Britons should “keep calm and carry on” with their Christmas plans despite the detection of cases of the new Omicron COVID-19 variant in the country, the chairman of the ruling Conservative Party has said. Talking to Sky News on Friday morning, Oliver Dowden said the Conservative Party has no intention of cancelling its own Christmas drinks. “The message to people, I think, is fairly straightforward—which is keep calm, carry on with your Christmas plans,” he said. “I understand that people have concerns around the new variant. That’s why the government has taken the sort of measures that we’ve already outlined,” he said, adding: “We think those are sufficient at this stage and, beyond that, people should continue with their plans as intended.” Following the detection of the Omicron variant last week, the UK government has already re-introduced some COVID-19 restrictions, under which face coverings must be worn in shops and …