There is general agreement that pandemic has had a greater, deeper and more enduring impact in the UK than in many other countries. One of the major reasons for that is that the Government has not learned the lessons from the first wave of the pandemic, and has apparently been reluctant to follow scientific advice, despite making many claims to the contrary.
The advice they have been given has been pretty clear. When infection rates are rising you need to impose restrictions immediately to suppress onward transmission. Only then can you begin to reduce the prevalence of community infection. What we have seen is that the Government has dithered and delayed the imposition of lockdown measures (not to mention mask wearing). As a consequence Covid19 seems to be spiralling out of control.
This has led to many thousands of hospitalisations and deaths. This has been entirely predictable and preventable, it could have been avoided if the government had shown more leadership and acted sooner.
The other lesson we do not seem to have learned is that this pandemic is largely driven by inequalities. Fundamentally this pandemic is not just about the virus, it is also about the wider social conditions that exist in your country. Experience from around the world, confirmed by the WHO, shows that if your society is deeply unequal, then inevitably the most marginalised, and the most excluded people, are the ones who are at the greatest risk of harm. Is there still any real question that the UK is deeply unequal? It is abundantly clear that the Government has no apparent strategy to deal with these levels of inequality and has shown little interest in developing one, even though it is clearly the most important social determinant of the outcome of infection.
The most difficult times are probably just ahead with infections and deaths rising over the next couple of weeks. My New Years wish is that the Government learns from experience and follows the science, and that people continue to follow the guidance. If these things happen the darkness may yet lift.
Chris Bain 