Michael Fabricant, MP for Lichfield

“CHRISTMAS comes but once a year and when it does it brings good cheer”, or so the old rhyme goes.

For many, Christmas will be an easier time than it was last year though I know a number of people who will be feeling the loss at the passing of close relatives and friends during the course of 2021.

A few weeks ago, it looked like we had got Covid almost beaten, but the Omicron variant has put paid to that. With infections doubling every three days, this one is highly infectious. However, there are glimmers of hope. If it turns out that Omicron is less severe than previous variants, as some doctors suspect, and the vaccine works in minimising its effects, it could herald the end of the disease. Though as long as parts of the world remain unprotected, further variants could arise.

The UK has the best vaccine programme in Europe and one of the very best in the world. Most European countries have not yet even started their third booster jab.

Everyone should take full advantage of these free vaccine jabs. Although Omicron is sufficiently different from the original Wuhan disease to escape the vaccine, the booster jab does seem to prevent most people catching severe Covid.

Unless you plan to visit a hot, steamy nightclub, you won’t need to prove you have been vaccinated or have taken a negative lateral flow test: the so-called ‘passport.’ Though both being vaccinated, and testing, make sense! So, as we enter 2022, this disease is unlikely to end soon. Nevertheless, the economy is strong, there are more vacancies than there are jobseekers, and the next round of vaccines will be tailored to the latest Covid variants. So there is much to look forward to.

If you have lonely relatives or neighbours, keep an eye out for them and offer them comfort. And may I wish you a Happy Christmas and a better 2022 than 2021!