(London) Queen Elizabeth II has canceled her traditional stay at her residence in Sandringham, eastern England, for Christmas, which she will celebrate this year at Windsor Castle, near London, media reported on Monday British.
The 95-year-old sovereign took this “personal decision after careful consideration”, explained a source close to the monarchy to the British news agency PA, for whom this choice “reflects a cautious approach”.
“Members of the (royal) family will come to Windsor during the Christmas period”, assures the same anonymous source, according to which “reasonable precautions and all appropriate directives will be followed”.
The monarch, who was advised by doctors in October to rest after a night in hospital, and close members of the royal family traditionally spend Christmas in Sandringham, where they attend church on Christmas Day.
The queen had already given up as a precaution to organize her traditional family reunion which was to bring together about fifty people this Tuesday at Windsor Castle, now her main residence, for the first time since the death of her husband Philip in April.
Faced with the outbreak of the Omicron variant in the United Kingdom, which recorded 91,743 new cases of COVID-19 in 24 hours on Monday, some Britons are worried and are canceling their outings to preserve their family Christmas, but others say they are hostile to harsh restrictions.
On Monday, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned that he “would not hesitate to take more restrictive measures” to stem the spread of the Omicron variant, without however proceeding with the turn of the screw demanded by some.
“For now, we want people to focus on caution,” the conservative leader told televisions after an extraordinary cabinet meeting, citing ventilation and wearing masks.
According to authorities, at least fourteen people infected with the Omicron variant of COVID-19 have so far died and 129 are hospitalized in the United Kingdom, one of the countries already among the most affected by the pandemic in Europe with more 147,000 deaths (+44).