For one elderly couple there is less to fear from coronavirus than from future years in a home
sir – At the age of 86, I am fit and well, still driving and exhibiting my art and enjoying life with my husband, who is 90.
We have decided not to be terrified of getting the coronavirus. We have had a good life and if it gets us, it will save a lot of money and inconvenience in the event of having to be looked after in an old people’s home, the prospect of which really is frightening.
Shirley Page
Caxton, Cambridgeshire
sir – Drastic action over coronavirus worldwide by all nations is required now. Leaving it too late (say, two weeks from now) will lead to a pandemic that no amount of action will contain.
All international travel by air, sea or land must cease, the only exception being those returning home, who would be quarantined. This travel ban must continue for at least four weeks or until no new cases arise worldwide.
There will be losses for vested travel interests. These will be bearable compared to the horrendous losses which will pertain in a pandemic. I for one will not consider foreign travel until the situation stabilises.
David Dunlop
Barkestone-le-vale, Leicestershire
sir – Has the world taken leave of its senses? Unless the authorities are hiding from us some hideous truth about the virus, then it seems to me that what we are dealing with is a nasty flu-type epidemic, nothing more.
I expect bans on international travel will soon follow and a long-planned, imminent, family reunion in America will be lost as a result.
Alan Quinton
Eastbourne, East Sussex
sir – At a chemist yesterday I heard a customer asking about face masks. After the customer had left, I commented that it sounded like “unjustified panic”.
I was more than a little surprised to be told that students from a local school were purchasing up to four boxes of masks a time, to post back to the Far East. They were not the only customers doing this.
Peter Speleers
Crowthorne, Berkshire
sir – Next week, thousands from all over the world will descend on the National Exhibition Centre, Birmingham, for Crufts. So far, we have not heard of any move to cancel it.
Are the authorities contemplating cancelling it or are they prepared to allow it to go ahead and take responsibility for the consequences?
Annie Lorton
Hatford, Oxfordshire
sir – In spite of all the advice about washing hands to prevent the spread of disease, and covering your mouth and nose when coughing and sneezing, I find it frustrating to see the number of people who just rinse hands quickly under a tap without using soap or do not cover up when coughing and sneezing.
It is now time for all of us to start challenging these people about their unhygienic habits, as they are threatening the health of all of us.
Paul Lewis
Edinburgh
sir – Might it be useful for public health directors to issue guidance for businesses that rely on touchscreens?
Having just visited my bank, I encountered no less than three pieces of equipment that used touchscreens.
Tony Wolfe
Penrith, Cumbria
sir – The slogan “Coughs and sneezes spread diseases” was publicised to counter health concerns in the past. Could the BBC not be required to broadcast essential information to mitigate the spread of coronavirus?
Helen Mercer
Preston, Lancashire
sir – Is the coronavirus nature’s way of telling Extinction Rebellion that it has matters in hand?
John Bergin
Oxton, Wirral