Rutland MP Alicia Kearns is backing the government tonight in the vote concerning the contentious Coronavirus Act.

Extending the act aims to provide the legal framework for England's lockdown roadmap to continue as planned.

However, it does not mean that lockdown restrictions are set to be extended until October.

The government is expected to win the vote, with Labour set to support the extension.

However, there may be some revolt from backbench Tory MPs, particularly the lockdown-sceptic Coronavirus Research Group.

Its deputy chairman Steve Baker MP said: "I am expecting to vote squarely against, I think it's excessive and disproportionate."

The Liberal Democrats say the Conservative government rushed through the act within 3 days at the start of the pandemic last year when very little was known about Covid-19.

Leader Ed Davey told the i newspaper: "It is wrong for Conservative ministers to claim they need the exact same emergency powers for another six months. It suggests they have learnt nothing over the past year.

"Desperate Ministers are now even making false claims about furlough ending if their motion fails. That is simply not true and MPs must not fall for it."

However, Rutland MP Alicia Kearns told Nub News this afternoon: "The Government's intention is to be cautious and put in place a roadmap that is irreversible: and this is what we need.

"We cannot go back to a never-ending cycle of going in, and out, of lockdowns. That isn't fair on our businesses, it isn't fair on our children, and it isn't fair on those vulnerable to the virus. We all require certainty after a year when we had so little.

Mrs Kearns continued: "For some the roadmap may seem too slow, too cautious, but the majority of residents and businesses are pleased to have a measured pathway to freedom, with an indicative timeline to enable planning and preparation.

"I voted for the measures because they ensure that the roadmap can be delivered, and the vaccination programme protected.

"Throughout the pandemic I have successfully challenged some restrictions and secured changes to lockdown rules to better support families and to secure support programmes to support businesses who were falling through the net.

"But we must ensure the vaccination programme is not undermined, and the easing of lockdown is based on data, and we know that the effects of loosening restrictions take some time to appear in the data. Additionally, this measured approach allows us to understand variants and better protect our communities."

The MP added: "I am committed to letting us reclaim our freedom by mid-June, and the vaccination programme is truly a source of national pride and the envy of the world. We all hope that the roadmap goes to plan, and the vaccination programme makes that a distinct possibility. But we are dealing with a virus that has taken the lives of too many, and we must be cautious and honour their lives by refusing to risk losing more."