Jane James's Consultancy Limited

Like many, I find watching the news more and more bleak and illogical.

Again, like many, I’ve had to cancel holidays booked throughout the year, miss out on family celebrations and stopped taking normal everyday life for granted. I now have to think ‘do I need to go out?’ instead of going out as often as I like.

Living in the UK, I’ve watched the Government make and retract restrictions. Of course in a global pandemic decisions have to be made with the information at hand but some does seem illogical.

Throughout the summer months, as I and many others were cancelling holidays because of the pandemic, others were going on protest marches – no social distancing and few masks. Meanwhile, small restaurants, cafes and pubs have been devested, some shut for good.

More restrictions then the bright idea to send students back to University – charge them full fees and almost immediately put them in lockdown! Shock, horror the virus spread!

Mask wearing on trains was hit and miss as more and more people experienced varying levels of apathy.

Finally December roles around and a glimmer of hope I can still make the Christmas getaway to Lanzarote booked a year ago. Watching the bulletins from Grant Shipps MP, Minister for Transport, we were pleased in October he put The Canary Islands on the air safe corridor. At the time Lanzarote had around 70 cases per 100,000.

Greek Islands were separated out so it was a shock and illogical, I thought, when he Took the Canary Islands off the air safe corridor because Tenerife’s numbers had climbed – even though Lanzarote’s had fallen to 47! Could still go but would have to self-isolate on return.

Lanzarote have a logical system in place for travellers – essential as their largest revenue stream is tourism. A negative test certificate has to be produced for a test taken not more than 72 and not less than 60 hours before travel. Their tracker app has to be downloaded and kept for 10 days after leaving the island. A mask has to be worn outside at all times. All very doable and their numbers of covid infection are low.

Finally December came round, we had the test and flew out to Lanzarote on a near empty plane – the most comfortable flight ever knowing every one had a negative test result and all were wearing masks including the cabin crew.

The villa crew all wore masks, I felt very comfortable. Revisiting the places I’ve come to know over the years – the devastation was awful to see. Restaurants closed and up for sale. Pubs shut in the hope of riding it out and others just hanging on.

The beach above at the same time last year was packed.

Now the prospect of returning home where I know the odds are very much higher of contracting the virus. Virologists have always said the pandemic virus would mutate – that’s what viruses do and we see that every flu season.

We have had almost a year of living with this pandemic. Lives have been severely restricted. Loved ones lost. The NHS put under pressure. Tiers brought in and then changed. Illogical restrictions are introduced without explaining the evidence for them and apathy grows.

What’s the answer? I’ve no idea other than to keep going. One day all of this will be behind us. In the meantime, finding joy and gratitude in the small things we can control is the start of the journey to some kind of new living for me.

Governments will continue making, what we think are illogical decisions. Some of us will adhere, others won’t. This saga looks set to continue for some time yet! We won’t know until it’s all over and analysis has been undertaken to discover what was the right and wrong actions taken.

I don’t doubt Coronavirus will be seen and treated as another strain of the flu in time. At the moment it seems easier to spread fear to control citizens.

As always there will be a blame game. Does it matter who is at fault? Isn’t it more important to deal with what’s in front of us right now?