I hate how this has become a binary issue.
It's perfectly possible to acknowledge that we're able to move forwards, while still being concerned about COVID.
It's very telling that the scientists/doctors don't seem comfortable with ripping away every measure right now. It's also very telling that Boris has introduced a whole raft of crowd-pleasing measures - which go against scientific advice - at the time when he's under the biggest pressure for his lockdown behaviour.
This is nothing more that distraction techniques - and it's bloody working.
Mental health, the economy, jobs - of course they're all important. The point is that it doesn't have to be a binary choice in the way that Boris has made it.
We are not yet at the point of being able to live with COVID, just like flu and colds. If you had it, and it was mild, then brilliant. Genuinely. But thousands of people are dying, being hospitalised or suffering long-term effects. It's reckless in the extreme to basically stop everything.
Without testing we won't know when cases are rising. People who at an increased risk won't be able to judge how to take a proportionate response. Why can't we carry on wearing masks in shops and on public transport for a while? It protects the most vulnerable and doesn't stop businesses, hurt the economy etc.
Throughout this whole COVID saga Boris has reacted too slowly, or put his own interests first. And he's doing it again now.
The problem is that people are just sick of COVID. And if they've not suffered badly, and not known anyone who has, it just doesn't seem real. It's very easy to dismiss this as just a cold. And it's really, really, really not.
But if you say that, people come along to sneer and suggest you wear a biohazard suit to open the front door, or other such sarcastic comments.
I don't understand how we couldn't have moved forward but just kept better monitoring in place, and some protection. This isn't over yet, even though Boris would like you to think that it is. And by refusing to acknowledge there remains a lingering risk, some people will end up dying or very sick. That might not be you or your loved ones, but that still doesn't mean that it's OK.
Asking for monitoring, ongoing testing, and masks in very public, crowded spaces while opening everything up properly doesn't seem like a lot to ask. It means if things go tits up, we'll be able to spot it right away. It won't affect businesses or mental health. But Boris isn't "going with the science" as he's always claimed to do - he's saying what people wanted to hear, so I guess science is an inconvenient fact that they'd rather not acknowledge.