The PM will host No10’s daily 5pm press conference for the first time in a month, since he was struck down by the virus himself, but he will be cautious about changing any measures.
Only small tweaks to the lockdown rules are on the cards, if anything.
The measures are set to be reviewed by May 7, and the Government insists nothing will change before then.
The coronavirus laws have to be looked at every three weeks, which would take us to the last few days of May before anything major is changed.
The PM – fresh from his return to work this week and his partner giving birth yesterday to a baby boy – will use the presser to warn that while infection rates are falling well, the government’s top scientists have warned him that easing up on the restrictions now is still very high risk.
A senior No10 source said: “He’ll talk about the progress we’ve made so far in slowing the spread of the virus, and how we won’t do anything that might risk a return to exponential growth”.
Allies say Boris is desperate to dampen down expectations among some Tory MPs and party donors for major changes, instead opting for a “caution first” approach – especially while the lockdown is still widely supported by the public.
While more Brits are urged to return to work if it is safe, and households could be given the opportunity to socialise with one other household group, it is now expected that much of the nation’s strict measures will remain in place throughout May.
Smaller shops where it’s possible to social distance could also be opened.
Schools are not set to open until June at the very earliest, as it stands, but ministers want to try and get some kids back before the summer break, HOAR revealed today.
And garden centres are not set to reopen until after the Bank Holiday weekend, ministers suggested yesterday.
