UK reduces COVID-19 self-isolation to 7 days for most in England

People stop to look at Annabel's club decorated for Christmas amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in London, Britain, December 21, 2021. REUTERS/Peter Nicholls

LONDON (Reuters) - The British government said that from Wednesday it was reducing the COVID-19 self-isolation period to seven days from 10 days for people in England who get a negative result on a lateral flow test two days in a row.

With the Omicron variant spreading rapidly in Britain and record levels of cases over the past week, many industries are struggling with staff shortages, including hospitals which have warned of the risk of an impact on patient safety.