From India: A Warning

The terrible scenes in India of the pandemic out of control, in a country which a few weeks ago was declaring it had beaten Covid 19, must serve as a clear warning to all countries and especially here in the UK.  This virus is aggressive and dangerous and until it is brought under control everywhere it is under control nowhere. Moreover it may never be eliminated, like for example smallpox. It may, like conventional flu, always remain as a fact of life and death and one with which we we have to learn to live.

At the moment Covid 19 is still on the advance globally and even in the UK with our supercharged vaccination programme, a third wave is not impossible. Some additional pressure in the autumn is a near certainty, even if we successfully manage it with social restrictions short of a lockdown.

Of course every government has to show it is putting the welfare of its own people first and foremost, but more will have to get used to the idea that to do that priority must also be given to funding and administering vaccinations and treatments worldwide. Until every fire is controlled the forest is not safe.