Sunday Papers: Euro 2020 -England roar in Rome – End of Covid restrictions
The Sunday papers are heavily dominated by England’s 4-0 win against Ukraine in Euro 2020, earning England a place in the final four.
Several of Sunday’s front pages look ahead to the next – and final – stage of lockdown measures easing in England.
The Sunday Telegraph says Boris Johnson has approved plans to end the mandatory wearing of masks from 19 July. Ministers are preparing to replace legal restrictions with “common sense”, the paper adds, with the one-metre-plus rule also expected to be ditched. The PM is preparing to say this week that the link between coronavirus infections and hospital admissions has been broken, the paper says.
The Sunday Times reports scanning a QR code when entering a bar, restaurant, gym, hairdresser or other venues will be scrapped from 19 July.
The plan to drop regulations that require collecting data for contact tracing will be axed. It will reduce the number of people forced to self-isolate for 10 days after being informed by the NHS Test and Trace app that they have come into contact with a positive case.
Parties and mass events, such as music festivals, will also be allowed, the paper adds.
The Sunday Express hails “the return of common sense” as it also reports that mask laws will be ditched on 19 July. The paper says it understands that Boris Johnson will say people must “learn to live with Covid” as they do with other diseases, such as the flu.
Health Secretary Sajid Javid has written in the Mail on Sunday, saying that opening up will make the country healthier. “The economic arguments for opening up are well known, but for me, the health arguments are equally compelling,” Sajid Javid writes. The paper says Javid’s approach is a “sharp change in tone” to that of Matt Hancock.
“Lions roar in Rome,” the Sunday Mirror says, accompanied by a photo of players rejoicing. “Semi gods,” the paper calls them, as England reach the Euro semi-finals for the first time in 25 years.
Euro 2020 ‘Semi Gods’
The Sunday Telegraph says “it really is the time to dream”, while the Independent website describes the England team as simply “formidable”.
Several papers pay tribute to England fans who travelled to Rome from around the world to support their team.
The Observer calls them England’s “ardent army of expat fans”, who slept in cars and even planned marriage proposals around the event.
Some England supporters tell the Sunday People that fans have bonded more than usual.
End of Covid restrictions
“Bullish PM to axe mask laws” runs a headline in the Telegraph.
The paper claims Boris Johnson has signed off on plans to end the compulsory wearing of face coverings from 19 July.
It also says he is expected to lay out a blueprint for how England will live with the virus, as ministers prepare to replace legal restrictions with a call for “common sense”.
The Sunday Telegraph carries a warning by a member of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, Prof Adam Finn, that school bubbles and the requirement to self-isolate are “paralysing” society.
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