Coronavirus: These random police checkpoints to enforce lockdown are about saving lives – The Yorkshire Post says

They’re to be commended for taking the initiative and enforcing the lockdown on roads like the A1M and A64 so soon after Parliament passed emergency powers; they deserve the public’s full support and other forces should be following suit.

As Assistant Chief Constable Mike Walker said: “The message is clear and the warning stark. Stay at home, save lives. These are the lives of the people we know and love. Our partners, mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, children, grandparents.”

The context is this. Yorkshire – and Britain – today is different to the country at the start of the week when Boris Johnson made a sobering address to the nation.

Streets are silent as the vast majority comply, finally, with the PM’s instruction to stay at home unless they need to venture out sparingly to shop, to exercise, to attend a medical appointment or, in the case of key workers, travel to their place of employment.

Yet, despite this, a moronic minority still think they’re impervious to Covid-19, hence the checkpoints in North Yorkshire. Even more shockingly, there have been depressing reports of youths spitting at police officers when they’re asked to disperse. Vile and disgusting behaviour in normal times, it is even more disturbing – and dangerous – when the country is in the grip of the highly contagious respiratory illness Covid-19, an invisible killer.

And while it is regrettable that such checkpoints are needed, they remain – for now – a necessary deterrent and the officers concerned should be respected for just doing their job. One final point also needs to be made – only those flouting the new rules should have anything to fear from these spot checks.