COVID-19: THE PRACTICAL AND FINANCIAL BENEFITS OF #NEARZERO

Just before PM Johnson's speech last week, we saw how a #NearZero strategy, with very low levels of infection, would be substantially better in a whole host of ways than the UK Government's current strategy for England.

The following day the Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, outlined the financial support.  Reduced to a level that will be of little use to employers, employees or the self-employed.  Which is why there is concern about unemployment and the hit to the economy, which would produce significant income losses for the Treasury, and significant extra costs.

So let's pull these two aspects together:

• The benefits to lives, livelihoods and life for individuals, with
• Impact on the Treasury

So we've shown that a very low level of infections, #NearZero, is not only better for lives, livelihoods and life, but also better for the economy:

• Lives
• Fewer deaths
• Fewer cases of LongCOVID

•  Livelihoods
• More work for the employed
• More work for the self-employed

• Life
• Get on with what we like to do
• Better for education
• Less strain on the NHS, our health service, and the people who work in it
• Less strain on NHS Test system

• Economy

• Better for business
• Better for the nation's finances

Which leaves one unanswered question. Why isn't the government following a #NearZero strategy?

The answer may lie in what is needed to get there.  A fresh day produced a fresh idea.