British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said that lockdown, not the country's vaccine rollout, is the main reason for the decline of Covid-19 infections in Britain. The prime minister said the vaccination programme has helped, but the bulk of the work in reducing the disease has been done by the lockdown.

"The numbers are down - of infections and hospitalizations and deaths. But it is very important for everybody to understand that the reduction in these numbers... has not been achieved by the vaccination programme," Johnson said. "People don't, I think, appreciate that it's the lockdown that has been overwhelmingly important in delivering this improvement in the pandemic and in the figures that we're seeing," he added.

"So, as we unlock, the result will inevitably be that we will see more infection, sadly we will see more hospitalization and deaths, and people have just got to understand that," he said.

However, Johnson said, "at the moment" he couldn't see "any reason" to change his roadmap for easing lockdown restrictions. All shops reopened from Monday along with hairdressers, beauty salons and other close-contact services.

Restaurants and pubs were allowed to serve food and alcohol to customers sitting outdoors. Meanwhile, gyms, spas, zoos, theme parks, libraries and community centers can all open. On May 17, restaurants and pubs are expected to be allowed to resume indoor service and most rules on gathering outdoors are expected to be lifted.

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