The Daily Mail has carried out an audit of the economic, social, educational and healthcare damage the continuing lockdown is doing to the UK and the headline figure is that it is costing the country £500 million a day in lost output and adding £1 billion to the national debt. But there are other, equally alarming findings.
Today’s lockdown audit illustrates the crippling impact that 12 months of curbs have had on swathes of the economy, with pubs and restaurants losing an estimated £1.7 billion a week, and some 15,000 shops expected to never reopen.
The grim Covid death toll, which yesterday hit 126,155, is well known. But today’s analysis also reveals the dire impact of the past year on the nation’s health. The NHS waiting list has soared to a record high of nearly 4.6million, with 300,000 waiting more than a year for treatment.
On cancer, 44,000 fewer patients started treatment last year and there were 4.4million fewer life-saving diagnostic tests. An extra 6,000 people died of heart disease and stroke. Mental health services saw a 27,000 rise in individuals seeking support, while child eating disorders doubled.
As the Mail points out, this makes the news that the EU is considering slapping an export ban on vaccines to the UK, which in all likelihood would delay Britain’s reopening, even more unwelcome.
Worth reading in full.
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