Boris Johnson confirms u-turn and says he will self-isolate until July 26

The Prime Minister has insisted that "it is far more important that everybody sticks to the same rules" - despite originally wanting to take part in a daily testing pilot scheme that would have allowed him to avoid self-isolation after being "pinged" by the NHS Covid app.

He urged the nation to self-isolate when instructed to do so by the app and said he will be in self-isolation until Monday July 26.

He added that the nation has to reopen "cautiously" on Monday July 19 and warned about the "extreme contagiousness" of the delta variant.

He said that there "is no doubt at all" that the national vaccination programme has "severely weakened the link" between infection and hospitalisation or serious illness, which he described as an "immense consolation".

#BorisJohnson #Coronavirus #NHS