No alternative to second lockdown say Notts MPS
RESTRICTIONS ‘HARD TO STOMACH’ BUT NHS MUST BE ABLE TO COPE
POLITICIANS in north Nottinghamshire have reacted with concern and frustration over the announcement of a second national Covid-19 lockdown.
However, there is an almost unanimous view that the Government has been left with “no other option” but to impose the restrictions.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced on Saturday that the country would be placed into a 28-day lockdown from Thursday.
The move has been brought in to protect the NHS from further strain as the winter months arrive, with hospital admissions expected to surge across the country in the coming weeks.
Nottinghamshire had only just been placed under the strictest
Tier 3 “very high alert” measures a day earlier, bringing further restrictions on household gatherings and the closure of numerous businesses.
Ben Bradley is Conservative MP for Mansfield. He said: “It’s clearly going to cause economic damage, it’s going to be really difficult for some people - particularly vulnerable people - and I find that really difficult to stomach.
“But I honestly don’t know what the alternative is. I think this is a terrible thing, but it’s clear when you look through the data that the Government has to do something.
“I know it’s going to be really difficult for a lot of people, and will have longterm consequences.
“But what else do you do when faced with the figures and risks?”
Lee Anderson, Conservative MP for Ashfield, added: “It’s a balance, I do not want to see a lockdown but at the same time I do not want to see a situation where our hospitals are unable to take patients.
“That’s the problem here, do we lock down now for a month to ensure our hospitals do not fill up, or do we carry on as we are now?
“My inbox is mixed between residents wanting a full lockdown and residents wanting to carry on as normal. It is such a divisive subject and one that we have not rehearsed for.
“For me this is not about how many people get the virus or how many people sadly die, but it’s about making sure our NHS can take every single patient in that needs it.
“We are lucky so far in Ashfield that, although King’s Mill is starting to fill up, it is still open for business with cancer patients still receiving their treatment and A&E still meeting their targets. “We always have to be in a situation where our NHS can cope with demand.”
But Councillor Jason Zadrozny, leader of Ashfield District Council, told the Post: “I honestly think this is the Tories trying to save their skin by letting people have Christmas. If they didn’t there would be riots. “They have been dillydallying for weeks now and it is just the uncertainty of messing people about that’s the problem for me.
“I have been inundated with businesses asking what the deal will be; I’ve been reading all the government websites and I’m still not able to advise people.
“They have taken out a lot of the clarity that we had when it was going to be Tier 3, we don’t know when we will be receiving money to dish out grants to businesses and none of the stuff is clear at all.
“I just think that they will extend it maybe for another few weeks, just before Christmas at the latest, and maybe relax it for Christmas Day.
“Otherwise people will just ignore it, and it won’t be policed. What policeman is going to want to go to people’s houses while they’re eating their Christmas dinner?”
I know it’s going to be really difficult for a lot of people, and will have long-term consequences. Ben Bradley