Getting rid of self-isolation rules and free Covid-19 tests for the public would be a ‘leap in the dark’, NHS leaders have warned.

Boris Johnson is expected to announce his plan for ‘living with Covid’ on Monday, with ministers suggesting it will include scrapping free lateral flow tests.

But more than 300 senior staff in England polled by the NHS Confederation found 79% strongly disagreed, or disagreed, with the plan.

In the survey, 94% of the 307 NHS leaders questioned said testing for health staff and other key workers must also continue.

NHS staff are currently asked to test at home twice a week.

The survey also found that more than three-quarters disagree with any axing of the legal requirement to self-isolate following a positive Covid result in favour of it being guidance only.

The prime minister has suggested he will scrap the legal requirement for people to self isolate following a positive test result when parliament returns from recess next week, bringing plans forward by a month.

Ministers have also suggested free tests will be ditched.

Asked on Thursday if free Covid tests would be scrapped next week, health secretary Sajid Javid said ‘the protections we’ve enjoyed over the last few months’ should be ‘reviewed’.

James Heappey, the armed forces minister, has also suggested the days of free tests may be numbered.

Asked on Sky News whether the offer of free tests to allow people to check whether they are positive for covid will be ‘taken away’, Mr Heappey said: ‘I think that is the direction of travel but the prime minister will shortly announce his conclusions on that.’

Ahead of Mr Johnson announcing his plan NHS bosses are calling for a cautious approach, warning the NHS could be hit hard if future covid waves take hold or there are more variants.

Questions have also been raised over whether decisions to lift the remaining restrictions are being driven by science or politics, with No 10 scientists saying they have not been consulted over the decision.

Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, said: ‘The government cannot wave a magic wand and pretend the threat has disappeared entirely.

‘So much is uncertain still, including our long-term immunity and the emergence of future strains, which requires a solid testing infrastructure and clear guidance around self-isolation to remain in place.

‘A lot is at stake for the NHS’s recovery ambitions if the government is too gung-ho in its plans for exiting the pandemic, which is why health leaders are calling for a cautious and evidence-led approach.

‘This must not be driven by political expediency.’

Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme on Friday, Mr Taylor said urged caution.

‘This is not the time to take risks. We need to operate in an evidence-based and incremental way,’ he said.

‘And that’s why the overwhelming majority of NHS leaders want to see the continued access to free testing.’

Just over 80% of health leaders, who took part in the survey also said they did not want the weekly Office for National Statistics infection survey to be dropped or scaled back, as has been reported.

Professor Dame Helen Stokes-Lampard, chairperson of the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, said: ‘This poll confirms what many of us have been thinking and saying since the announcement about relaxing the rules early in England was made.

‘That is that it all feels very sudden and more driven as much by the current political pressures than by robust scientific guidance.’

The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) also called on the government to provide compelling scientific evidence to back up its plans.

It has warned ending the legal requirement to self-isolate after a positive test would be a ‘leap in the dark’.

RCN chief executive Pat Cullen said mixed messaging around the Covid-19 response would put healthcare workers and patients at risk.

‘Ending the legal requirement to self-isolate following a positive test is a big leap in the dark,’ she said.

‘Our members, for whom this pandemic is far from over, need to know there is a sound scientific basis for doing it.’

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