The Government’s Plan B will be enough to get the country through Christmas, the Deputy Prime Minister has said, though he did not rule out future restrictions to tackle Omicron.

Dominic Raab said the current set of measures, which include working from home and increased mask-wearing, will enable people to have the ability to spend the festive season “with loved ones” across England.

Discussing the accelerated booster rollout, he told Times Radio: “It’s a demanding target but … the facts are that we will go into this Christmas with the ability to spend it with loved ones in a way that was impossible last year.”

He did not rule out further measures being considered for Christmas or new year, saying: “These issues are always discussed but we have got Plan B, that’s what we think is required over the Christmas period.”

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Pressed if Christmas will be safe, Mr Raab replied: “Yes, I think it is. I want to give that reassurance. I think people can look forward to spending Christmas with loved ones in a way that we couldn’t last year.”

Later, speaking to Sky News, the Cabinet member did not rule out new restrictions being brought in after Christmas but said: “We’ve got none planned.”

The booster programme alongside Plan B is “where all our focus is”, he added.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) believes the Omicron variant is causing around 200,000 new infections per day.

There is exponential growth, with cases doubling at least every two to three days.

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It comes as Boris Johnson is facing the biggest rebellion of his premiership, with dozens of Tory MPs set to vote against the latest Covid restrictions.

More than 70 backbenchers are threatening to defy the whips and oppose the Government’s Plan B for England, brought in in the face of the fast-spreading variant.

It is reported that up to 10 ministerial aides could resign to oppose the controls, with up to four votes on the measures expected to take place on Tuesday evening.

The measures – including Covid passes for entry into nightclubs and other venues – are expected to pass the Commons with the support of Labour, who back tighter controls.

Speaking earlier, the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) director general Tony Danker said the current messages from Government have had a “chilling effect” on certain sectors of the economy.

He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “It seems to us that whilst we have measures to keep the economy open, we have messages that have ended up closing much of it down.

“People should be worried enough to go and get a booster urgently, but not so worried to stop going to shops, restaurants or airports.

“That’s what’s not working, you have a double whammy for businesses in those sectors, hospitality, retail, leisure or travel, where demand is collapsing and there’s no support to recover.

“So, whilst we all support the booster campaign, and I urge all employees to get their booster, the unintended consequence has been a really rather chilling effect on demand in a lot of sectors in our economy.”