SIR GRAHAM BRADY: Why can Tesco sell flowers but not the stalls in my local market?

As a little boy, my grandad would play-fight with me. Putting his two fists up in front of me, he would ask jokingly: ‘Which do you want: long illness or sudden death?’

The choices facing the Government are about as palatable.

We all know that ending the current restrictions prematurely would likely lead to deaths that might otherwise be avoidable. 

But it is also increasingly obvious that keeping the commercial and social life of the country on hold for longer than necessary would mean mass unemployment, business failure and catastrophic deterioration of the public finances.

Every further day that passes in lockdown will see more businesses go to the wall and more furloughed workers with no job to go back to.

This is a decision every bit as tough as taking the country to war. Literally a matter of life and death, it is a balancing act between two outcomes – either of which will cost some lives and ruin others.

It is made harder by the fact that the Government has, to date, very properly put its medical and scientific advice at the front and centre of policy-making.

It is likely that this advice will focus on the effort to squeeze the coronavirus ever more tightly in the hope that we make it to the promised land of mass vaccination sooner rather than later.

We know though, that even if the amazing efforts of the British team under Professor Sarah Gilbert in Oxford come good, that would be several months away. No country has tried to maintain lockdown restrictions for that long.

So ultimately, this is a political judgment not a scientific one. Yes, it must be informed by the best science and medicine (we are fortunate to have both in the UK), but it must also take account of the wider social and economic consequences.

The good news is that the tough action taken so far is working. It seems we are past the peak of new infections, hospital admissions and deaths.

The heroic efforts of frontline doctors, nurses and carers, together with the quiet good sense of the British people in consenting to restrict their social contact have achieved Health Secretary Matt Hancock’s main objective: NHS critical care has not been overwhelmed and the ‘curve’ is flattening, which has allowed a massive increase in healthcare capacity.

Thousands more intensive care beds, new Nightingale hospitals and more ventilators all make any second wave of virus less frightening.

The public has complied with the Government’s requests in a remarkable way and that achievement has been at the heart of the success so far. But maintaining that consent in the coming weeks will only be possible if we are all involved in a grown-up national debate. Crucially, it will require compromise all round.

Some gaps in Government support need addressing and inconsistencies should be tackled. 

For example, why are supermarkets allowed to sell flowers while flower stalls such as the one in Altrincham Market in my constituency cannot?

Or why are cafes that pay their own business rates eligible for a grant but those which pay them through rent payments to a landlord are not?

Let’s also ensure that restrictions on our liberty make sense.

We are all used to socially distanced queuing at supermarkets, so why can’t the same discipline operate when taking garden waste to the tip or buying bedding plants at a garden centre?

Such details have been more complex than the word ‘lockdown’ suggests. Ministers have been consistent in saying that we should carry on working if we can, but that we should do so from home if possible.

But a big local employer with a busy order book has told me that he’s struggled to get workers to come in because they think they are entitled to be furloughed.

While some of my constituents have been required to shut up shop, others are still doing good business. Taking sensible precautions, a gradual return to work should see more people’s jobs move towards normality.

A medical friend wisely suggested that, as restrictions are gradually lifted, the emphasis should shift from ‘distancing from people, towards distancing from the virus’.

In this new world, we might be able to travel to our workplace more often but must wear disposable gloves during the journey. School classrooms may be cleaned during the day and not just once after pupils have gone home.

Ultimately, Ministers must take the best advice, pick the right time and unlock our lives with caution.

But, most importantly, there has to be a compact with the public that means we move as quickly as is safe, using only the precautions that are absolutely necessary.