I think we need to keep an eye on the ideologies involved in this crisis. I think it illuminates the motivations of governments and the actions thy have taken. They may not just be about the short term closedowns they may also be about a long term view about how socieities recvoer and re-build after these crises. If we take a snapshot at this early stage we may not understand their long term goals.
Those that intervene later and least may have a view to a long term goal about herd immunity and reducing successive waves of the pandemic.
Others who go heavy at the first stage may have a different view about trying to kill later re-infection rates in future waves.
The Tories in the UK (I'm not one) are largely, under BJ, libertarians. So Boris' instincts were not to interfere in peoples lives, to let them go about their business. That means big business to small local cafes and family companies, from public sector employees to freelancers, to freedom of movement and famillies making their own choices about schooling and work. Conservative philosophy is to limit government interference in people's freedom to choose how they live their lives. I think that explains but does not excuse their delayed response.
The Conservatives care about the economy because they believe that a flourishing economy provides employment and enables people to provide for their famillies wellbeing as they wish. So its hugely significant that the government have now been pressed in this crisis to lockdown our individual freedom - so contrary to conservative ideology - and to spend huge amounts of public money to save businesses, self employees, employment, charities and welfare. Huge and entirely contrary in public spending and instinct for a Conservative government.
No one can yet know which government's response is right. But if we don't understand the ideological drivers we wont understand why governments responded differently. And many governments also understood the different cultures of their countries and how their societies behaved differently. Authoritarians regimes closed things down rapidly as did those who'd learnt from SARS. More isolationist and introverted societies like Sweden needed less rules to observe distancing. More social and less compliant nations, like Italy, Spain, France and the UK have suffered more. And the US that resents any interference in private lives by government (an extreme extension of this government's conservative instincts) resist any pro-social collective policies.
We cant evaluate the long term effectiveness of the choices government have made yet and we wont for a very long time. And it won't work if we don't apply the cultural differences of different societies too. We as UK citizens don't comply in the same way as other countries' citizens, we question rules applied and want to make choices for ourselves, we have a very active democracy where we enjoy questioning government policies, PR and media. We are always going to respond differently and more negatively than New Zealanders, Chinese, Swedes, Germans and Americans. This is who we are - unconvinced and cynical. Our political leaders know this.