Isolate even if you get pinged on morning of your wedding, minister urges public
“That is a terribly, terribly difficult scenario,” the Louth and Horncastle MP told Ferrari
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Your support makes all the difference.Safeguarding minister Victoria Atkins has urged people to self-isolate when ‘pinged’ — even if it is their wedding day.
She admitted it would be frustrating, but told LBC it was important to follow the alerts encouraged people to isolate if they received an alert by the NHS covid app.
Asked if people should self-isolate if ‘pinged’ the night before their wedding, Ms Atkins replied, “Oh gosh, the guidance is, please, you must stay at home.”
“That is a terribly, terribly difficult scenario,” the Louth and Horncastle MP told Nick Ferrari.
Atkins comments come amid a rise in the so-called ‘pingdemic’ where people are told to self-isolate through the NHS app. A notification is sent after the app automatically registers that you have been in close contact with someone who has tested positive with coronavirus.
Coronavirus cases have surged in recent weeks.
Hundreds of thousands of people have been forced to isolate this month, despite it not being enforced legally. This has led to significant staff shortages in supermarkets, transport networks, hospitality businesses and NHS trusts.
Asked why football matches, events such as the Euros, international cricket matches, including clubbing, can go ahead, Atkins replied: “In fairness, not if you’ve been pinged. The person going to the football match (if pinged) the night before would also not be permitted to go.”
Atkins said she totally understands the terrible impact this virus has had on everyone .
“I’ve had my own constituents contact me about funerals. The toll of this virus has been absolutely horrendous.”
“If now we are able to isolate in the way that the guidance requires, by mid august, we plan to remove the self- isolation. And that is really critical for people who are double vaccinated.”
Coronavirus restrictions were eased in England on July 19 despite warnings from healthcare authorities about a rapid uptick in infections in recent weeks due to the fast spreading delta variant.
About one in five adults of all ages in the UK had an NHS Covid-19 app but have deleted it from their phone, with a significantly greater proportion of younger people having done so, a poll suggests.
Ministers scrapped earlier plans to tweak the app after repeatedly insisting for weeks that the app needed to be amended to limit the number of people being forced into self isolation
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