He added that “in terms of what we’re seeing now, we compare this time November this year with last year, the trajectory is so much better, which then does put us in hopefully a much better position as we move towards the present”.
While the University of Warwick professor said the UK could not rule out some tightening of measures, he stressed that it was “a long way away from talking about the idea of a lockdown”.
“Hopefully more and more people keep going out to get the booster vaccines if we get high uptake in younger people with vaccines, we should hopefully have a much sunnier outlook as we move towards Christmas,” he said.
Dr Tildesley’s comments came as patients’ groups called for the immediate activation of “Plan B” and the Army to be sent in to help ambulance services and relieve NHS pressures.
Rachel Power, the chief executive of the Patients Association, has written to the Health Secretary to call for the measures, which could see mandatory vaccine passports, face coverings and advice to work from home.
While Covid cases, deaths and hospitalisations are falling, the latest NHS data shows the worst Accident and Emergency performance on record, and heart attack victims waiting almost an hour for ambulances.
On Friday, Ms Power wrote to Sajid Javid to say: “The NHS is running red hot and a crisis is upon us. You cannot stand by while people are dying because they cannot get a hospital bed or ambulance crews are unable to reach them.”
The charity called on the Government to request military back up for ambulance services, bring in “Plan B” and make an immediate investment in social care services “to prevent the NHS tipping over and all of us enduring a catastrophic winter”.
“The NHS in Scotland has already called in military personnel to support it; we believe the military can play a significant role in supporting services in England and the Health Secretary should ask for their assistance immediately,” the letter said.
New data out on Friday from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed around one in 60 people in private households in England had Covid in the week to Nov 6, down from one in 50 the previous week.
