Is Lockdown generally something favoured by those who are generally left of centre/public sector?

[Treesofwood]

I would say I am definitely left leaning, and am also not in support of lockdowns as a strategy. Infact in some of my dealings on here I have been accused of being pro brexit, hard right. Why would that be? Can you be left wing and pro freedom or are the two actually mutually exclusive? And what does Brexit have to do with any of it?

To be honest right now I don't really care, left, right, centre, I just want leaders that work for as many of the population as possible.

I despair that Mr Johnson is our PM but really, really, really wanted him, to succeed in this pandemic, even if it meant another Tory term. I have a bit of a political crush on Starmer as he just seems more prepared and cool headed, statesmanlike, than many political leaders we have had recently. And I still want Boris to do well. I would rather that some of labour shadow cabinet, with the other party leaders were brought in to the COBRA meetings on Covid-19 right now and it was, for just the pandemic, a united parliament. They can get back to squabbling afterwards.

I would have more respect for the PM if he at least brought in just Starmer, if only to show that they were debating across all parties regardless. But no that's not happening is it!

There isnt a fence in the country left that Starmer wont sit on.

God no, I'm centre, left leaning, public sector, anti brexit and I'm not pro lockdown.

Lockdown is destroying the country.

No idea what the answer is though. I think the government wasted too much time, too much money on bloody pointless furlough for people and industries that didn't need to be furloughed.

Now there's no money to support people to isolate, continue to support industries that really can't reopen.

Broadly yes. Particularly public sector workers.

But this is also true

I reckon hundreds of thousands of retired Tory voters are quite happy to see the workforce thrown under a bus to keep them safe, provided the ones they need in the NHS still go to work.

I suppose those who are feeling the economic effects of lockdown most personally are most against it.

Nice to see things mixed up a bit! I've been like this for a long time.

I'm mostly rw, pro brexit but passionate about climate change and animal rights. Where does that leave me?

I'm anti lockdown too btw (mental health being another of my passions).

Local gov worker. I’m right leaning. I do not agree with lockdown

Most people’s views (in my friendship circle) on lockdown seemed to be dependent on personal circumstances. It wasn’t really a left/right:

In favour:

• Public sector workers (particularly teachers)
• older people
• Families with one SAHP and usually one high earner
• those with large properties/gardens
• Anxious friends

Those against

• Self employed
• Those in hospitality and tourism
• Those without big houses/gardens
• Those where both had to work from home and home school

I think what I have found sad is how people can’t recognise why others may take a different view.

Hard left anti capitalist and anti state. Since we have a liberal capitalist state I'm in favour of it acting to put life first. If in that process its found that capitalism isn't compatible with that aim, I shall be more than happy. Because it isn't.

Completely agree with @Notselfish

Also public sector (both DH and I) and whilst people might have perceive we have job security in public sector roles there have been recruitment freezes, staff furloughed and huge gaps left in services as a result of cuts to funding. None of this is good news.

It's really not about left/right or public/private sector. Whilst we have to somehow contain the spread, another national lockdown would be an absolute disaster for us all.

Not in my life. I’m definitely left wing, NHS employee and not pro lockdown. I agreed with the original 3 week lockdown but not the continual restrictions. I’m worried about more than just covid. I’m mostly worried about the ever widening gap between rich and poor. Although my job is relatively safe in that I don’t think I am at risk of losing it, it’s changed massively since March and not for the better. Most people I know would say the same.

I'm left, and lean libertarian over authoritarian, to the extent that during the initial lockdown the instances of police overreaching their powers worried me just as much as anything else that was going on. The reason I don't support another lockdown now though is more pragmatic, I just don't see how it would work. It would have to be funded, which it isn't going to be, and too many people wouldn't comply. If I thought it might work, I would at least think about supporting it.

@Kokeshi123

There was a moment at the start of all this (early this year) when conservatives were the ones getting twitchy about Foreign Viruses and the left was suggesting it was racist to shut down flights from China....

I remember this.

Lefty. Public sector worker in a secure job. Totally against another lockdown.

Left wing and work for the public sector. Absolutely do not think we should have another lockdown. Those who says we should are not considering the wider, far reaching impact this will have on our society for many years to come.

Are all these teachers people speak of genuinely in favour of lockdown or just in favour of more restrictions on school openings? I think if you read a lot of threads it's the latter (despite some posters insisting it's the former). Whilst schools opening is needed for people to work, the percentage of working people with primary aged children is lower than you might expect. I work in a school and don't know one person on the staff in favour of another lockdown.

I'm left leaning and totally against another lockdown. The economy is too important.

I consider myself very left wing but I hated lockdown, couldn't wait for it to be lifted and I definitely don't want another one. I think PP is right it's how authoritarian you are - you can be authoritarian and left wing or right wing

I’d say so yes, but I find that really ironic considering that lockdown marginalise the poorest most vulnerable people even further...

@farfallarocks can you be a left wing libertarian? Genuinely interested.

I am left and public sector and also anti lockdown

@110APiccadilly

I think, as a very broad generalisation, a lot of the public sector are a bit insulated from the economic effects. People who go into the public sector (at least into the civil service) also have a tendency to think governments can fix everything, which, IME, is also a bit of a leftwing tendency.

What I do find particularly strange are (some of) my most leftwing friends on Facebook, who in January apparently thought Boris was a literal fascist, and by March were desperate for him to enact legislation so sweeping and draconian most fascists would only be able to dream of it.

You had possibly not understood what left wing is?

I'm so far to the left Marx would have to jog to keep up with me. And public sector. And medically qualified. And works with the most deprived people. I have never thought Boris was doing a good job (of anything) and think that it was worth trying suppression but it doesn't work, so no - opposed to lockdowns.

I'm left leaning, public sector worker, but have a DS who works in aviation and hadn't worked since March. I am not in favour of lockdown but also don't know what else could be done, that would be successful, because people have pandemic compliance fatigue and the mixed messages from the government - go out and eat in restaurants, but then when you do, you are responsible for the virus spreading - have not been helpful.

Left of centre, public sector worker a long way from retirement. Not anti lockdown in the sense that I think we should adopt a full herd immunity and let the vulnerable die, I'm more of a lockdown sceptic I suppose. I recognise that a balance needs to be made and it's a very difficult one that I doubt either party would get right.

However, it's amazed me how many lefties I know who are pushing for lockdown, and really don't seem to care about the economic fallout at all. Suddenly all those people on zero hour contracts that they've been bleating on about for years under Corbyn now, in their eyes, need to "suck it up buttercup."

It's weird. Very weird.

@guitarstringseadgbe

I’d say so yes, but I find that really ironic considering that lockdown marginalise the poorest most vulnerable people even further...

It's a strange situation, because you would think that a large number of those working in public sector services would actually be seeing the devastating effects of the lockdown and therefore be against another.

The Tory party itself is split between the retirees who want everybody locked down, and the business interests who want everything completely open. So I really don’t think it’s as straightforward as right/left.

The “covid is made up” brigade do tend to be right-wingers, probably because it goes along with the more rabid end of Brexit, Trump QAnon stuff and anti-Semitic conspiracies online. But then you have Jeremy Corbyn’s brother, who is presumably left wing, so even those guys aren’t easy to pigeonhole.

I’m a Labour member and voter and am against a second full lockdown. I don’t know what the solution is, to be honest, but the economic price of a second lockdown would be too great for too many people. I agree that those shouting for it the loudest seem to be those who would be most insulated from its effects.