The length of time people with coronavirus symptoms in England will have to self-isolate for is to be increased from seven to 10 days, England’s deputy chief medical officer Professor Jonathan Van-Tam has confirmed.
He told reporters the change was being made due to the “low but real possibility of infectiousness” between seven and 10 days after the onset of the illness.
Earlier today Health Secretary Matt Hancock, talking about the longer isolation and quarantine rules, said “the science on this has been developing and we want to take a precautionary approach to make sure that we can keep people in this country as safe as possible.”
ted
He told BBC Breakfast: “We can see, sadly, a second wave of coronavirus that is starting to roll across Europe, many European countries whose number of cases is going up again.
“And we want to do everything we possibly can to protect people here, and protect people from that wave reaching our shores.”
He said decisions would be led by science, and a precautionary approach was needed “because of the concerns that we have of the potential of a second wave that is clearly coming in some countries across Europe.”
He said some countries in Europe had had a very low rate of new cases but these were rising “quite sharply” in some areas.
Scientists at Cambridge University have said it is “very likely” that most regions in England are close to the point at which the virus begins to spread exponentially.
It is not yet clear whether the self-isolation period for people with symptoms, which was introduced in March, will also be increased in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Mr Hancock also warned travellers that new countries could be added to the quarantine list in the coming days after passengers arriving in the UK from Spain were ordered to isolate for two weeks as cases there increased.
He said ministers are looking at ways to reduce the 14-day period, possibly by the use of multiple tests, amid pressure from the tourism industry.
But he said ministers are constantly considering whether to add countries to the quarantine list and when pressed if new nations could be added in the next few days, he replied: “Yes.”
