The British government is doing “everything we can” to ensure the public can get a summer vacation this year but could not provide certainty on whether or not people should book breaks now, health minister Matt Hancock said on Thursday. Ministers have faced criticism, including from members of Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s own party, about giving out mixed messages on whether people should arrange summer holidays in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. On Wednesday, transport minister Grant Shapps said people should not book vacations either domestically or abroad until more was known about the vaccination programme’s success but others, including Johnson given more optimistic messages. “I do understand the yearning for certainty, but certainty is hard in a pandemic. We are doing everything we can to make sure people can have that holiday in the summer,” Hancock, who said he had booked a vacation in southwest England, told Sky News.

Source: Indian Express February 11, 2021 09:33 UTC