Image source, Ritchie Wildman

While some will welcome the end of restrictions in England, we've also been hearing stories from clinically and extremely vulnerable people who are worried about Covid restrictions coming to an end. Here's what they have to say.

Ritchie Wildman is clinically vulnerable and lives with MS. He says he feels let down by the government over the end of isolation requirements.

"Nobody will be held to account for safeguarding myself or other vulnerable people," he says. "It feels like I've been given a prison sentence."

If there are no free lateral flow tests, Ritchie says he would feel unable to see people, adding: "I don't know at what point I will feel more comfortable being around others."

Jen Davies, from Sleights, North Yorkshire, has been shielding since February 2020, with health issues including a suppressed immune system and heart issues. Her partner Alan Backhouse is her full-time carer - they have chosen not to be vaccinated because of fears of reactions to the vaccine.

She says they have few visitors, but those who do come are asked to wear masks, gloves and aprons and her partner sanitises every item that gets delivered to their home. They plan to continue living this way.

Jen says the restrictions being lifted comes "at a very wrong time" for them.

Kat Stevenson, 50, from London, who has multiple health conditions, wants people to remember how vulnerable and frightened they felt at the start of the pandemic - as that's how she still feels now.

"It doesn’t seem remotely sensible to swing from one extreme to another - where everyone is restricted to there being nothing at all," she says. "It's irresponsible."

She says: "No one who is clinically vulnerable is objecting to opening up everything but all we're asking for is support by wearing a face mask, especially in medical settings. The smallest gesture such as wearing a face mask makes a huge difference - it shows kindness and inclusion."

Conservative MP Mark Harper calls for the Public Health Act to be reformed to make ministers more accountable "now" for decisions made over the pandemic.

The PM says the forthcoming Covid inquiry is likely to look into this.

The Labour leader is critical of the PM's plan in the Commons.

Labour MP Ben Bradshaw asks why the government is keeping the "bureaucratic and irritating passenger locator form" - especially when the rest of Europe can travel freely with a vaccine certificate.

Johnson replies that we have one of the most open travel systems in the world. But he says the form is going to be reviewed by Easter.

The DUP's Sammy Wilson asks what the government will do to restore people's confidence, so they get back to doing "things that make life enjoyable" having lived for almost two years under restrictions.

The PM says people need to, among other things, "set an example" by going to work.

Lib Dem leader Ed Davey asks whether family carers will have to pay for Covid tests out of their own pockets, to ensure they don't pass the virus on to their vulnerable loved ones.

"Is the prime minister really telling people they must choose between money for weekly shop or a test so they don’t accidentally take this contagious virus into their loved ones homes?" he asks, adding that a "tax on caring" would be "unjust and unfair".

In response, Johnson says it is right to protect care homes and those who work there.

He adds that the government will be setting out more detail on who will be entitled to free tests in March.

We hear from former health secretary Matt Hancock, who agrees with his former boss, the prime minister, and says now is the right time to drop Covid measures, adding that this is "the first country in the world to be past the pandemic".

Boris Johnson agrees with him - adding that coronavirus has not gone away and that care is still needed.

Labour's Barbara Keeley questions whether there is any scientific basis for cutting testing arguing that health experts support keeping it.

The PM says it is now better to use much of the "huge funds" being used here on other NHS priorities.

Ione Wells
Westminster Correspondent, BBC News

The cost of the UK's testing programme has been immense - with £2bn spent on it in January alone. As part of Boris Johnson's "living with Covid" plan for England, no more new money is being pumped into the Department for Health and Social Care to fund free testing.

Instead, the department will need to use its existing budget to pay for testing in the coming year. It's unclear just yet whether it will need to reallocate or divert cash from other areas to continue funding free testing in some limited settings.

The fact there is no new money does mean that there will not be further money for Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland though if they did decide to continue more expansive free testing in the devolved nations.

Hilary Benn, Labour MP for Leeds Central, asks about anti-viral drugs - noting they work best when given early and that a person has to test positive for Covid first.

How will that work if there are no free lateral flow tests, he asks?

Johnson responds that people who are symptomatic will still be able to get access to testing.

He clarifies - after a further question - that he means people who are vulnerable will be able to get hold of those tests.

