Fears for tiers
THE blanket imposition of tough new tiers on places that don’t merit them is a recipe for economic disaster and huge resentment.
How does the Government justify to pubs or restaurants in areas with low Covid cases that they must face ruinous restrictions, or close, probably for good?
The new system throws up ridiculous discrepancies and blatant injustices.
No wonder MPs are in revolt.
Tunbridge Wells in Kent, with a low infection rate, is in Tier 3.
A neighbouring town with far higher cases is in Tier 2.
There are many more.
Bizarrely, infections are dropping in almost all the 119 Tier 3 areas where 20million of us live.
We do understand Boris Johnson’s motive behind this new tiers system.
His first last month was working to beat the second wave, albeit slowly, so a tougher one makes some sense.
It’s not quite as bad as full lockdown.
And we do need hospitalisations and deaths to fall further heading into winter.
But there are scores of inconsistencies which will do real damage to lives and jobs.
Four in five pubs are now in peril.
The PM must review the allocation of these tiers.
Not in a fortnight — today.
Bunglers’ bungs
PUBLIC Health England is a monument to a corrosive culture of bureaucratic incompetence where failure is rewarded.
We already knew officials’ tedious obsession with sugar and booze distracted them from vastly greater health threats we now know all about.
Even when Covid struck they claimed to have a “belt and braces” response ready.
It was nonsense.
Then they bungled the early testing programme.
PHE’s complacency would have been laughable had it not cost lives.
But now we also know that top execs, already lavishly paid, bagged bonuses of up to £10,000 each before the pandemic.
Three already earn over £200,000 a year.
Nine get more than the PM.
The Tories have axed PHE. Great.
But does anyone have any faith that its replacement will be significantly better?
A roar deal
WE like the sound of the “Roaring 2020s” — and the theory holds water.
Plenty of work-from-homers have saved a fortune in expenses and on holidays they never took.
If the vaccines see Covid off, they’ll aim to spend their way to happiness in 2021.
Good news for the economy and the job creation we will desperately need.
So those economists who claim we are all too pessimistic about the speed of recovery may have a point.
But one thing will smother that bounceback at birth: The Chancellor hiking income tax, national insurance and VAT.
Rishi Sunak is desperate to refill the coffers.
But tax rises are not the answer.
And especially not before a recovery is in full swing.
