It is “too late” to make a “material difference” to a potential wave of omicron cases in Britain, a government adviser has said, stressing the current travel bans and pre-departure tests will do little to help.
“If omicron is here in the UK, and it certainly is, if there’s community transmission in the UK, and it certainly looks that way, then it’s that community transmission that will drive a next wave,” said Professor Mark Woolhouse, an epidemiologist at the University of Edinburgh.
Asked about new travel rules announced by health secretary Sajid Javid last night, including forcing all travellers attempting to enter the UK to take a pre-departure Covid test, Prof Woolhouse said that the measures were akin to “shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted”.
It came as a further 86 omicron cases were reported across the UK – bringing the total to 246 and representing a rise of more than 50 per cent in just one day.
Meanwhile, Dominic Raab urged the British public to exercise a “common-sense approach” to Christmas. Describing allegations of parties within No 10 last year as “unsubstantiated rumours”, the justice secretary accepted that, if true, they would represent a clear breach of the rules at the time.
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