While the number of deaths and patients admitted to hospital continues to fall, the weekly survey by the Office of National Statistics reported that the prevalence of the virus in England’s communities is likely to be rising for the first time since May.
At every stage of our recovery, the Government has been clear that the plan to reopen society and the economy is conditional on continued progress. However, we can’t afford to ignore the numbers and so some scheduled adjustments to lockdown restrictions have now been postponed.
This means that, until August 15th at the earliest;
- Casinos, bowling alleys and skating rinks must remain closed.
- Remaining close contact services must remain closed.
- Indoor performances will not resume.
- Pilots of larger crowds in sports venues and conference centres will not take place.
Wedding receptions of up to 30 people will not be permitted, but ceremonies can continue to take place, in line with COVID-Secure guidelines.
I recognise that this will be disappointing to residents, the vast majority of whom are following the rules and doing their bit to control the virus. But we must keep our discipline and focus – we simply cannot be complacent.
Its really important to understand that we are in a far better position to keep the virus under control now than we were at the start of the pandemic. Indeed, we know so much more about the virus and have so many more tools at our disposal to deal with it; hugely increased testing capacity, a contract tracing system and thousands of items of PPE. On top of this, we have new treatments like dexamethasone and remdesivir, to shorten recovery times and reduce mortality rates.
This is a reminder that sadly COVID-19 remains in our communities, and we must all remain committed to any and all efforts that can contain and drive out the virus.
As ever, I remain committed to supporting residents so please do be in touch.