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"Hancock confirmed the government will soon tell people over 70 that they will need to self-isolate at home for up to four months to protect themselves from the disease – but his terminology caused some confusion, leading Scottish officials to stress that elderly people would not be asked to avoid all contact with other people.
In an interview on the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show, Hancock said asking the over-70s to stay self-isolated would be “a very big ask”, but that it was part of the government’s action plan because it would be necessary to protect them. He said this would be announced in the coming weeks.
Jason Leitch, the national clinical director for the Scottish government, which is working with the Westminster government on a UK-wide coronavirus strategy, subsequently said on Twitter there was no plan to ask the over-70s to “completely socially isolate” and that the proposal for older people would be to minimise social contact, not end it.
In a tweet, he said: “We are working on guidance for the over-70s to be asked to REDUCE social contact for their safety. So no bingo, no pubs … BUT family visits and neighbours etc.”
The term self-isolation has been used by health officials to refer to the very strict isolation routine supposed to be followed by people with coronavirus, but on Sunday morning Hancock seemed to be using it in the looser sense that has become commonplace – referring to staying at home and minimising social interaction.
