Just being curious - what do you think will happen .....

[cromwell]

If they don't get at least some of the country back to work soon there will be nothing left to go back to.

[Workingman]

You may well be right, but we are in limbo at present.

There is a lead time of about 14 days between event and result. Recently we have had the VE Day celebrations, a Bank Holiday and the official easing of the lockdown. We have had two weeks of good weather and loads of reports of people flocking to beauty spots and beaches and second homes as well as some being able to return to work and shops reopening..

We will not see what the easing has done till about next Wednesday and thereafter. As things stand the numbers do not look brilliant. Although there has been a slow reduction in the daily death toll over the past seven weeks at about 350 it is still stubbornly above the rate when the lockdown was introduced on the 23rd of March, and way above what is though to be a safe level.

It's a waiting game and we all need to keep our fingers crossed that some of the recent behaviour we have witnessed does not take it up again.

[meriad]

Personally, I think they should make masks compulsory for everyone if they're outside and there is a chance they will come within a 2m distance of people, ie no mask needed if going for a walk, exercise etc as you can move out the way, but for shopping it should be compulsory. Enforce the social distancing and then let everything reopen; and I mean everything. Restaurants may struggle obviously but all other retail should be able to cope - yes shopping will take longer because of queuing systems but small price to pay for a start of economic recovery. And shopping habits will change - rather than a quick nip down to the shops, people will shop once a week only?

Those that are vulnerable / high risk should continue to self isolate but be allowed family / core group of people visits; but others should be allowed to go back to work.

But above all, they really reallly really need to get going with having everyone tested for antibodies! That is taking far too long

[TheOstrich]

There's a lady in a local village who has made simple cloth and elastic face-masks (about 500!) and has been selling them for donations to the local Donkey / Pony Sanctuary. We have ordered a couple against the day when it might be compulsory in shops. Whether it will be in any way effective is an entirely different matter, but I suppose "every little helps".

Yes, I'm quite convinced shopping habits will change, certainly in our case. The daily shop will almost certainly become weekly, now; we will forego Waitrose's free newspaper offer. And even if restaurants / cafes do reopen, I don't think we will be visiting them any time soon. I guess our reaction will be typical of most "active oldies", and that will ultimately take a huge chunk out of the pre-covid economy. It is interesting, I have done some crude number-crunching, and without going into details, in our case it will be quite significant. For example, I estimate that the annual cost of Ossie no longer going to football matches - and that's just one facet - will save around £1,500 in petrol, train fares, food, admission costs etc.

[miasmum]

I think pubs should be the absolute last thing to reopen. The thought of alcohol, the loss of inhibitions, hugging and kissing, fights, the strain on A&E, nope I want us to be as infection free as we can be before pubs are reopened

Restaurants, provided tables aren't too close together fine, small coffee shops with outside seating should reopen too.

My shopping won't change, it is back to normal now. I do one shop but still pop to Aldi or the Co-Op as my guinea pig food won't keep for a week

[Kaz]

Personally, I think they should make masks compulsory for everyone if they're outside and there is a chance they will come within a 2m distance of people, ie no mask needed if going for a walk, exercise etc as you can move out the way, but for shopping it should be compulsory. Enforce the social distancing and then let everything reopen; and I mean everything. Restaurants may struggle obviously but all other retail should be able to cope - yes shopping will take longer because of queuing systems but small price to pay for a start of economic recovery. And shopping habits will change - rather than a quick nip down to the shops, people will shop once a week only?

Those that are vulnerable / high risk should continue to self isolate but be allowed family / core group of people visits; but others should be allowed to go back to work.

But above all, they really reallly really need to get going with having everyone tested for antibodies! That is taking far too long

x

Ria, I agree with every word of that!!

[Workingman]

I am not against reopening things, but the 2m rule will be a logistical nightmare and impossible to enforce - it will have to go. Look at the current queues for supermarkets, now take that to the high street. The queue for Primark running into or alongside the one for Next and the one for Waterstones and the one for 'Spoons and Wilco and Home Bargains and everyone 2m apart from each other! And we also have to make space for those going from one place to another. There just is not enough room.



Social distance that! We might as well drop the pretence and go back to normal and to hell with the consequences. Or we might need to look at each location and stagger openings day by day. You, you and you can open Monday and Thursday, you etc on Tues and Fris, you etc on Weds and Sats, we are closed on Sunday so you can all go exercise. Next week the rota moves forwards one....

Wanting everything opened up is one thing, doing it safely is another thing entirely.

[Gal2]

WM I have to agree with you. I can't imagine all of the shops being open as they used to be, how could anyone social distance in a shopping mall for example? As it is enclosed?

It's great to think of all the shops opening but the practicalities have to be scrupulously worked out for safety - we don't want more cases of this popping up because some didn't adhere to the rules - and tbh how safe are face masks? Really? Plastic shields MIGHT be the best option but I can't see that happening.

[meriad]

WM I have to agree with you. I can't imagine all of the shops being open as they used to be, how could anyone social distance in a shopping mall for example? As it is enclosed?

The perfect opportunity for revamping the high street and bringing that back to life. That would be absolutely amazing were that to happen

[TheOstrich]

Well, yes and no, Meriad. The proof of the pudding will be in the eating, as the saying goes - Mrs O and I were discussing that this morning.

For example, we used to make regular jaunts to Shaftesbury High Street, I'd do the bank and the bookshops, we'd have a Costa, Mrs O would browse Boots and Edinburgh Woollen Mill and the other independent shops - all accomplished in a morning.

But under the new regime, will we now be queueing, Moscow 1960's style, outside each individual shop for half an hour before being called inside, and barked at if we didn't hurry up and make our choice or got too close to someone else?

If that is how it is going to evolve, I don't think the High Street will beckon us anytime soon ….