Health first as Boris Johnson faces decision of his life – The Yorkshire Post says

Now the Prime Minister, back at his desk in 10 Downing Street last night after just a fortnight of convalescence, faces the decision of his political life – when, and how, to ease the lockdown.

A judgement call which will define his premiership, he returns to the fray at a time when the Government is facing mounting criticism on multiple fronts as the Covid-19 death toll in UK hospitals passes 20,000.

Mr Johnson can count himself fortunate that public opinion remains – for now – sympathetic and also largely tolerant of the unprecedented measures in place to contain the spread of the virus.

Public health – rather than the self-interest and ‘expert’ views of Tory donors and grandees – must determine when it is safe for certain sectors of economy to return to work.

As such, it would be wrong for their privileged position to be used to bounce the Government into a decision that could, in turn, exacerbate the current crisis or lead to a second lockdown later in the year when the UK is trying to get back on its feet.

But the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, which has been very low-profile so far, could – and should – be trusting firms to come up with Covid-19 contingencies so they can take account of social distancing protocols, and so on, when it is safe for them to resume operations.

Many also need to be thinking now about arrangements to kickstart exports, and which will, frankly, be even more critical to propping up the wider economy in the short to medium term.

And to those who fear this will encourage firms to flout the lockdown, it is, in fact, in the best interests of executives and industrial leaders to put public health first. If not, they can expect a backlash like no other from staff, customers and consumers alike.

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