England easing restrictions on Covid could go either way

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Yeoman Warder at the Tower of London leads one of the first Yeoman Warder rides led by the Tower in 16 months after the final coronavirus legal restrictions were lifted in England on Monday 19 July.

Victoria Jones – PA photos | PA photos | Getty Images

Criticism is mounting at Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his government for the decision to go ahead with lifting Covid-19 restrictions in England this week, as the world now watches to see what direction the country’s health crisis will take next.

From Monday, there will be no more restrictions on indoor gatherings which means nightclubs can reopen and bars and pubs will not have to offer only table service.

In addition, the one-meter social distancing rule has been removed and face masks have become largely voluntary, although some airlines and carriers have said they will maintain mask-wearing requirements.

However, the hype around a day previously described as “Freedom Day” by the government has been silenced, as it comes amid a surge in Covid-19 infections caused by the delta variant. The government has urged people to be vigilant and to take personal responsibility when it comes to newly restored liberties.

Restrictions have already been lifted from June 21 to allow for more vaccinations amid a surge in infections.

Cases remain high across the UK with 316,691 cases reported over the past seven days, an increase of about 43% over the previous seven-day period. Government data shows that the number of hospitalizations is low but rising, with 4,313 people hospitalized in the past seven days. In the past seven days, 283 people have died.

The lifting of restrictions has drawn criticism from many medical experts and opposition politicians amid concerns that hospitalizations and deaths, while relatively low at the moment, could rise quickly if cases increase.

The ‘Big Bang’ gamble?

Ed Davey, the leader of the UK’s opposition Liberal Democrats, was among those who criticized the move, which she described as a “gamble” by the Conservative government.

“We want our freedoms back, of course we all want them back, but we have to be rational. I’m particularly concerned about people who are clinically at risk, and the fact that the government doesn’t make it mandatory to wear masks on public transportation means that many of these clinically vulnerable people won’t be able to from enjoying any freedom whatsoever…because they won’t feel safe on public transportation.”

“That’s the balance of people’s freedom to be able to go to nightclubs, and as much as everyone wants some fun, you’re taking away other people’s freedom. I’m just afraid this big bang, this gamble that Boris Johnson is taking, doesn’t get that balance right” .

David Miles, professor of financial economics at Imperial College and a former member of the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee, told CNBC that the situation could go either way now.

“It all depends now on how the infection spreads across the country. You can imagine different scenarios. In an optimistic case, infection rates, which were very high, are going down and then starting to drop again by the time we move into the fourth quarter, the infections are down dramatically. Sharp … there is an increase in confidence and we get [a] Very strong economic recovery.”

“It is certainly possible, and if it is, people will say that the government was absolutely right,” he said.

But, on the other end of the spectrum, Miles noted, “The numbers of infected people continue to rise to … 100,000 per day and hospital admissions start to rise, they have really gone up, and the death rate also begins to rise, and against the background of that, people remain Very nervous … and we return, at the end of the year, in a very difficult situation and the economic recovery is declining.”

Miles said he doesn’t know the most likely scenario. “I think it’s very difficult for the government to know what is the right strategy here,” he said.

Exciting day for others

While experts have concerns about lifting restrictions, for many people the loosening of the rules is a sigh of relief after months of lockdown, job uncertainty and, in many cases, loneliness. Those in favor of lifting restrictions point out that there are many harmful consequences of staying locked up, from the impact on the economy and livelihoods to mental health.

The government also hopes that lifting restrictions in the summer will ease the burden on the National Health Service when winter comes, too. Johnson recently repeated the mantra of “if not now, then when” in reference to the lifting of restrictions, and urged the public to “learn to live with” the virus.

Businesses that have been hit hard by the lockdowns will surely welcome the removal of restrictions in the hope that they will be more popular.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan, a member of the opposition Labor Party who is often highly critical of the government’s actions during the pandemic, said Monday was an “exciting” day for businesses in London.

“Today is exciting because many of the restrictions that we’ve had to deal with over the past 16 months have been relaxed and that’s really important not least because so many of our businesses – particularly in hospitality, culture, retail and the night economy – that rely on footfall has really struggled. “.

“But what we say to Londoners and those coming to London is ‘please be careful.’ If, for example, you cannot maintain a social distance indoors, consider wearing a face mask and following normal rules such as good hygiene.”

Khan noted that more than 9.9 million doses of vaccine have been administered in London and that more than three-quarters of all people over the age of 40 have been vaccinated twice with young people now the main target for immunization.

Across the UK, 87.9% of adults received the first dose of the vaccine and 68.3% received both doses. Taking two doses of the vaccine significantly reduces the risk of infection and hospitalization due to the Corona virus.

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