Wear a mask?

In surveys, a majority of British say they are for it.

But a long train ride on the Great Western Railway across southern England shows a different picture: More than half of the passengers in the fully occupied train soon remove their mouth and nose protection.

In London in the newspaper and grocery store around the corner, the boss at the cash register says with a shrug: “I don't wear a mask anymore.” He knocks on the Plexiglas wall in front of him.

"My whole family is vaccinated, what's that supposed to mean?"

Philip Plickert

Business correspondent based in London.

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There was no shortage of gloomy forecasts when the British government confirmed the end of almost all corona restrictions - including mask compulsory and distance rules - on July 19.

Some cheered about "Freedom Day" for England, but many had concerns.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson also warned to be “very, very careful”.

The number of daily new corona infections had previously risen to over 50,000, the fourth wave in the kingdom seemed to be very large.

It is "almost inevitable" that there will be an increase to 100,000 new infections per day after the country is completely opened, said epidemiologist Neil Ferguson from Imperial College London, a member of the Covid advisory board SAGE.

The only question is whether the 200,000 new infections mark would also be reached, according to Ferguson.

“The crystal ball fails.” Two weeks later, many forecasters are cleaning their crystal ball.

Thanks to a successful vaccination campaign

The infection curve has not increased since “Freedom Day”, on the contrary: the number of people who tested positive every day has halved since then. At the beginning of this week, almost 22,000 new infections were reported. That is still around ten times the number in Germany - but the British population is more relaxed about it. The number of those who died of or with Covid has increased only minimally, but remained in double digits per day and thus at a very low level compared to previous waves. Hospital admissions have also increased only moderately since July.

From Ferguson, who became known as “Professor Lockdown”, one hears completely different tones: The corona pandemic “could largely be over in the UK in late September or October”.

The successful vaccination campaign “fundamentally changed the equation”.

Almost 73 percent of adults received two doses of the vaccine and 89 percent received one dose.

According to the ONS statistics office, nine out of ten adults have antibodies against Covid, either because they have been vaccinated or have recovered.

Citizens remain cautious

Nevertheless, the striking fall in the infection curve has surprised many researchers since the end of July. One factor was undoubtedly the end of the European Football Championship games, which had caused infections among spectators. A second factor is the start of summer vacation on July 22nd. This means that there are fewer contacts when driving to work or school. Government advisers like Professor Graham Medley still expect a wave movement over the course of the summer with sometimes more, sometimes fewer new infections. The decisive factor is whether the "protective wall" holds the high vaccination rates.

According to new surveys, since the decline in the corona numbers, around half of Britons are again satisfied with the corona policy of the Johnson government, the other half not. Many citizens remain cautious in their daily behavior. Supermarkets still require masks, but they are compulsory on buses and on the London Underground. A general vaccination requirement is not an issue.

The government's push to require vaccination certificates from September onwards for going to nightclubs, discos and concerts is intended to increase the vaccination readiness of young adults, a third of whom are not yet immunized.

In London's West End, the trendy nightlife district, the party crowd is romping around again these days.

The British see a bratwurst as a reward for a vaccination, as discussed in Germany, as too Teutonic, but individual companies want to set incentives with pizza and kebab.

The taxi services Uber and Bolt have offered travel vouchers to vaccination centers.

Relaxation for everyone - also for the economy

Finance Minister Rishi Sunak gave new impetus to the debate on returning from the home office to the office on Tuesday. Presence in the office can "be really beneficial for your career," says Sunak. He also wants to radically relax the travel rules to help tourism. The greatest concern of many companies is and remains the "ping demie" - the high number of "ping" quarantine requests by the NHS health service's Corona app. This app is now set a little less sharply, so that only corona contacts from the last two instead of five days count.

Despite all its problems, the UK is experiencing a strong economic recovery. The IMF is forecasting one of the highest growth rates in the world for the country in 2021 with a good 7 percent. According to the Bank of England, the pre-crisis level of economic activity could be reached again by the end of 2021.