Lockdown Postscript?

Whether this really will be a postscript to lockdown – which officially ended on 19 July in England after a phasing out of restrictions over a number of months – remains to be seen. There are warnings that the return of schools next month, along with colder weather and people then staying indoors more and mixing with others without restrictions may all contribute to a further surge of Covid here in the autumn. And despite the media being understandably preoccupied with other important things over the last ten days – first with the release of the latest IPCC Report which sounded a ‘Code Red’ warning on the climate, and then with the takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban – we should not forget that the pandemic is still the main concern for many people around the world, especially in areas where the proportion of people who have been vaccinated is still appallingly low. As of today, the total number of reported deaths worldwide is standing at over 4,375,000 but the true numbers probably far exceed the official figures for countries where medical services have been overwhelmed and many victims may never have had medical attention. The very informative website on the coronavirus from John Hopkins University of Medicine (https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/ – Topics/Tracking/Global Map in particular) states that the first case of Covid-19 in the United Kingdom was reported 563 days ago on 31 January 2020 and, since then, the country has reported 6,325,515 cases, and 131,296 deaths; it is a mine of information on every country and well worth a look.

Since the removal of almost all restrictions there have been some very noticeable changes here. Although still requested to wear face masks in shops – and required to do so, unless exempt, on public transport in London – rather fewer people are wearing them out and about. This seems perfectly reasonable given what is now known about the much lower risk of virus transmission outdoors as long as people are not in close proximity to each other for more than very short periods. We are also in the extremely fortunate position of knowing that over 60 per cent of the population (and very nearly 90 per cent of adults) are now fully vaccinated. While that carries no absolute guarantee against contracting Covid, it is reassuring to know that even if that does happen there is much less likelihood of becoming seriously ill. When visiting places, there also seems to be a lot less emphasis being put on ‘checking in’ to a venue using the NHS app, but this may partly be a result of the so-called ‘pingdemic’, when people who had been in the same place as someone who then tested positive for the disease were required to isolate at home. At one stage about one in five workers in the hospitality industry were isolating and many venues that might otherwise have been open for business were forced to close because they had insufficient staff.

After a year and a half of small-screen life I enjoyed visits to a local cinema twice last week and at the weekend spent a day in London, visiting a gallery, a restaurant, a concert and another cinema. The streets were busy – much as I would have expected to see on a summer Saturday pre-pandemic – as was the transport system. There were weekend numbers of people on the Underground and our mid-evening journey home was reminiscent of the worst of rush-hour commuting: engineering work and multiple cancellations resulted in standing room only on a jam-packed train. Only as a nearby passenger – no mask, as was the case for approximately a third of those on the train – breathed heavily onto my neck did I feel even slightly concerned about the virus, and there was nothing I could do about it, so worrying would have been pretty pointless! Overall, at none of the venues, either locally or in London, did I get the feeling that people were being reckless about their own or others’ safety: the vast majority were complying with the requirements or requests on distancing and face-covering and it was really good to feel a sense of normality about spending time with family and friends – and seeing some really good films on a big screen once again.

It is now days 512, 287 and 226 respectively since the introduction of lockdowns and for a while at least I will still be keeping track on my calendar, but I may also turn to other things for the occasional blog. Watch this space!