This means the current 1 April 2022 deadline for health and social care staff to be fully vaccinated will now fall away.
In its response to its short consultation on the proposal, the Government confirmed 90% of the respondents supported revoking the requirement. 96% of the public supported revocation and only 30% of managers and 22% of the organisations providing health and care services opposed revocation.
Widespread dissatisfaction was also expressed around the Government's timing in communicating its intention to revoke the policy. We anticipate this will be because numerous healthcare employers will have been taking unvaccinated staff through formal processes when the policy change was announced.
The Government reports in its consultation response that a key theme emerging is how to protect people who are vulnerable to COVID-19 in the absence of a mandatory vaccination policy. The Government refers to this guidance for advice on preventing the transmission of COVID-19 and other respiratory viruses within healthcare settings. The testing, self-isolation and workplace reporting advice for health and social care staff also remains in place.