London Mayor Sadiq Khan has set himself on a collision course with anti-vaxxers and right-wing self-proclaimed “libertarians” by insisting that bus, Tube and tram passengers will still be expected to wear masks, even after the government relaxes its so-called “Plan B” precautions against covid-19 next week.
Hold tight: Mayor Sadiq Khan could face a backlash over his insistence on mask-wearing on public transport
Prime Minister (for now) Boris Johnson made the announcement of the easing of the protection measures, which included a legal requirement for mask-wearing on public transport, in shops and schools.
Johnson told the Commons yesterday that the restrictions introduced in December – which included encouraging working from home and “vaccination passports” for some events – would end on January 26.
But with nearly one-third of Londoners still unvaccinated, Mayor Khan says public transport passengers in the capital must continue to wear face coverings as a condition of carriage, due to the continuing threat of the Omicron variant.
“Sadly, this is not the end of our fight against the virus,” Mayor Khan said.
“If we have learnt anything from this pandemic, it is that we must not get complacent and undo all our hard work and sacrifices.
“That’s why face coverings will remain a condition of carriage on TfL services.
“I’m asking everyone in our capital to do the right thing and continue to wear a face covering when travelling on TfL services to keep us all protected and to prevent further restrictions from being necessary later down the line.”
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