Nearly all covid-19 restrictions that have been in place in England, with varying applications from time to time, were lifted at midnight last night. TV news showed crowds of young people celebrating in the time-honoured fashion of gathering in crowds in the streets, drinking, cheering, hugging strangers and shouting a lot at each other. If there is a quicker way to spread the virus amongst those yet to be vaccinated, I'm struggling to think of one. No, I'm wrong, the restrictions on nightclubs have lifted as well. The drinking, hugging, shouting, etc. can all go on but in a confined space where the raison d'etre is to be as close as you can to others.
Maybe it has to be this way. Infection rates had been falling nicely to just a few thousand a day, with hospital admissions measured in hundreds. Now we have daily rates well over 40,000 and 4,000 are in hospital, and this is at the start of the new freedom. In exchange for the opening up of the economy and doing away with the compulsory wearing of masks, we must live with a greater strain on the NHS and more risk for those with existing medical conditions that make them vulnerable to respiratory disease,
It feels rather transitory - a 48 hour pass rather than a release. At some point a return to restrictions looks inevitable under the pressure of hospitals once more desperately trying to cope whilst cancelling all non-urgent (and many urgent) procedures.
Meanwhile we have a heatwave, a real one, with the mercury topping out over 31c yesterday in these parts and staying high until Friday. It adds to the febrile atmosphere - we have a holiday but all holidays come to an end. [Actually I'm thinking of taking a few days off. If that's alright? I assume it is... er, is it? Oh, well, I didn't really want to go anyway: Ed]
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