Online voices

STORY:

Steep fall in coronavirus deaths in Sunderland - but warning we must not lapse on social distancing rules.

Kathy Haq:

Maybe if they obeyed the rules and wore masks on public transport instead of under their chins, putting themselves at more risk actually, then things may improve. Also if they obeyed the rules in shops, just get used to the changes instead of going around as if they're immune to it.

Neil Hutchinson:

I was in a small shop today and a family of 6 came in, not kids (I take it they were family) not a bit of social distancing, probably never crossed their mind, crowded around me and another who was observing the advice, what chance do we have?

Keith Rennie:

Doesn’t take an expert to tell us this virus hasn’t gone away. It takes the idiots amongst us to realise this.

Bryan Seddon:

Has social distancing started in Sunderland, because I’ve not seen much of it happening.

Tracey A BurlinsonCampbell:

People don’t even wear mask on bus I’m a keyworker work in care home I have to keep safe.

Jeremy Hume:

We've seen giant protests, raves, street parties, and crowded beaches. There's been mass lockdown defiance for over 4 weeks. Despite this there has not been an increase in COVID hospitalisations/ deaths (we've only seen a relatively minor local outbreak in Leicester). It's time to end the unnatural and impractical 'new normal' of mandatory social distancing/ lockdown. Thomas Bertram:

Spot on. Michael Levitt of Stanford University is right, the Lockdown will cost more lives than the virus. The virus only has an estimated infection fatality rate of between 0.01 and 0.1% (Professor Sunetra Gupta, Oxford University).

STORY:

Residents in Easington Colliery have overwhelmingly backed plans to demolish a former school building which has stood empty since 1997.

Lisa Sachar Pendleton:

Such a shame as it’s a lovely building. It’s sad when a town loses a part of it’s history. A building company could have converted them into apartments.