Poll reveals region’s concerns on PM’s handling of crisis

A SURVEY has found concerns over public transport and the reopening of schools rank highly for the people of Yorkshire.

As different parts of the UK emerge from the lockdown at different speeds, a poll of readers across Yorkshire shows most believe Boris Johnson has not handled the coronavirus crisis well.

The survey, carried out by JPIMedia titles across the UK over the weekend, received more than 12,000 responses in total.

Nationally, it found that 35 per cent of the British public think Downing Street has handled the crisis “not at all well”, while 21 per cent replied with “not very well”.

Only 12 per cent of readers thought the Prime Minister and his cabinet had handled it “very well”, while 31 per cent answered “somewhat well”.

Readers across Yorkshire returned similar results, with 39 per cent believing the Government’s response to the pandemic fell under the “not at all well” category and 16 per cent saying that the situation had been dealt with “not very well” across the region.

A further 30 per cent chose the “somewhat well” option, with 13 per cent choosing “very well”.

Readers were also asked how clear they found the revised slogan and public message of “Stay alert; control the virus; save lives”, with 37 per cent of those in Yorkshire

believing that this advice was “not at all clear”.

Just five per cent of respondents said they would be “very comfortable” taking public transport, while 63 per cent said they were “not at all comfortable” with the thought of travelling around the county in this way.

Asked about what would make people more comfortable being out in public places, 41 per cent said readily available testing for people to find out if they are infected would make them “much more confident”.

Three in 10 people said that an NHS mobile phone app for tracking infections would not make any difference, with 36 per cent saying that mandatory wearing of face coverings would not change their feelings.

Readers were also asked about the areas which they thought posed the highest risk of causing a second wave of the virus, with public transport receiving the overwhelming majority of the vote at 42 per cent.

Schools reopening was seen as a moderate risk alongside workplaces re-opening, meeting up with a small group of friends and visiting family.

Asked about how people were adhering to the current lockdown rules, 44 per said those in their local area were following guidelines “somewhat closely” compared to 16 per cent who answered “not at all closely.”