After weeks of your hard work and dedication, and despite tragic loss across the country; we have slowed the spread of COVID-19 and avoided the heart-wrenching scenes we saw in other countries.
We must now begin to gradually rebuild and restore some semblance of our previous way of life, whilst saving both lives and livelihoods. Over the next weeks and months restrictions will be carefully and slowly adjusted in small steps following the science and the detailed roadmap the Government published on Monday.
Protecting the British public is, and must always be, our number one priority and so we are establishing a new COVID Alert Level System to track our progress. This system will be primarily determined by the rate of infection and the number of COVID-19 cases and will regulate the level of social distancing measures in place. The lower the COVID Alert Level the fewer the restrictions, and the higher the level, the stricter the restrictions.
In the coming months as we move through the Government’s three stages and our lives return to a form of normality, five tests will be closely monitored and if the data suggests the virus is spreading at a greater rate once more, the Government will have to tighten restrictions, possibly at short notice. But at the same time we have announced an extension of the Job Retention Scheme to October so that employers can be supported to only bring people back to work once it is safer to do so.
It is crucial that we proceed with caution. As we seek to develop smarter social distancing measures, the Government will need to balance increasing social contact with keeping the R Value down. Any modest easing of restrictions does not mean that we have won the battle against COVID-19. I will monitor closely our safety here in Rutland and fight to make sure we are protected.
We all have a role to play in keeping the R-Value down because it is directly influenced by how many people you have contact with and for how long. This means it is ever-more important to stay alert to the threat of COVID-19.
As restrictions are eased, we must not waste the huge sacrifices our nation has made to get the virus under control. I understand that we all yearn to be with our loved ones at such a difficult time, but I am confident that Rutland will continue to act with the utmost consideration for the most vulnerable in our communities.
