Judge is right – we must set our elderly free
I agree with everything former Supreme Court judge Lord Sumption wrote in last week’s article ‘Locking up the elderly until the virus is defeated is a cruel mockery of basic human values’.
My husband has Alzheimer’s and I am due a knee operation, which has had to be postponed. Because of the lockdown, there is now no care available for him. I have him with me 24/7 and I am in terrible pain. I cannot do it for another year.
Why does this Government want to penalise the elderly when we are the one group which has truly followed all of the advice over self-isolating?
Our scientists might be very intelligent but they have no common sense, and how dare anyone dictate to us when they have no idea of people’s lives and what they are coping with.
My daughter lives in Germany, where they have been dealing with this outbreak in a very civilised way. They are not penalising the elderly. We need to follow them. Yvette Standring, Letcombe Regis, Oxfordshire
It was good to read two alternative opinions on the current crisis. The views of Lord Sumption and Peter Hitchens are no doubt shared by many of us but go unrepresented.
Sky News and the BBC have become government propaganda puppets and are now virtually un-watchable. We hear people are worried about coming out of lockdown – probably those in mundane jobs they dislike, who are no financially worse off and quite enjoy staying at home.
The virus, in world terms, is minute but the fallout from it will affect every one of us for years to come. There has to come a time when we bite the bullet and get on with things. Gary Byrne, Inverness
Well done Lord Sumption for speaking out against this nonsense we are being subjected to by a government that is sheltering behind scientists to avoid public scrutiny of their decisions.
I am ashamed I voted for this lot at the last general election – my lifelong Conservative views are being stretched to breaking point.
The over-reaction to this crisis has caused immense damage to the UK. All corners of the country will suffer the same lack of employment opportunities and massive Universal Credit outlay.
Lord Sumption and the equally critical Peter Hitchens are well worthy of the column inches given to both. Many people wholeheartedly and unreservedly share and endorse their views. So it’s a great pity that our MPs cannot rise to the task of challenging the decisions being taken by the Government. Mike McKillop, Aberdeen
No one is dismissive of the pain suffered by people affected by coronavirus but I have to applaud and thank Peter Hitchens for highlighting the harm being done to our country in the name of controlling the outbreak.
Only a very small percentage of the country’s workforce is actively engaged and we cannot carry on like this. The economy is in freefall.
Both north and south of the Border, uninspiring and timid politicians drone on endlessly about maintaining the lockdown instead of doing what they were elected to do – to show some leadership and appreciation of the problems piling up for our nation. We have to get this country back to work. John W Stephen, Dyce, Aberdeen
The phrase Lord Sumption uses that ‘there is more to life than the avoidance of death’ encapsulates the folly of the measures that we are taking. The threat of coronavirus is exaggerated and the consequences of the actions we have taken will be more costly. Tim Taylor, Rochdale
To all those complaining they are
being unfairly dealt with by the lockdown, you are not understanding the situation. You are not immune to this virus and could pass it on to a number of other people. As an 80-year-old, I implore you to respect the guidance. Roy Dilcock, Leeds ‘Please release me, let me go’ are words from a song many over-70s will remember. Some of the first to be released from lockdown should be these over-70s. I am sure we observe social distancing more than younger age groups. Ian Walton, Othery, Somerset