As the people in the UK enter another week of isolation, is the government doing enough to beat the Coronavirus. The longer the pandemic goes on, the less cautious people are becoming.
There have been comments from many in society, that the authorities have not been strict enough. This is beginning to come true as the UK is now predicted to become the worst hit country in Europe. Not only did we get advance warning over some of our European neighbours, we have the biggest health service too.
Sadly, this foresight does not seem to be enough to save us from further weeks of shutdown and lives lost. Indeed, during the ‘clap for NHS’ last night, crowds of people were seen standing close together.
with lighting provided by the Metropolitan police
The biggest shock of the night was the large gathering on Westminster Bridge in Central London. The public were joined in their celebration by a number of police, who decided to join in, rather than disperse the crowd. This all took place in the shadows of St Thomas hospital, where Boris had been staying just a week earlier.
It would not seem so bad, if it was not for the fact that people have been stopped for less. Just last week, a family was stopped for driving to the Lake District for a walk. Whilst we do not condone this sort of behaviour during a shutdown, how must people be feeling to get a fine and then see last nights party on one of London’s main bridges?
Lancashire Police said the family thought “if they wore masks and gloves this would be acceptable” – despite strict rules on movement during the pandemic. The police confirmed that the family were “turned around and sent home with paperwork to remember their non-essential journey”.
During the hot Easter weekend, there were a lot of other people who were instructed to return home or face a fine. This was the right thing to do, so will the police be issuing fines to themselves now?
The longer this lockdown goes on, the more chances people are going to take. Boredom and frustration are going to take over and if the authorities are weak, people will push their luck even more. Now is the time to get tougher for everyone’s sake, to ensure we get through this as quickly as possible and to save as many lives as we can.
