100%, I’ve been in this place for a couple of months,
@wittonite was arguing it too amongst others.
Key KPI is managing R to 1 or below, so hospitals don’t get overwhelmed. So we in the UK need to act because that’s out of control. This is purely to manage workload of ICU’s, and give everyone the best chance to survive.
The tactic for me has to change. Rather than lockdown everyone, we need to financially and logistically support the elderly and vulnerable. And that’s not just government, companies need to act responsibly too. If someone who is vulnerable is a tyre fitter, they need to be supported by the government and by companies to be furloughed to avoid more deaths, and the company will have to suffer. The problem is, that the amount of money paid out during furlough on false or dodgy claims was enourmous. Dodgy companies will claim the furlough and coerce people to work.
The flip side is I would let the younger lot out, however protect the young with known underlying conditions as above. That won’t be perfect, and people will die - but I think it’s the best solution.
Of course, the elderly won’t like a scenario that restricts their mobility, even though it protects their life and gets the economy back up and running to some degree. But it’s true only solution in my opinion in 2021 to manage both statistics - health and the economy.
