There’s a tentative sense of confidence after eighteen months of lockdown and restrictions on our lives caused by the rapid spread of various variants of COVID-19. We have made huge progress – but there is still further to go.
The roads around Brentwood and Ongar are as busy as they were pre-pandemic, schools are full, shops are busy and pubs and restaurants are buzzing. I’ve been very impressed by the ability of many shops and venues in our local towns and villages to adapt the services they offer to enable online shopping, ordering and delivery, as well as welcoming people back face to face.
There is no doubt the winter months ahead will bring new challenges and I know we all want to avoid having to endure any further lockdowns if hospital cases raise exponentially again. And it’s saving the NHS and all its hardworking staff from being overwhelmed which is, and has been, at the heart of all the Government has done throughout the pandemic.
At the moment, people are still catching COVID but, wonderfully, far fewer are needing hospital treatment. This is largely due to the social distancing, mask wearing and the phenomenal vaccination programme of the last nine months. And that’s why the Government’s autumn and winter plan for managing Covid, including offering booster jabs continuing with the Test, Trace and Isolate programme, continuing to provide free lateral flow tests at this stage, is all important.
The booster vaccine will be made available to all those most at risk, including care home residents, health and social care workers, people aged over 50, and 16- to 49-year-olds with underlying health conditions.
This will give the best possible protection to the most vulnerable over the months ahead, so if you are called by your GP or pharmacy to come forward for your next Covid or flu jab, please go and get it straight away – for your good and the good of the country.
