MASKLESS ENGLAND MUST COPE WITH A NEW BAREFACED REALITY
▶ Most coronavirus restrictions end today, but experts expect problems will emerge
A symbol of the pandemic and a flashpoint in the debate over coronavirus restrictions, masks are set to come off in England as most curbs are lifted on what is being called Freedom Day.
The end of mask requirements from today, to be replaced with “personal responsibility”, is the most contentious part of the government’s unlocking plan.
While many people will be happy to remove face coverings, critics of the new policy say it limits freedom for vulnerable people who will go out of their way to avoid the maskless.
Dr Julia Faulconbridge, a member of the British Psychological Society’s Division of Clinical Psychology, said the sight of barefaced strangers would cause alarm for many people who have become accustomed to wearing masks.
“For most people, it’s actually become a habit,” she told The National. “So why are we trying to break that habit when we know that it is one of the best things that we have to keep the pandemic under control?
“It’s not just people who personally feel vulnerable who are feeling it’s not going to be safe any more, it’s the people who understand their responsibility to other vulnerable people who are saying that as well.”
Prof Robert Dingwall, a member of the government’s advisory group on virus threats, said the fear of the virus that people had developed over the past 18 months would continue to drive the use of masks.
“A lot of the debate that we’ve seen over the past week or so is really reflective of the levels of fear and anxiety,” he said. “The levels of emotion that we’ve seen are really bound up with the psychological rather than the epidemiological issues.”
Under pressure from scientists alarmed by the third wave of infections, ministers are still advising the use of masks as legal mandates are ended.
The government line is that people are “expected and recommended” to keep wearing masks in crowded places such as train carriages.
Businesses and local authorities are free to go further, with London Mayor Sadiq Khan announcing this week that masks would remain compulsory on the capital’s transport network.
Supermarkets including Sainsbury, Tesco and Asda said they will ask shoppers to keep wearing masks.
Dr Faulconbridge expected that many people will continue to wear masks, even when there is no requirement.
She said young people could be influenced by peer pressure, either towards keeping masks on or abandoning them.
“Teenagers and young people are more prone to do things because that’s what their friends are doing, and therefore they might want to continue to wear a mask,” she said.
“But if everybody else isn’t and they start to make jokes about it, then it’s very hard to continue.”
Like other countries, the UK rushed to buy masks for health workers when the pandemic broke out but at first played down their effectiveness for others.
Fears were raised that wearing a mask would foster a false sense of security and reduce compliance with other measures.
The advice later changed and masks became compulsory on public transport in June, and in shops and supermarkets in July.
Fines for failing to wear a mask were increased to a maximum of £6,400 ($8,860) for repeat offenders.
A University of Bristol study published last month suggested that mask wearing could cut infection transmission by about 25 per cent if widely adopted.
Research found that masks could be useful only if a high percentage of people wear them.
Some scientists regarded masks as a trivial inconvenience, while others were concerned about their effects on social interaction and the welfare of children.
Health chiefs are studying the use of a transparent mask which could reduce problems with communication.
Dr Faulconbridge said that those who have physical or mental difficulties with wearing masks are exempt from covering their faces.
The exemptions allow people to take off a mask if asked to do so in a shop or a bank, where they have been frowned upon for fear of robberies.
But Prof Dingwall is among those voicing concern about the long-term effects of masks.
He said the government should set a more reassuring tone and say that many spaces are safe.
“Masks are essentially there as a symbol to say, ‘be afraid of other people, be afraid every time you set foot outside your house’,” he said.
“They are really quite destructive to society in the long run. Human societies are built on face-to-face interaction.”
Masks are there as a symbol to say, ‘be afraid of other people, be afraid every time you set foot outside your house’
PROF ROBERT DINGWALL Adviser on virus threats