Executive meets today under fresh pressure to ease virus restrictions

The governments in England, Scotland and Wales have all announced plans to dispense with most restrictions as the wave of coronavirus infections begins to ebb.

Business groups in Northern Ireland have already urged the Stormont government to follow suit.

Last week, First Minister Paul Givan gave an indication restrictions could be eased here but it remains unclear which measures could be removed.

The DUP MLA, in an interview with the News Letter, revealed that his party would push for the removal of covid certification measures, dubbed vaccine passports, for hospitality venues but it is not clear if other parties will back those plans.

Other restrictions that could be removed include the requirement for table service in pubs and restaurants, the forced closure of nightclubs, and a ban on dancing.

Table numbers also remain limited in hospitality venues to just six people.

Social distancing of two metres is required in businesses, while face masks remain mandatory in indoor settings.

The Executive meets today just a day after the Prime Minister signalled his intention to start treating Covid-19 more like flu, as he announced England is dropping its ‘plan B’ measures.

Boris Johnson said: “There will soon come a time when we can remove the legal requirement to self-isolate altogether, just as we don’t place legal obligations on people to isolate if they have flu.

“As Covid becomes endemic, we will need to replace legal requirements with advice and guidance, urging people with the virus to be careful and considerate of others.”

Today’s meeting also comes after covid infection levels fell in most parts of the UK for the first time since early December, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

But the ONS say the data trend for Northern Ireland remains “uncertain”. The figures show that one in 20 people in private households in England is estimated to have had coronavirus in the week to January 15. That’s around three million people, down from 3.7 million in the week to January 6. In Scotland, around one in 20, or 236,000 people, is estimated to have had Covid-19 last week, down from 297,400. For Northern Ireland, the latest estimate is also one in 20, but the number of people testing positive is up slightly from 99,200 to 104,300.

Sarah Crofts, head of analytical outputs for the ONS Covid-19 Infection Survey, said the overall drop in infections is “welcome”.