Boris Johnson has warned his cabinet that “a huge spike of Omicron is coming” as the government braces itself for a significant backbench rebellion over Covid restrictions in England. The cabinet met virtually on Tuesday before four Commons votes on “plan B” measures, including wider mandatory mask wearing and a requirement to show a Covid certificate or negative test result at large venues. MPs will also vote on whether healthcare workers should have to prove they have been vaccinated in order to remain in their posts. All four measures are expected to pass, but the government is likely to have to rely heavily on Labour support. According to an official readout of the cabinet meeting, the chief medical officer for England, Chris Whitty, warned ministers to expect a “significant increase” in hospitalisations, with cases doubling every two to three days. Whitty said it was too early to say whether cases in South Africa may have plateaued or peaked, as some reports have suggested, and there was not yet reliable evidence about the severity of the variant.
Johnson told his ministers there would be a “huge spike” in cases, with the UK Health Security Agency suggesting there may have been as many as 200,000 Omicron cases on Monday alone. The government is working with Royal Mail to free up more delivery slots to keep up with public demand for lateral flow tests. While the plan B measures have infuriated some Tory backbenchers, with as many as 70 expected to abstain or vote against the government, some experts believe tougher curbs, such as hospitality closures, may yet be necessary. Asked whether ministers could take more stringent measures, the prime minister’s official spokesperson said: “We need to learn more about this variant, on things like severity, before we decide what, if any, action is required in the future.” The prime minister and the health secretary have been ringing round potential Tory rebels in an attempt to minimise the scale of the revolt in Tuesday’s votes.
Conservative backbenchers have been particularly exercised about the new requirement to show a “vaccine passport” to enter large venues such as nightclubs. The government has changed the proposal to include the ability to show a negative lateral flow test, in an attempt to placate potential rebels. One parliamentary private secretary who had been deemed at risk of resigning rather than support the measures said on Tuesday he had been won over. Danny Kruger said he had been reassured by Johnson and Javid that the measures would mean that “there will never be compulsory vaccination for any citizen, or vaccination as a condition of employment for anyone except health and care workers, and that there will never be vaccine passports, as opposed to the ‘Covid passports’ that include a lateral flow test”.