearly 127 thousand deaths.