We all want to get back to some semblance of normality – whether
that’s seeing our friends and family, getting back to work or
school, or just being able to spend our free time in the way we
want to.
This document sets out the steps that will take us there. It
doesn’t have all the answers and it doesn’t set exact timescales.
That’s because we are still learning about the virus. We will
have to move carefully and gradually to ensure we keep it under
control and develop the best ways of doing so.
Too many people have lost their lives to this disease already and
we cannot risk another peak – most importantly because that would
mean more deaths but also because it would mean another lockdown.
This week we have also seen what the hard work of lockdown has
achieved, with a continuing fall in the number of deaths and in
the number of people in intensive care.
But we know the lockdown is doing harm of its own. It is causing
loneliness and social isolation, deepening inequalities and
damaging the economy.
None of us want it to last any longer than it has to.
So we are setting out the phases by which we will aim to ease
lockdown. They are gradual and incremental and will be matched
with careful monitoring of the virus. We may, at times, need to
hit the brakes on easing. However, it may also be that we are
able to ease restrictions faster than we initially thought that
we could.
