The government has rejected calls from Conservative MPs to end all coronavirus restrictions by May. 

Following news that England met its target of offering a Covid-19 vaccination to all four top priority groups, backbencher MPs have put pressure on the government for a swift timetable for getting the country out of the current lockdown.

Government ministers have rejected these calls, warning that reopening too quickly would risk undoing the progress made so far in tackling the pandemic.

"Some way to go"

Matt Hancock has said there is still "some way to go" before lockdown is eased.

The Health Secretary stressed on Monday that the Government is awaiting key data on how successfully vaccines reduce transmission after more than 15 million people across the UK received their first dose of a vaccine.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson hailed the achievement – just over two months after the vaccination programme delivered its first jab – as a “significant milestone” in the fight against the disease.

Ministers have said they are “on track” to meet the target of getting an offer of a first dose to everyone in the UK in the top four priority groups – including all over-70s – by Monday’s deadline.

The successful rollout of the vaccines will increase pressure from the Conservative backbenches for the Prime Minister to set out a swift easing of the lockdown when he sets out his “road map” on February 22.

Mr Hancock told BBC Breakfast: “We are taking those decisions this week, so we will be looking at the data, looking at the success of the vaccine rollout and how far that has reached and its impact in terms of protecting people, looking at the number of cases and critically, looking at the number of people who are in hospital and the number of deaths – those two factors are vital.

“Right now, as of today, at the latest count there are still over 23,000 people in hospital with Covid – that’s more than in the April peak – so we’ve still got some way to go, but we are looking to set out that road map on Monday.”

Mr Johnson is seeking to take a more cautious approach to easing the restrictions to ensure that England’s third national lockdown is its last, with the re-opening of schools on March 8 the first priority.

The Health Secretary said “we very much hope” that this will be the last lockdown, adding: “Having a sustainable exit – so, lifting the measures in such a way that can be sustainable and we don’t have to have another lockdown – that is obviously an important part of our considerations.”

15 million Covid jabs

In a video posted on social media on 14 February, Prime Minister Boris Johnson heralded the success of the vaccination programme thus far, with a milestone of 15 million jabs being delivered.

Prior to this announcement, however, members of the Covid Recovery Group (CRG) had released a letter to the PM which suggested that once the next vaccination target - first injections offered to top nine priority groups - was met, there would be "no justification" for lockdown restrictions to remain.

The CRG is a group of around 60 Conservative backbenchers who are lockdown-wary and want restrictions lifted as soon as possible.

Foreign Secretary dismissed this claim, telling Sky News: "We’re not making what feels to me a slightly arbitrary commitment without reviewing the impact the measures have had on the transmission, and the hospital admissions.”

Chair of the CRG, Mark Harper, hit back at this comment, saying that 99 per cent of people at risk from death from coronavirus and 80 per cent liable of being hospitalised because of it would receive their jab as part of the top nine priority groups.

He told the BBC: “It’s not arbitrary at all...It’s completely tied to the rollout of the vaccination programme, and the fact you’re then protecting the most vulnerable people from death and serious disease from Covid.

“We don’t think there’s a strong case at all for any legal restrictions remaining in place.”

Currently, the only date marked out for a shift in restrictions is 8 March, when schools may reopen.

The Prime Minister is set to reveal more details about the path out of lockdown in th week commencing 22 February after he has reviewed data on coronavirus in the UK.