I EXPERIENCED a worrying sense of déjà vu this week as further restrictions were imposed following the emergence of a new Covid variant.
Face masks are now mandatory, but only in shops and on public transport, and you must isolate for 10 days if you’ve been in contact with someone who has Omicron.
The latter has raised fears of another so-called ‘ping-demic’, which crippled the country earlier this year.
All this when eminent physicians, including the one who discovered it in South Africa, are playing down the risk of this variant.
Even President Biden is urging people to stay calm.
Let’s not forget, the Office of National Statistics says that, with 81 per cent of us double vaccinated, and 32 per cent given their boosters, 92.5 per cent of UK adults now test positive for antibodies, meaning some welcome immunity.
This is an extraordinary feat, of which we should be rightly proud.
Yet, within just a few days of the emergence of this new strain, the most ardent are calling for more lockdowns, masks and restrictions.
Following ‘Freedom Day’, back in July, the economy has made a miraculous recovery, but the consequences of three lockdowns are coming home to roost, not least for those facing cancer scares.
It’s estimated that between 240,000 and 740,000 referrals have been missed, with the NHS waiting list standing at six million.
For the past few months, we have been learning to live with this disease, which is here to stay for many years to come.
Life is all about risk, but it’s the citizen now who must assess it, and not the state.
And with our extraordinary vaccine roll-out programme proving so effective, there is no need to reach for the lever marked ‘panic’.