Bolton

Wednesday

Raghib Ali

Lockdown delay is a price worth paying

For the first time during this pandemic, I think we should delay lifting restrictions. Looking at the latest data, it seems that the Prime Minister was right to postpone ‘Freedom Day’. I am no zero-Covider. Its clear restrictions can be as harmful as Covid. Last September, it seemed obvious that a ‘circuit breaker’ lockdown would have just postponed the wave further into winter. In February, the government did the right thing by explicitly ruling out an elimination policy and introducing its roadmap. At the front of everyone's minds should be minimising harm. This time around, minimising harm means delaying reopening. The situation is completely different from other stages of the pandemic.

Friday

Robert Peston

Why Boris shouldn’t be optimistic about the Bolton Covid data

I am bemused by Boris Johnson’s optimism about the prospects for full unlocking on 21 June, based on the data he says he is seeing. Because the government’s own daily published data is showing worrying trends for the Indian variant. For example, there were 280 Covid infections reported for Bolton alone yesterday, 10 per cent of the UK total, and as you can see here the trend is steeply upward: That would be less worrying if there was also a steep rise in Covid testing in Bolton. But there isn't. As you can see here, the ratio of positive test results to tests carried out in Bolton – the positivity ratio – is holding fairly steady at about 7.5. It is obviously encouraging that there has not been a sharp associated rise in hospitalisations.

Wednesday

John R. Bradley

What Syria should teach us about Venezuela

From our US edition

It is no mere coincidence that Donald Trump turned his attention to Venezuela straight after announcing the withdrawal of US troops from Syria. Nicolás Maduro, fighting for his survival on so many fronts at home and abroad, probably hasn't had much time to think about the man who thus inadvertently created the political quagmire engulfing him: Syrian leader Bashar Al Assad. Maduro would do well, though, to brush up on how Assad survived against all the odds, as would Trump. The knowledge could prove invaluable for averting another reckless US push for regime change abroad. Trump's decision last month to accept Assad remaining in power in Syria enraged many Middle East hawks, who long saw Assad's removal as the springboard for war against Iran.

maduro venezuela syria