THE new Health Secretary’s announcement of the end of self-isolation for the double jabbed and under 18s attracted both praise and condemnation from columnists and contributors in the newspapers.

The Daily Mail

Stephen Glover said Sajid Javid had shown himself more broad-minded, and well aware of the ‘terrible consequences’ not just on the economy but also on people’s health of perpetuating lockdown a day more than is necessary.

“ His announcement that self-isolation rules are going to be dropped for the double-jabbed and under-18s was of course extremely welcome,” he said. “But why on earth has this long-overdue change been deferred until August 16, which is four weeks after so-called Freedom Day on July 19?”

He said it was hard to see the logic behind the statement.

“The consequence of clinging on to the existing self-isolation restrictions until August 16 will not merely be to imprison millions in needless and deeply frustrating self-isolation. My only explanation is that as the new boy at the Health Department Mr Javid has somehow been hoodwinked by officials for whom imposing silly and irrational rules has become a way of life.”

The Daily Express

Ann Widdecombe congratulated Mr Javid on ‘stating what has always appeared bloomin’ obvious to me but not, apparently, to his predecessor: opening up the economy is as necessary for health as it is for the Exchequer.’

“ Nothing has irritated me more in this pandemic than people looking virtuous and declaring “lives are more important than money”, as if the choice were binary,” she said. “Lockdowns are bad for a lot of people’s health. I lost a lifelong friend to Covid but also the son of a relative to suicide in the third lockdown. [Self isolation] is not just absurd and atrocious for the economy but also the nearest we have yet come to a police state.”

The Guardian

Deepti Gurdasani, clinical epidemiologist and senior lecturer in machine learning at Queen Mary University of London, said delaying the end of lockdown until many more people are vaccinated would ensure that the public were far less exposed than now.

“The government has created a false open up v lockdown dichotomy, which absolves it of blame for not resourcing simple but effective measures such as ventilation in schools and workplaces; fixing the test and trace system; and supporting people who are isolating,” she said. “Allowing transmission to continue among young people while vaccinating older populations provides the best conditions for virus adaptation towards vaccine escape. We are undertaking a mass experiment that could undo the gains made through vaccines not just in the UK, but globally.”