Tory MPs are happy to ditch Covid restrictions early – but are voters?

As a group of people, Conservative MPs see themselves as particularly wedded to individual freedom and averse to being told what to do, writes Andrew Woodcock

If Johnson’s risk-taking pays off, he will win the applause of his party and may even earn gratitude from the public (PA)

Boris Johnson’s surprise announcement that he was bringing forward the end of Covid restrictions in England to the end of this month may have been greeted with alarm by some scientists, but it won hearty cheers on the Conservative benches at PMQs.

Speaking to Tory MPs in Westminster, it is clear that a large majority want to hasten the end of curbs to normal social and economic life, and believe that they reflect public opinion in doing so.

Their confidence appears little shaken by surveys suggesting voters are far more wary of shedding the final Covid chains, such as a YouGov poll this week which found 75 per cent want the legal requirement to self-isolate after a positive test to remain in place at least for the next few months.