Never mind squeezing the brakes – the PM's lockdown strategy is a car crash 

According to an ongoing survey of more than 70,000 adults by University College London, just 45 percent of the population has a “broad understanding” of the current lockdown restrictions. That cannot possibly be accurate. It must be lower than that. 

I’ve lost count of the number of U-turns the government has done. First we were told that masks were unnecessary. Now they’re mandatory in indoor public spaces. Primary schools were supposed to re-open weeks before the summer holidays. Then they weren’t. You are absolutely, positively allowed to go to Spain on your summer holidays – oh no, wait a minute, you’re not. It’s hardly surprising that even members of the Cabinet are being caught out by last-minute policy shifts.

But in the last 48 hours the government’s handling of the ongoing crisis has reached a new pitch of incoherence. August 1 was supposed to be the day that another raft of restrictions were lifted, with bowling allies, skating rinks and casinos all allowed to re-open. Live sporting events were due to resume and weddings of up to 30 people would be permitted. It was time to turbo-boost the economy.

But on Friday Boris announced he was going to “squeeze the brake pedal” in response to a “surge” in infections across England, which meant none of these things would happen. Worse, a local lockdown was imposed in Greater Manchester, East Lancashire and parts of West Yorkshire, thanks to a fresh “outbreak” in the northwest. Matt Hancock helpfully unveiled this hodgepodge of new restrictions at 9.16pm on Twitter, less than three hours before they came into force. 

So what’s the message coming out of Downing Street? That the crisis is far from over and we need to be super-vigilant if we’re to avoid a second wave? Apparently not, because the government has stuck to its plan to launch Rishi Sunak’s ‘Eat Out to Help Out’ scheme, with diners in over 72,000 cafes, pubs and restaurants getting 50 percent off for the month of August. 

In addition, the ‘shielding guidance’, whereby the elderly and the vulnerable were advised to take extra steps to protect themselves, was ‘paused’ on Saturday. That’s encouraging. Virus almost gone, then? Er, no. Less than 24 hours later we learned that Boris is considering extending the ‘shielding’ policy it to everyone over 50.

So the Prime Minister has simultaneously slammed on the brakes, executed a U-turn and pressed the accelerator. No wonder the government appears to be drifting.

What is more, the rationale for all this frantic manoeuvring collapses under the slightest scrutiny. 

“The northern lockdown was a rash decision,” Oxford University's prof Carl Heneghan said yesterday in an interview with this newspaper. “Where’s the rise? By date of test through July there’s no change if you factor in all the increased testing that’s going on.

“Why is no one checking this out at government level?” he added.

Good question, Professor. It seems the Prime Minister was too busy conjugating Greek and Latin verbs at Eton to pay any attention in maths. When I think of his handling of the coronavirus crisis I picture a child behind the wheel of a racing car. He’s overwhelmed by the data constantly popping up on his dashboard, has no idea what any of it means, so just randomly presses different levers and pedals, spins the wheel as fast as he can, and hopes for the best.