Earlier this month, when leaders in Britain announced that pandemic restrictions would be relaxed for five days over Christmas, infection rates of coronavirus were falling. But since then, the country’s positive test numbers have spiked again—sending London back into lockdown. Now, the country’s two top medical journals have warned that the plan to ease COVID rules over Christmas is a “rash decision” that will “cost many lives.” The Health Service Journal and British Medical Journal warned that people will see the relaxation “as permission to drop their guard.” London’s rising rates are particularly concerning as thousands will travel to their hometowns and cities from there, despite the news that a new variant of COVID has been found in the city. Under the current plans, the U.K. will allow three households to gather together over the five-day period.