Coronavirus infection rate in the United Kingdom seems
to be subsiding finally, having registered the highest death toll since the
beginning of the pandemic last year.
The fall in the figures, however, has not given the
authorities any meaningful cause for optimism, as they have been there before;
if the public flout the lockdown rules, as happened in the last summer, things
can get worse again, as it happened after the Christmas.
In short, the pandemic can only be kept at bay with
the public complying with the measures introduced by the authorities.
Despite the encouraging statistics, the government
is not prepared to take any more risks: the opening of schools may not happen
in February after all; even summer holidays are in jeopardy now; even on the
vaccine front, there are logistical issues to deal with.
The other lingering worry is the emergence of new
variants and the way they will respond to the existing vaccines.
There is no tangible sign of air travel coming back
to normal; nor is there any indication of road traffic getting back to
pre-pandemic level.
That means there is no light end of the tunnel as
far as businesses are concerned.
All in all, when we really will be normal is jut
anybody’s guess.
