LONDON (AP) — Britain’s new health secretary says he is confident that England is on track to remove the country’s remaining coronavirus restrictions on July 19. Sajid Javid stressed that the rapid vaccination rollout is “breaking the link” between soaring infection numbers and serious illnesses and deaths. Javid told Parliament that all the figures he’s seen suggested that the country is “heading in the right direction,” and said that “the restrictions on our freedoms must come to an end.” His confident tone came despite widespread concerns about a third surge in infections in the U.K. driven by the spread of the more contagious delta variant. Government figures on Monday showed another big spike in infections, with 22,868 confirmed cases. That’s the highest daily figure since late January.
