England reopens Will life go back to normal?
On what was billed as “Super Saturday” last week, England finally regained a semblance of normality when more restrictions were eased after 103 days of lockdown. Drinkers returned to pubs; hairdressers, hotels and restaurants opened; and religious services resumed. Families and friends from different households were at last permitted to meet up inside, and wedding ceremonies with up to 30 people went ahead. The lockdown was also eased in Northern Ireland, but stricter rules remain in place in Scotland and Wales.
On Wednesday, Chancellor Rishi Sunak unveiled a raft of measures aimed at driving economic growth – including VAT breaks; a bonus scheme to encourage employers to bring staff back from furlough; a £3bn green recovery package (including grants for home improvements); and a £2bn scheme to create work for young people. In a boost to the arts sector, Sunak threw a £1.5bn lifeline to theatres, music venues and museums.
What the editorials said
The moment many of us have been waiting for is finally here, said The Times. Not only are we allowed to return to pubs, salons and cinemas; the Chancellor says it’s our “patriotic duty to do so”. After months on life support, businesses “desperately need their customers to return”. And, providing people are sensible and adhere to social distancing, there’s no reason they cannot do so safely. This is a tonic the country desperately needs, said The Daily Telegraph. Unemployment is soaring, and an ever increasing number of businesses are going bust. Boris Johnson should now explore easing restrictions further and faster.
But not too fast, said The Guardian. We are still in a moment of great danger. Global Covid cases passed the ten million mark last week: “in country after country” – South Korea, Israel and Japan, to name but a few – the reopening of bars and restaurants has been linked to new outbreaks. Leicester’s local lockdown (see page 4) is a “grim reminder” of the risk the Government is taking. Given its handling of the pandemic so far, it seems “unlikely to be a properly calculated one”.