Keeping healthy during Covid should be a walk in the park

THERE’S been criticism of the numbers of people walking on the sea front on our rare sunny days, so who should be allowed to stroll down the prom at Cleethorpes? Is it solely the preserve of those who live in the nearby streets and can actually get there on their own two feet?

What about pensioners in the rest of Cleethorpes who might need to use a car?

Grimsby people? Do they have to stay away? What about NE Lincs ratepayers, whose council taxes subsidise the resort?

The district goes as far as Immingham, and includes the likes of Humberston, Waltham and Laceby. Don’t they have the right to take exercise in their own council area?

Are we going to use the same argument for Weelsby Woods. Should no-one who lives in Cleethorpes be allowed in this Grimsby amenity, particularly if, heaven forbid, they have to drive there?

Are the ducks in People’s Park only to be fed by those who live in Park Drive and Welholme Road? There are no exact guidelines, noone knows what ‘local’ actually means, but surely your own town or district fits that description? If we’re not careful, we could become a nation of Covid NIMBYS. How dare you come into the area where I live, it’s reserved for me.

There seems to be a lot of hysteria about people having the temerity to want to take a walk in order to stay sane in these restrictive times, especially if they would rather do it where there’s something to look at other than streets and buildings, which might involve a short trip in the car, particularly if small children or the elderly are involved.

Yes, the statistics elsewhere are bad, and for that we have to thank a Government with a long rap sheet of errors, the latest gaffes being keeping London in Tier 2 for so long and promoting a Christmas free for all. And idiots who hold raves or house parties and host drinking dens should have the book thrown at them.

But while we are in this unprecedented, illiberal straight jacket, outings in the fresh air are essential for our mental and physical health. With all indoor and outdoor recreation banned, all entertainment and hospitality venues closed, they’re about the only ‘leisure’ activity we’re allowed to enjoy, and even then it’s restricted to your household or one other person.

Yet these simple acts have almost become crimes against humanity in the eyes of some enforcers. Individual police officers in some areas have let power go to their heads with actions reminiscent of darker days in European history. Fines have rightly been rescinded for the two women on the socially distanced walk and the woman on a pre-arranged visit to her frail 94-year-old mum in a care home, but what sort of mentality was at play in issuing them?

Thankfully, our own constabulary has maintained a common sense approach and taken the community with it.

All the evidence points to the fact that you’re as likely to pick up Covid taking a socially distanced walk in the fresh air as you are to be run over by a bus. Scientists tell us that the real threat comes from indoor gatherings, whether they be in homes, schools, shops, workplaces or, unfortunately, hospitals. These are the vectors for transmission, but the police don’t enforce in those areas, with some choosing instead to go for easy targets and swoop on people innocuously strolling, jogging or taking a breather on a park bench. Our schools are still more than 50 per cent full in some areas and noone, to my knowledge, has been fined in NE Lincs for not wearing a mask in a shop or on a bus. And why has it taken the major supermarket chains so long to enforce the mask policy?

The health benefits of outdoor exercise far outweigh the tiny risk of catching the bug and provided people are sensible, socially distanced and don’t gather in close knit groups it should be encouraged.

Now I agree that travelling long distances should be avoided, particularly from heavily infected areas. We have the lowest rate in the country so if there is a way of filtering out vehicles from far away who don’t have a legitimate reason for making the journey I’m sure we’d all support it.

But do we want to see our hard pressed police manning road blocks on the A180 or A18 - or would we rather they be out fighting crime?