Senior Tory MP Sir Graham Brady claims there's growing international evidence that lockdowns have been ineffective in cutting Covid deaths.

He asks whether there'll be a review in future to look at this and other "crucial lessons".

The PM responds that he disagrees with Sir Graham, and that lockdowns and restrictions have been necessary in the fight to end the pandemic.

Ione Wells
Westminster Correspondent, BBC News

The plan Boris Johnson has announced to end all legal restrictions is for England only - but now there is a question of what the devolved governments will decide to do and whether or not they will follow suit.

Opposition parties in the devolved nations have called on their respective governments to come forward with a similar plan. But ministers in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have criticised the decision to roll back free community testing.

Sources in the devolved governments believe this should have been a decision taken by all four nations together, are concerned about the dismantling of the mass testing infrastructure sites (and funding) and worry without widespread testing they will not know if and how ministers might need to ramp up testing again.

I understand Michael Gove spoke to devolved leaders this morning - before plans were signed off at cabinet - so sources suggest they were not made aware of the UK government's exact plans.

As a result, it's likely devolved ministers will want to digest the prime minister's full statement later today before taking a position on how they will proceed.

Johnson is replying to Blackford now.

He says the co-operation between the UK government and Scottish authorities has been outstanding and will continue to be.

On the issue of free tests, Johnson notes they will continue to the beginning of April.

After that it's more important to focus on surveillance and detecting any new variants, he says, pointing to funding the Scottish government has if it wants to continue funding testing beyond then.

The SNP's leader in Westminster, Ian Blackford says this plan has been "a moment of panic" for the government and lacked "any serious engagement" with the UK's devolved nations.

"These dangerous choices are clearly political" and made by a government "in turmoil", he says.

They also affect the money devolved nations have to provide testing, he continues.

Blackford says the prime minister has "no moral authority to lead" and his plan "flies in the face of advice from scientists and the World Health Organisation".

They're not about protecting the public but about the prime minister "scrambling to save his own skin", he says, in the wake of controversy over lockdown parties in Downing Street.

Boris Johnson sets out the four principles of the plan to live with coronavirus.

On to questions from MPs other than the leader of the opposition and Tory MP Jeremy Hunt, chair of the Commons Health Committee and a former health secretary, says the NHS needs to train enough doctors to cope with future crises.

The PM says there's a "vast plan" to recruit more doctors and nurses

Now the PM is replying to Sir Keir Starmer.

He says Starmer has got it wrong - and that there is plenty of evidence for what the government is doing - it is there to show in the figures.

Johnson says Starmer asks about the clinically extremely vulnerable - and the government is going to make sure they get priority access to therapeutics and vaccines.

On testing, he says there is no need to carry on as we have been.

We are moving forward from a legal compulsion to isolate and instead, the government is trusting the British public and their sense of personal responsibility, he says.

Ione Wells
Westminster Correspondent, BBC News

Two months ago, much of the public were frantically ordering boxes of lateral flow tests to test before going out to events - or visiting family for Christmas.

Ending free asymptomatic testing for the general public on 1 April will mean an end to the "flow-before-you -go" approach to Covid. Instead, in practice, people without symptoms are now unlikely to even realise they have Covid .

The UK government's aim is to make free testing more targeted - to focus resources on those such as social care workers.

But this approach has led some of the UK government's critics, including ministers in the devolved governments, to accuse it of being reckless - asking how we will now know if we need to ramp up testing again in future.

Sir Keir Starmer says he thinks the public will do the "right thing" but removing free tests means the government is "taking away the tools" to do so.

He adds that cutting support payments will hit the lowest paid the hardest.

He asks if there is sufficient funding in place to keep analysing the spread of Covid to the current standards?

Starmer also calls the announcement today "half-baked".

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer says huge efforts have been made in the last two years - the country wouldn't be here today without the heroism of key workers including those in the NHS.

He also salutes those who pioneered vaccines and the sacrifices people made every day.

He says the PM promised a plan for living with Covid - but all we've got today is "chaos and disarray".

He says not enough is being put in place to prepare for new variants that may develop - and says it seems that for the PM, living with Covid "means ignoring it".