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England is about to do what no country has done before during the coronavirus pandemic: open up in the face of rapidly rising infections, driven by the more transmissible Delta variant. The world is watching to see what happens.

Nearly all remaining Covid restrictions will end on 19th July. It will mean an end to legal requirements on social distancing, no limits on how many people can meet and face coverings will no longer be required by law.

England has high levels of immunity with significant numbers of the population vaccinated. The government’s plan is that this new so-called ‘natural’ wave of infections will be allowed to play itself out without lockdown restrictions. But many experts are warning that it is a gamble. Host Nuala McGovern hears from two doctors working for the National Health Service who share those concerns. One calls it ‘reckless’.

People who were seriously ill from Covid and continue to suffer the effects more than a year later explain why they are worried about the unlocking.

And, with the government saying that now is the time to repair the economic damage, two business owners share their challenges to regain customer confidence. One also explains how cake helped cure a few cases of vaccine hesitancy.

Picture: Shai Greenberg, CEO of Gielly Green, which runs two hair salons in London (Credit: Simon Brown)