Andy Richardson: 'Boris - the nation’s favourite jester'
Margaret Thatcher would be turning in her grave.
Actually, Margaret Thatcher would not. She was famously a lady not for turning: an ideologue whose word was her bond.
Boris Johnson’s word, however, counts for as much as a 20p packet of Space Raider crisps. This is why.
From face masks to recreational cricket, from GCSE and A-level results to local contract tracers, from school meal vouchers to visa surcharges, from bereavement schemes to testing in the community and many, many more; the nearness of a Boris Johnson U-turn is quietly reassuring.
He’s done it all his life, of course, though Covid-19 has underscored his penchant for a U-turn. Those flip flops are frequently caused by public pressure or because he’d failed to pay attention to evidence from experts.
Poor old Boris. The nation’s favourite jester is world beating at providing hope, but as useful as catnip in a dog’s home at keeping his word.
His latest coronavirus policy change centres on facemasks in secondary schools. He’d previously advised against their use but now says they should be used in local lockdown areas. Perhaps he’ll go one step further by acceding to the wishes of headteachers and letting pupils and teachers wear them when they wish. After all, the young were quicker to embrace their use – and then there’s the small matter of them preventing transmission of the disease.
There is, of course, another theory and it is this: our leader is so enraptured by his favourite holiday destination, Scotland, that he’s copying Nicola Sturgeon. Lest we forget, as England withered under the strain, Scotland achieved New Zealand-esque results by being more pro-active and assertive in the face of Covid-19.
So, Boris has aped Scotland – albeit it a week or so later – on mass gatherings, school closures, face masks in shops, the exams algorithm and putting his money where his mouth is when it comes to choosing a great place for a holiday.
We were told there was a straight choice between saving lives or the economy. New research, however, suggests this was false. The UK endured the worst of both worlds, with a colossal fall in economic output and frightening death rate. South Korea was the world’s best performing nation with barely a hit to their economy and few deaths. Silver linings abound. It is the only table in which we’ve been genuinely world beating.
