U.K. Industry to Continue On-Set COVID Protocols as Pandemic Restrictions Are Lifted in England, Northern Ireland

variety.com:

K.J. Yossman While the U.K. is set to shed the last of its pandemic restrictions — including the requirement to self-isolate if testing positive for COVID-19 — the film and TV industry will continue to abide by COVID protocols for now, Variety has confirmed.Part of the reason for this is because the end to pandemic restrictions will not be universally implemented across all four nations of the U.K.

While the rules on self-isolation lift in England and Northern Ireland from Thursday (Feb. 24), in Scotland and Wales it remains enshrined in law that anyone testing positive for COVID-19 must self-isolate.The British Film Commission (BFC) says that while it plans to update its “Working Safely During COVID-19 in Film and High-end TV Drama Production” from Thursday to incorporate the changes to self-isolation rules, it will include the government’s guidance that anyone testing positive in England and Northern Ireland is still “advised” to self-isolate, avoiding contact with others for at least five days and testing negative twice in two days.

The BFC intends to consult with the U.K.’s COVID-19 Physical Production Working Group on the changes set out in the government’s “Living With COVID-19” plan but until then will not be making any changes beyond updating its guidance to reflect current regulations.“The British Film Commission will in due course consult with our COVID-19 Physical Production Working Group on Government’s ‘Living with Covid-19’ plan in relation to the ‘Working Safely During COVID-19 in Film and High-end TV Drama Production’ guidance,” Adrian Wootton, chief executive of the BFC and Film London, said.