Boris Johnson warns of Omicron tidal wave

Boris Johnson has warned of a looming “tidal wave” of Omicron, and has ordered booster jabs to be brought forward by a month.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson addresses the nation on Sunday about the emerging Omicron crisis. Picture: Getty Images

Boris Johnson has warned of a looming “tidal wave” of Omicron, and has ordered booster jabs to be brought forward by a month.

“No one should be in any doubt: there is a tidal wave of Omicron coming,” the British Prime Minister said in a televised ­address, after the country’s medical advisers raised the Covid alert level due to a “rapid increase” in ­infection from the variant.

Mr Johnson, under pressure because of claims he and staff flouted Covid restrictions last Christmas, called the spread of the mutation “an emergency”, as Omicron was doubling every two to three days.

“We know from bitter experience how these exponential curves develop,” he said.

The increase in the five-stage Covid alert level from three to four comes after another 1239 confirmed cases of the variant were ­recorded on Sunday, bringing the total number of UK cases of ­Omicron to 3137 – a 65 per cent rise from Saturday’s total of 1898.

Britain began easing coronavirus restrictions in June and the alert level was at stage three, which means the epidemic is in general circulation. Level four means “transmission is high and pressure on healthcare services is widespread and substantial or rising”.

The four chief medical officers for England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland said the move was prompted by advice from the public health body the UK Health Security Agency.

“Transmission of COVID-19 is already high in the community, mainly still driven by Delta, but the emergence of Omicron adds ­additional and rapidly increasing risk to the public and healthcare services,” the officers said.

“Early evidence shows that Omicron is spreading much faster than Delta and that vaccine protection against symptomatic disease from Omicron is reduced … hospitalisations from Omicron are already occurring and these are likely to increase rapidly.”

The World Health Organisation stressed that a lack of data meant it could not say if Omicron’s high rate of transmission was ­because it was less prone to immune responses, higher transmissibility or a combination of both. The variant had spread to 63 countries as of last Thursday.

Early evidence suggested ­Omicron caused “a reduction in vaccine efficacy against infection and transmission”, the WHO said in a technical brief on Sunday. “Given the current available data, it is likely that Omicron will outpace the Delta variant where community transmission occurs,” it said.

Omicron infections had so far caused “mild” illness or asymptomatic cases.

Britain medical officers said boosters were vital, given that vaccine protection was reduced with Omicron, and both third jabs used increased ­immune response and showed “good effectiveness”.

The move is designed to reduce pressure on the state-run National Health Service, which is dealing with seasonal respiratory infections such as flu.

The government had set itself a target of giving everyone aged 18 and over in England a booster jab by the end of January. But Mr Johnson said that date would be brought forward by a month because not having high levels of boosters could overwhelm the NHS “and lead, sadly, to very many deaths”.

Forty-two military planning teams would be deployed across the country, with additional vaccination sites and mobile units to be opened and operating seven days a week.

In England, face masks were made compulsory in many indoor public places last Friday and, from Monday, people were advised to work from home if possible.

From Tuesday, fully vaccinated contacts of people who test positive for Covid-19 will be required to take daily lateral flow tests for seven days. But those who have not had one or two shots of a Covid vaccine will have to self-isolate for 10 days.

Vaccine passports will be introduced in certain settings from Wednesday. MPs vote to make the proposals law on Tuesday, with Mr Johnson facing a potentially sizeable rebellion from his own Conservative colleagues.

Britain, one of the worst-hit countries by Covid-19 with more than 146,000 deaths, began its mass vaccination campaign a year ago. Infection rates remain stubbornly high at about 50,000 positive tests a day.

AFP