I think we’ve been looking at the polls wrongly. The support for LD is largely surface level. As with support for Trump, Brexit and (to a lesser extent) Conservatives, people know what the “correct answer” is for polls and public consumption, so they say it. We’ve got to a Soviet situation: where very few people believe the official line (even officials) but no one can afford to break ranks. The government, NGOs, mass media, social media, big tech and trade unions all support LD so do an apparent majority of the population according to YouGov (polls designed to steer public opinion rather than reflect it). So, the cost is too high for opposition.

But… watch what people do. My city is very busy. The streets are bustling, fewer people (esp. vaccinated old people) are wearing masks outside, people are going out more often, they are chatting in the streets, the park is full every weekend. People are meeting friends. Even people who wear masks outside I don’t think are sticking to essential journeys only. People pick and choose regulations and the police don’t enforce them. Apart from the closure of businesses and schools, LD has basically ceased to function.

So, why protest LD when it isn’t being followed? Well, infringement of civil liberties, the debt, the toll on children and parents, the imposition on non-essential businesses etc. Yes, good reasons. But I think we’ve reached a stage when LD is a façade. So, public “support” for regulations is only for show – people don’t follow them and they don’t expect them to be enforced. Even LD supporters feel they have done their part and are bending rules. The evidence of my eyes is that people have effectively circumvented LD and are just waiting for the first major newspaper to start suggesting LD is hurting kids too much before they break ranks.