Continue to distance and wear face masks - WHO’s Covid envoy

The lifting of almost all coronavirus restrictions on 19 July in England, needs to be done with the right messaging, the World Health Organization's special envoy on Covid-19, Dr David Nabarro has said.

“I’ve been hearing from some that the mood in Britain is one of great relief that everything can be sort of stopped in terms of restrictions in a week’s time, everyone can hunker up close together and not worry,” he told BBC World News.

But Dr Nabarro warned that Covid-19 was still mutating and some of the variants would probably be able beat the protection from the vaccines, "sooner or later.”

He recommended that continuing to wear face coverings, maintaining physical distancing and isolating when you are sick were the best ways to proceed.

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned the “pandemic is not over” and that the people should proceed with “caution”, on Monday.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has said that Scotland would move to level zero of Covid restrictions on 19 July, but there would still be a mandatory use of face coverings for “some time”.