Tier 3 ‘ end game’

What are rules of engagement?

THERE WAS an air of inevitability about the Government’s decision to place the whole of West Yorkshire under Tier 3 restrictions from Monday onwards – the recent rises in Covid cases, including care homes, could not be left unchecked and, thankfully, the conduct of talks here spared this area much of the acrimony witnessed in Greater Manchester.

Now that fear has been replaced by trepdiation about raising the county to the highest state of alert, and on a par with much of the North West and now Nottinghamshire, when there’s every possibility these new rules on social gatherings, and daily lives, will last far longer than the initial 28 days.

And this is where the Government needs to review approach as it, once again, asks for the region’s compliance and forebearance as criticism grows about Boris Johnson’s approach to the pandemic and localised lockdowns.

It has announced what it expects of the public, and businesses, but it has still to state, explicitly, what it will take for Tier 3 status to be lifted – Health Secretary Matt Hancock has said that benchmarks could include the rate of infection and availability of NHS beds, but nothing appears set in stone at this time.

As such, it is to be hoped that the Government takes the opportunity to confirm the ‘ end game’ targets that it has in mind – Mr Hancock will be due to brief Parliament next week – and for the relevant data to be published in a transparent way, say weekly, to help focus the efforts of individuals and, hopefully, reassure them that their sacrifices are not in vain. If people have that glimmer of hope, they are far more likely to comply than not.