Boris Johnson confirms the first things that will reopen after third lockdown ends

The Prime Minister said there was “no choice” but to issue the stay-at-home order and close schools given the spread of coronavirus, particularly the more infectious new variant.

Addressing MPs after the recall of the Commons from its Christmas break, Mr Johnson said there was now a race between the spread of the virus and the delivery of vaccines to the most vulnerable.

England’s lockdown has already come into force and MPs will vote later to retrospectively approve it.

Mr Johnson said: “Our emergence from the lockdown cocoon will not be a big bang but a gradual unwrapping.

“That is why the legislation this House will vote on later today runs until March 31 – not because we expect the full national lockdown to continue until then but to allow a steady, controlled and evidence-led move down through the tiers on a regional basis.

Mr Johnson added: “We recognise it will not be possible or fair for all exams to go ahead this summer as normal and the Education Secretary will be making a statement shortly.

“I know many people will ask whether the decision on schools could have been reached sooner and the answer is that we’ve been doing everything in our power to keep them open because children’s education is too vital and their futures too precious to be disrupted and til every other avenue, every other option has been closed off and every other course of action has been taken.

“That’s why schools were the very last thing to close as I’ve long promised that they would be and when we begin to move out of lockdown I promise that they will be the very first things to reopen.

“That moment may come after the February half-term although we should remain extremely cautious about the timetable ahead and as was the case last spring our emergence from the lockdown cocoon will not be a big bang but a gradual unwrapping.”

The Prime Minister told MPs there would be “continuous review” of the measures with a statutory requirement to look at them every fortnight and a legal obligation to remove them if they are no longer necessary.

“We are in a tough final stretch, made only tougher by the new variant,” Mr Johnson said.

“After the marathon of last year we are indeed now in a sprint, a race to vaccinate the vulnerable faster than the virus can reach them.

“Every needle in every arm makes a difference.”

Despite calls from Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle to stay away from the Chamber and participate remotely, the Conservative benches were well attended.

Mr Johnson believes the rollout of vaccines will provide a route out of lockdown, but his approach was questioned by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

The Government is giving the vaccine to as many priority patients as possible with a second shot after 12 weeks, rather than holding back supplies to offer the booster dose three weeks after the first jab.

The WHO said it would not recommend that approach, instead suggesting the interval should be between three and four weeks.