People in the North most likely to feel like life has got back to pre-pandemic normal

People in the North are most likely to feel like life has got back to a pre-pandemic normal than anywhere else in the country, new data suggests.

More than one in three (35 per cent) of people across the North of England told pollsters that it feels like their life has returned to “how it was before the coronavirus pandemic began”, significantly higher than the national average of 29 per cent.

People in the Midlands and Wales are the least likely to think that their life has returned to the pre-2020 norms, with only 26 per cent of people feeling this way, however, all restrictions have not yet been removed in Wales.

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The figures were collected just days after the final domestic Covid restrictions were lifted in England, removing the legal mandate to self-isolate after a positive test.

File photo dated 31/07/21 of a person receiving a Covid-19 jabFile photo dated 31/07/21 of a person receiving a Covid-19 jab
File photo dated 31/07/21 of a person receiving a Covid-19 jab

The same data set shows that the majority of people (59 per cent) believe that Britain “needs to learn to live with it and get back to normal”, according to the figures released by YouGov today.

However, the drive to learn to live with the virus varies significantly between Conservative and Labour voters.

According to the survey, taken between February 25 and 28, 73 per cent of Tory voters say this is the priority, compared with 22 per cent who believe more attention needs to be focussed on vaccination, testing and wearing a mask.

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On the other hand, Labour voters were more split, with 48 per cent preferring the ‘back to normal approach’, with 41 per cent more likely to prefer preventative measures.

Different age groups were also deeply split on this question, with the youngest cohort far more concerned about vaccination and masks than older adults.

The YouGov data shows that just 43 per cent of 18 - 24 year olds believe the country should learn to live with the virus, compared to 63 per cent of 25 to 49 year olds, and 50 per cent of both 50 - 65 year olds and 65+.

However, this was still the most popular option among young adults, with 35 per cent preferring more masks and testing, and 22 per cent being unsure, the highest of any demographic.

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