Thanks to our impressive COVID vaccine rollout, heroic NHS, and a population who have followed the rules, we are about to be the freest country in Europe.
The virus has not simply gone away. We must still be vigilant, careful and continue to think about the most vulnerable. But because of the collective efforts that we have made as a country over the past two years, we can now deal with it in a very different way, moving from government restrictions to personal responsibility.
So we protect ourselves without losing our liberties, and maintaining our contingency capabilities so we can respond rapidly to any new variant.
We have a lot to be proud of as a nation. The UK was the first country in the world to administer an approved vaccine, the first European nation to protect half our population with one dose, and the first major European nation to boost half our population too.
So from tomorrow, we will end the legal requirement to self-isolate following a positive test; we will end routine contact tracing and the legal requirement for close contacts who are not fully vaccinated to self-isolate.
After April 1st, we will encourage people with Covid-19 symptoms to exercise personal responsibility, just as we encourage people who may have other viruses to be considerate to others.
We will continue to provide free tests to the oldest age groups and those most vulnerable to Covid, but free testing for the general public will end.
We should be proud that the UK established the biggest testing programme per person of any large group in the country. But this came at a vast cost, exceeding the entire budget of the Home Office. It is the right thing to do to scale this back.
Now we must focus our resources on protecting the most vulnerable with targeted vaccines and treatments, and supporting other countries as new variants can emerge anywhere.
We will continue to meet our commitment to donate 100 million vaccine doses by June, as our part of the agreement at the UK's G7 summit to provide a billion doses to vaccinate the world over the next year.
I know some people, particularly those who are vulnerable, may be worried about their own safety following this announcement. But I would like to reassure you that we are in a much better position than before. We have a population that is protected by the vaccine. We have antivirals, treatments, the scientific understanding of this virus, and the capabilities to respond rapidly to any resurgence or new variant.
Whilst we are removing state-mandated restrictions, people must still continue to follow advice to avoid infecting loved ones and protect the most vulnerable (just like we would if we had any other virus). And for your own safety, and the safety of others, you must continue to get the vaccine if and when you are offered it.