‘Living with Covid’ strategy could do more harm than good, say businesses and unions
Business leaders and unions have warned the government that scrapping free Covid tests in England and watering down sick pay will discourage workers from self-isolating and could damage the economy.
Although welcoming Boris Johnson’s ambition to ease restrictions almost two years into the pandemic, company bosses said the prime minister’s newly unveiled “living with Covid” strategy came with major risks and could do more harm than good.
Claire Walker, co-executive director of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), said the changes inched companies closer to pre-pandemic conditions. “However, for many firms, this move will not be without its challenges and government must not pass public health decisions on to the business community, who are not public health experts.”
The prime minister announced on Monday that people testing positive for Covid-19 will no longer legally have to isolate from this Thursday, while free testing would be removed from 1 April. Self-isolation support payments are to be jettisoned, while sick pay rules will revert to less generous pre-Covid arrangements which will mean workers are paid from day four of any absence through illness rather than day one.
Johnson told the Commons: “Restrictions place a heavy toll on our economy, our society, our mental wellbeing and on the life chances of our children. And we do not need to pay that cost any longer.”
However, business groups said the economic benefit of looser restrictions would be undermined by the end of free Covid tests and support for those who self-isolate.
Matthew Fell, chief policy director at the Confederation of British Industry, said: “While free testing cannot continue forever, there is a balance to be struck between confidence-building and
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