Return to work vital to save the economy

THE imposition of lockdown was accomplished overnight but the repercussions are long-lasting.

Emerging from that lengthy period of enforced paralysis has been a sluggish process – and one that’s not over yet.

It’s welcome news that the green light was given yesterday for gyms and other venues such as bingo halls to open again. There’s also permission for some outdoor live events to take place, within strict guidelines.

Together, these moves represent major developments for sectors of the economy in danger of suffering massive financial damage.

Yet the night-time economy is facing disaster, with more than 80 per cent of nightclubs and music venues planning redundancies.

Our city centres are ghost towns and offices across Scotland remain largely deserted.

But official figures show that, nationally, the virus appears to be in retreat, and indeed has been for some time.

True, there have been local flare-ups which remind us of the virulence of Covid-19.

But they are being well contained by contact tracing and local lockdown measures, in the case of Aberdeen. No deaths have been reported since July and there are only two patients with the virus in intensive care.

The First Minister argues that a return to the office would mean busier public transport and risk a resurgence of the virus. That would jeopardise the resumption of state education – and keeping schools open must remain among the Government’s top priorities.

But there’s a growing risk that while pursuing these laudable goals, ministers are overlooking the importance of restarting the economy. Lockdown entailed huge sacrifice and protected the NHS, but without an economic recovery the future of the health service is under threat.

There’s no real plan for getting workers back to their desks and no indication of when ‘phase four’ – where the virus no longer poses a threat – might commence.

Ministers are in an unenviable position, negotiating multiple pitfalls as they try to steer us back to an approximation of normality while keeping Covid-19 at bay.

Their caution is understandable: the virus can get out of control without warning, overwhelming hospital wards. A second spike is possible and careful planning must ensure we’re ready for the potential fallout, not least in our care homes.

But a tipping point has been reached – we can’t let the virus re-establish a foothold, but nor we can allow it to destroy our economy.

And the only way of averting that nightmare prospect is for ministers to get Scotland back to work – without delay.