Scrapping free tests will create 'two-tier system' and open UK up to wave of new variants, scientists say

Scrapping free Covid tests will open the nation to a wave of dangerous new variants, scientists have warned.

Boris Johnson is due to end mandatory isolation when he unveils a long term plan for living with the virus on Monday.

It is thought that the Prime Minister will also announce the date that free lateral flow tests will come to an end.

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But immunologist Professor Danny Altmann, of Imperial College London, said the end of free testing will leave the public “flying blind”, The Mirror reports.

“Data collection is the only trick up our sleeve to know about new variants coming round the corner,” he said.

The Omicron virus has already mutated into a new version - BA.2 - which is now dominant in Northern Ireland and responsible for a fifth of cases in England and Scotland.

Dr Zubaida Haque of Independent Sage said: “This will have a huge impact. The better off will know they have Covid.

“But those on low pay will not be able to protect themselves.”

Hannah Brady of the Covid Bereaved Families for Justice added: “It will create a two tier system.

“People who have to choose between heating and eating will have to decide whether to pay for a Covid test.”

A box of 20 tests on the open market is expected to cost around £55.

GP Dr Helen Salisbury, of Oxford University, also questioned the decision.

“People can’t feel safe if they don’t have access to tests,” she said.

“We’d like to see the science behind this decision.”

Meanwhile, Independent Sage has poured cold water on the prospect of a second booster jab.

Virologist Dr Steve Griffin, of Leeds University, said: “Logistically it’s going to be difficult to do more than one a year.”

Latest research by America’s Centre for Disease Control shows booster protection from