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ANDY RAIN
A self-isolating man in April receives food from a local community group in High Wycombe
Refusing to isolate yourself when told is now illegal in England as of Monday, with fines of up to £ 10,000.
Anyone who tests positive for Covid-19, or has been told that they have been in contact with someone who has, now has a legal obligation to quarantine them.
It comes when a government-commissioned study found that only 18% of people who had symptoms were isolated.
Meanwhile, the government has promised an “uninterrupted supply” of PPE for front-line workers during the winter.
Stocks of PPE for four months, personal protective equipment such as masks, visors and gowns, will be available starting in November, the Health Department said.
- What are the self-isolation rules?
- The latest social distancing rules in England
Starting Monday, it will be a punishable offense not to comply with an official self-isolation instruction, with fines starting at £ 1,000 and increasing to £ 10,000 for repeat offenders or serious offenses.
Police officers can verify that people are complying with the rules at virus hotspots and among high-risk groups based on “local intelligence,” the government said.
The law applies to people who have tested positive for coronavirus, or have been told by NHS Test and Trace to isolate themselves because they have been in close contact with someone with the virus.
And if someone tests positive, it is illegal to knowingly give false information about their close contacts to NHS Test and Trace.
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Low-income people who are unable to work and are losing income while isolating themselves will be able to get a payment of £ 500.
Nearly four million people receiving benefits in England will be eligible for the money, and it will be retroactive once the scheme is properly established in their council area, the Department of Health said.
Interior Minister Priti Patel added that the new fines were “a clear sign that we will not allow violators to reverse the progress made so hard by the law-abiding majority.”
And Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the government “will not hesitate” to introduce more measures if the number of cases continues to rise.
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As of the last week of August, more than 19,000 fines had been issued in England and Wales for alleged breaches of coronavirus laws, according to a letter from the attorney general.
The UK government expects the new fines to be repeated in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, which have powers to set their own rules on the coronavirus.
Earlier this month, the Scottish health secretary said the issue would be under discussion.
Wales, meanwhile, is the latest part of the UK to introduce more local blocking rules, with new restrictions at Neath Port Talbot, Torfaen and Vale of Glamorgan starting at 18:00 BST on Monday.
It will mean that nearly two-thirds of the population of Wales will be under lockdown, and people will not be able to enter or leave their county unless for a limited number of reasons and prohibited from meeting other households within.
- The latest rules of confinement in Wales
Men and youth ‘less likely to follow the rules’
The government’s self-isolation rules mean that a person cannot leave their home, even to buy food or other essentials, or to exercise.
It requires anyone with symptoms or a positive test result to be isolated for 10 days, while members of your household or people who have been contacted by Test and Trace must be quarantined for 14 days.
The crackdown on self-isolation comes when an investigation carried out for the Department of Health found that the number of people with symptoms who followed the self-isolation rules was low.
Although people’s intention to self-isolate was high, around 70%, only 11% of people went into quarantine after being asked by NHS Test and Trace.
The most common reasons people gave for not isolating themselves were because they needed to go to the grocery store or pharmacy or because their symptoms improved.
Men and younger people were also less likely to follow the test, track and isolate the guide, the research added.
Hancock has also promised that healthcare and welfare workers will get enough PPE as the number of coronavirus cases in the UK rises again.
He said it had been a “great challenge” to get enough at the beginning of the pandemic, when health and care personnel warned of a widespread shortage.
“That is why we have worked every day since then to ensure we have an uninterrupted supply to meet the challenges in the coming months and protect those who protect us,” he said.
The Health Department said that 70% of the expected demand for PPE will be met by UK manufacturers from December.
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