UK ‘at half time in extra time’ in Covid battle, warns Van-Tam

THE UK is at “half-time in extra time” in tackling Covid-19 but the final whistle may come in the spring, England’s deputy chief medical officer has said.

Professor Jonathan Van-Tam urged people to be cautious in the winter and over the Christmas period but suggested easier times could be just a few months away.

Speaking to BBC Breakfast and BBC Radio 5 Live, Prof Van-Tam was asked how a Christmas lockdown could be prevented.

He said: “Christmas, and indeed all of the darker winter months, are potentially going to be problematic, and I think the things that are really going to determine this are, first of all, human behaviours and caution over the winter months, but particularly in the next couple of months if you’re talking about Christmas, so it’s how cautious we are.

“The next one is how well the vaccination programmes go.”

On whether the UK is at “half-time in the game”, he said: “I would say we’re kind of half-time in extra time, and I think the final whistle in terms of – I can’t predict it – but my personal view is that we’ve got a few more months to run, and I think we’ll be in a much calmer set of waters by spring.

“But I think, until then – caution, be very careful, this is not quite over and vaccines, boosters, (are) really important.”

Prof Van-Tam said it is still the case that “too many people believe that this pandemic is now over”, adding: “I personally feel there are some hard months to come in the winter and it’s not over. I think a whole range of behaviours, including the use of face coverings, but generally the caution that people take or don’t take in terms of interacting with each other – that is going to be a big determinant in what happens between now and the kind of darkest months of the winter.

“The other things that are going to be really important are how people respond if they are in need of a booster, if they are in need of flu vaccine, if they are partially vaccinated, or indeed if they are unvaccinated – that will be another really important factor in terms of what happens over the next few months.”

The leading scientist said the UK still has “very high” rates of Covid-19 “and we are running quite hot”.

He added: “It’s of concern to scientists that we are running this hot this early in the autumn season. And so, from that perspective, I’m afraid it’s caution, followed by caution.”