You haven’t seen family... but it’s a huge risk
Christmas events – particularly if you have elderly relatives or relatives with serious medical problems.”
Dr Tildesley says people should “do what they can to be together and prevent loneliness”. But he adds: “People just need to be aware of the risks and take sensible precautions.
“Just because the rule might say three households can meet, it doesn’t mean that number have to mix.
“You can also minimise the risk by strictly following the rules in the run-up to Christmas to have as little contact with people outside your household as
Sisters Emily and Michelle possible. And during the Christmas period, maintain physical distance, ensure that your home is well ventilated and practise good hygiene, such as regular hand washing.”
Could the Christmas pause result in more Covid deaths?
Dr Tildesley says yes, but we can reduce the risk by taking sensible precautions. He says: “Any increase in mixing is going to cause more cases, and ultimately, an increase in hospitalisations and deaths.
“But if we limit as much as possible
BOLTON has had the tightest and longest restrictions in the country, so shoppers were determined to play it safe at Christmas.
Sisters Michelle and Emily Donlan, 22, had booked a holiday cottage in Wales for a week with their mum but have cancelled.
Student Michelle, 28, said: “It’s the amount of interactions we have with others in the run-up to Christmas, then hopefully we can keep the risk of that extra mixing as low as possible.”
Won’t going back to a tier system after Christmas make up for it?
Dr Tildesley thinks what we do before Christmas is more important. He says: “You do need to tighten up afterwards, but what you really want to do is minimise the risk of elderly relatives getting infected. If you do have a particularly vulnerable relative and you feel you really want to be with them, isolate for a hard one because you haven’t seen your family and friends for so long, but it is a huge risk. It will just be me, my mum and my sister so we are sticking g to the three households.”
Wendy Brown, 65, 5, was supposed to be going ng to her daughter’s in London ondon but now will be at home ome a week or two beforehand to really minimise the risk that you yourself are infected, if you can.”
Isn’t Christmas too important for many people to deny them the chance to celebrate it as normal?
Prof Majeed says Christmas is “a very important part of our social fabric”.
He says: “We need to think how we can allow people to celebrate without risking their health and the health of more vulnerable people.”
Dr Tildesley says: “We do need to think about the negative impact of lockdown as well as the public health impact of Covid and acknowledge the fact that severe lockdown is very harming for a lot of people.
“We should allow some small relaxation at Christmas for people’s health and wellbeing.”
Should churches stay open for Christmas services?
Dr Tildesley says: “There’s always going to be an increase in risk, but Christmas shopping is also a risk – the question is how much of an increase are you prepared to accept, and what are you going to do to minimise the risk.
“There’s got to be social distancing between family groups and restricting the number of people to allow for that.”
Prof Majeed thinks churches should only be allowed to open in areas with low infection rates.
He says: “Any indoor mixing poses risks and activities such as singing in indoor spaces have been shown to lead to increased risks of infection.”
What’s the problem if the most vulnerable have had the vaccine?
Dr Tildesley says: “The vaccine is administered in two doses, two or three weeks apart and it will take a few weeks after that second dose before they have a high level of immunity. That will be well into January.” Prof Majeed agrees that vaccines “won’t have a major impact on the pandemic in 2020”.
If families live in different parts of the UK should they travel to met up for Christmas?
Yes, if it means someone won’t be lonely at Christmas, says Dr Tildesley, adding: “Again, do what you can to minimise the risk. Go by private car rather than public transport and you should be able to get there pretty safely.”
Prof Majeed says: “It’s better to stay local if you can. Once a vaccination programme is in place, it will allow a return to a more normal society, resulting in a much better Christmas experience for everyone in 2021.” alone. She said: “I’d normally get the train and my daughter had offered to drive and pick me up but I don’t think it is worth it.” Sales assistant Yintete Yembil, 24, left, said: “I will be with my mum and my m aunty and we will Zoom our o other relatives. We have to be careful – we want to stop the spread but still have a family Christmas.”
Security guard Peter Almond, 65, will be working on Christmas Day and his wife is a live-in carer.
He said: “We’ve been in Tier 3 all along while the South was in Tier 2. Now London has gone into Tier 3 there is more support while the North was given the crumbs. There is a North South divide.”