Covid: PM sets out end of legal restrictions in England

All Covid restrictions will end in England on Thursday and free mass lateral flow testing will stop on 1 April, Boris Johnson has said.

The prime minister told the Commons the legal requirement to self-isolate for those who tested positive would be dropped.

From 1 April, he said the provision of free rapid testing would be targeted to certain sections of the population.

The £500 isolation payment for people on low incomes will also end this week.

But Covid provisions for increased statutory sick pay would apply for a further month, Mr Johnson told MPs.

He said the efforts the country had made over the past two years meant it was now ready to move away from government restrictions and to a position of personal responsibility.

Routine contact tracing would end, and fully vaccinated close contacts of positive cases and those aged under 18 would no longer be legally required to test daily for seven days, he added.

Until 1 April, people who tested positive for Covid would be advised to stay at home but beyond this date, the PM said, the government would encourage those with Covid symptoms to exercise personal responsibility.