London – Day 61 of lockdown

Last night it was revealed that the Prime Minister’s special advisor, Dominic Cummings, with his wife and child, drove 260 miles from London to County Durham to stay at his parents’ property when his wife was ill with coronavirus, and he was symptomatic. This was so his child could be cared for. The travel was done in the first week of lockdown.

‘We’re all in this together’ was a rallying cry in the early days of the lockdown.

It became clear in the early days that this was never to be case.

Support for the Prime Minister is waning after confused and confusing messaging a couple of weeks ago. The messaging in England changed to ‘Stay Alert’. In Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, it remains ‘Stay at Home’.

Support is likely to take an even bigger hit in the coming days.

Cummings drove 260 miles so his sister could deposit groceries on the doorstep.

His wife has a brother in London.

I’d imagine he could afford to arrange food to be delivered.

To add at this point, I’m not a fan of Cummings. From rumours to appalling behaviour towards civil servants, to him sitting in on SAGE meetings (unusual I would have thought for an advisor), to the rambling blog post calling for ‘weirdos and misfits’ where applicants were to apply for No10 jobs via a gmail account… On the last of these, when I read the post I thought it was a parody. Sadly I was wrong. And there’s so much more I won’t go into here.

For most of us, the messaging was clear, Stay at Home. And if you are ill and suspect you might have the virus, do not leave the house. For those of us who are in households where noone was ill, the exceptions included exercise once a day, essential grocery shopping, to collect medications.

Tens of millions of us took the advice seriously. Many have gone for months without seeing friends and families. Many have had to stay away from family and friends ill and hospitalised. Many could not be there to support their loved ones as they died, a comforting hand only from health and care staff. Funerals are desperate and lonely affairs.

I don’t know what other folks like me have done in doing this solo.

I stocked up a little in case I got ill. I spoke to my neighbours before my street’s WhatsApp group was set up. I spoke to friends. We arranged if I got ill, that they would be able to deliver food and check-in. The first time I saw a friend without it being by chance was last weekend after the lockdown rules had been eased a little. It was one friend. We stayed at an appropriate social distance.

I’ve had a few good days. I’ve had some horrendous days where my headspace has taken a battering. But I’ve also been fortunate in many ways, with where I live, with my support network, with friends where we can share a moan, share a laugh.

Ministers have come out in support for Cummings. The messaging now seems to be ‘you need to define what exceptional circumstances are’. It’s for an individual to decide if they have support around them. If not, then I guess it’s OK to travel across the country, even if you have the virus. It’s all about common sense…

It seems one rule for us, a different rule for Cummings.

I should be outraged. I should be shocked. But very little surprises me anymore.

So that’s it for Day 61. Stay safe, stay well, and stay home!