Coronavirus: all the changes Boris Johnson is set to announce at 5pm press conference

10 May 2021, 10:26 | Updated: 10 May 2021, 10:43

By Ewan Quayle

@EQjourno

The Prime Minister is to lead a Downing Street press conference a week before coronavirus restrictions are lifted further in England.

Boris Johnson, bolstered by his victory in the 2021 local elections, is expected to outline the much-anticipated lifting of indoor gatherings from next week.

After declaring "this virus will not beat us" on Sunday, the PM is due to lay out the next steps from 5pm on Monday.

READ MORE: PM invites devolved leaders to summit on Covid recovery and 'Team UK'

READ MORE: 'Extraordinary' NHS praised as one third of UK adults receive second Covid vaccine jab

"The road map remains on track, our successful vaccination programme continues - more than two-thirds of adults in the UK have now had the first vaccine - and we can now look forward to unlocking cautiously but irreversibly," he said.

But what will be allowed from 17 May and does the data support a further easing of restrictions?

What will be allowed after 17 May?

• Indoor entertainment and attractions reopen
• 30-person limit outdoors
• 'Rule of Six' or two households indoors
• Organised indoor adult sport
• Overnight stays between households
• Remaining outdoor entertainment including performances
• Remaining accommodation
• International travel to Green and Amber list countries

The 'Rule of Six' will likely return for indoor gatherings, with six people or two households allowed to meet indoors.

Ministers yesterday hinted that plans could allow "friendly, intimate contact" - including hugs and overnight stays - from next week.

Under the roadmap plans, some of which have been brought forward slightly, the number of people allowed to gather outdoors is likely to increase to 30. Gatherings of over 30 people will remain illegal. Indoors, the Rule of 6 or 2 households will apply.

READ MORE: Which countries are on the green list for quarantine-free travel this summer?

Pub-goers will also be free to meet indoors for a pint without having to buy a substantial meal, but they must order, eat and drink while seated to avoid queues at the bar.

International travel is also set to return following the announcement of a 'traffic light system' by Transport Secretary Grant Shapps last week.

Under current plans, which will be reviewed every three weeks, travel will be allowed to 12 countries including Portugal, Gibraltar and Australia subject to a coronavirus swab test.

Does the data support this?

The PM is likely to use the increasingly positive coronavirus data, which suggest the virus is in full retreat for the moment, to argue for a return to near normality by the summer.

New infections, hospitalisations and deaths are at their lowest level since the end of summer last year, with around 2,000 new cases reported each day and daily deaths in single figures, with two announced on Sunday.

The UK's ambitious vaccination programme, which has seen over 35 million get their first jab and almost 18 million get full protection, is being hailed as the reason due to approximate 95% protection against severe disease and 85% protection against transmission some of the jabs afford.

Top scientists, while advising caution, say the signs are largely positive and that the virus is likely to be kept under control for the foreseeable future due to vaccines.

But with Covid-19 unlikely to disappear and instead join other seasonal illnesses such as the flu, mutations and 'variants of concern' - such as those first discovered in South Africa and India - will always remain a risk.

What next?

• Nightclubs to reopen
• Large live events (i.e football matches, festivals) allow audiences
• No legal limits on all life events (i.e weddings, funerals)

At least five weeks after 17 May and no earlier than 21 June, nightclubs and large events are also set to be allowed once again.

It follows pilots at a nightclub in Liverpool and the FA Cup Final at Wembley, where 8,000 football fans were allowed to watch the game live in the stadium.

The 'work from home' message is also likely to be scrapped from this date.