The scare over the Indian variant of coronavirus this week is a taste of what to expect over the next few weeks, months or even years. Like all RNA viruses, Covid-19 mutates and has done so thousands of times already. New strains supplant old ones and, for a while, questions will be raised when one mutation comes to dominate. Is it more lethal? Is there a chance it could evade vaccines? Every time so far, there has been no significant reason to doubt the efficacy of the vaccines. So the government’s timetable for lifting Covid restrictions holds firm.
How far should Britain go to try to fend off new variants? Some in government wish to use the country’s vaccination success to follow Australia’s example and allow loose restrictions internally but impose very tight controls on borders. This idea — for Britain to become a hermit kingdom — is gaining some traction inside government.
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