A LEADING professor has said the decision to lift Covid restrictions in England was political.
Boris Johnson faced calls on Monday to reveal which advisers – if any – had backed lifting Covid restrictions in England.
Dr Philippa Whitford called on the Prime Minister to name the experts who “advised abandoning isolation” and asked when the advice would be published.
READ MORE: Boris Johnson scraps ALL Covid restrictions in England as self-isolation ended
Johnson replied: “Cases are falling, hospitalisations are falling and the number of excess deaths is actually in negative territory.”
While he said the government heard opinions from a “wide range” of scientific experts, including the chief medical officer, Sage and others, it was ultimately for ministers to make decisions around the law.
Sharing the exchange on social media, Professor Devi Sridhar responded dryly: “ ‘Which public health expert advised abandoning testing and isolation?’
“Response: politicians decided.”
She is not the first public health expert to speak out on England’s “Living With Covid” strategy.
Prof Linda Bauld, the Scottish Government’s interim chief social policy adviser, stressed the continued “need” for free testing.
READ MORE: 'No evidence' to support Boris Johnson's Living with Covid plan, says Robertson
Speaking to BBC Good Morning Scotland the Edinburgh University professor said: “The levels of infection in the community are still high in England, you've got one in 20, in Scotland, one in 25, and we still need the capacity to be able to identify when there is virus in the community.
“A removal of all testing means we'll be sort of driving blind into the next stage of the pandemic and that's something we want to avoid.”
At a press conference on Monday night, England’s chief medical officer Prof Chris Whitty urged people who test positive for Covid to self isolate despite it no longer being legally required from Thursday.
The Prime Minister on Monday also announced free Covid tests would end for most people on April 1.
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