(Bloomberg) -- Boris Johnson will wait until after Christmas to announce any new curbs to tackle the omicron Covid-19 strain, which has already pushed daily cases to a record daily level above 100,000.
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Any announcement will not come until the week after Christmas, people familiar with the matter said Thursday, when the government will give a Covid-19 update regardless of whether Johnson decides to introduce new restrictions.
It means Johnson is diverging from the U.K.'s other devolved administrations over how to manage the pandemic. The prime minister, who oversees health policy only for England, has already promised he won't tighten rules on hospitality and household mixing before Christmas but has left open the possibility of doing so after Dec. 25.
Governments across Europe, including in the U.K., have already been forced to take steps to control the latest wave of coronavirus infections. The crisis has escalated with the emergence of the fast-spreading omicron variant.
But Johnson faces a dilemma over whether to take further action after more than 100 of his ruling Conservative Party's members of Parliament rebelled over the light-touch measures he has already introduced.
They are likely to seize on two studies published Wednesday showing people contracting the new variant are less likely to need hospital treatment as proof more curbs are not needed.
On the flipside, his scientific advisers have warned that earlier action would help squash the growing wave and reduce pressure on the National Health Service. Chris Hopson, chief executive of NHS Providers, told BBC radio on Thursday that hospitals are under "incredible pressure" and that omicron poses a threat even if it is less severe due to the sheer volume of infections.
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"These are unprecedented levels of infection," Paul Elliott, chair in epidemiology and public health medicine at Imperial College London, told Sky News on Thursday. "Even though a smaller proportion might get severe disease or go into hospital, that could still result in many cases and, of course, that could give pressure on the health service."
Office for National Statistics figures Thursday showed an estimated 1 in 45 people in England, or over 1.2 million in total, had Covid-19 in the week through Dec. 16. That's the highest on record. In London, the ratio was 1 in 30.
Meanwhile the U.K.'s devolved administrations have decided the latest coronavirus wave is dangerous enough to change the rules.
Wales on Wednesday announced new curbs starting Dec. 26, including limiting gatherings to six people in hospitality and cinemas, mandating table service only in pubs and restaurants, and bringing in capacity limits on large events.
Scotland from Dec. 26 is limiting attendances at large events, and from Dec. 27 it's bringing in 1 meter of social distancing between adults in indoor hospitality and leisure settings from Dec. 27, and introducing mandatory table service in settings where alcohol is served.
And Northern Ireland is banning indoor standing events from Dec. 26, and limiting gatherings in private homes and the size of groups in hospitality settings from Dec. 27.
(Updates with latest ONS figures in ninth paragraph)
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