The Centre Cannot Hold

Comparison of G7 countries during pandemic

The failures of the UK Government to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic have been the subject of many articles and TV programmes ever since we were one of the last European countries to introduce a lockdown on 23 March. The Sunday Times, Lancet, BMJ, Public Health, and the previous Chief Scientific Adviser have not held back in their critique of the delays, flawed procurement, abandoned track and tracing, abysmal testing record, failure to protect care homes and carers, and a deliberate absence of transparency by the government.

The government has always tried to shield itself behind the mantra of "following scientific advice". Many news agencies from around the world have highlighted how the UK, a country that was expected to be amongst the best prepared to suppress the pandemic, has failed on so many counts. The number of deaths is the highest in Europe and the G7 countries and the death rate remains the second-highest in the world.

But we know all of this, it has been the playlist of the last few weeks and now, even the BBC which has given the government to peddle its slanted narrative is beginning to acknowledge the appalling mistakes made before and during the pandemic. The real issue is that the UK government, the civil service, and the other grand panjandrums of the state are overly centralised. They lack operational experience, detailed knowledge of services, and the emotional intelligence of practitioners who work at the local or regional level.

The BBC, ITN, and newspapers such as The Guardian, with its considerable international online presence, all aspire to provide an independent and objective reporting of events, unlike the majority of the press and media who display their political allegiances when reporting. But they are all part of the hubble-bubble of influencers, the metropolitan elite, and the self-opinionated insiders in the game of reporting and blaming for the crisis. They are too socially distanced from the real world where the pandemic has taken hold and where it will be checked.

It is local government including public health, embedded local businesses, and active communities that have the insider advantage over centralised government. They understand the nuances of geography and operational networks, they have informed and immediate intelligence, and, most of all, a genuine commitment to resolving problems. They also have the energy, personnel, institutional knowledge, and determination to implement actions that will make a difference. It's just that they are not trusted by central government and not understood by the fandango of government agencies and fellow travelers. It is a measure of the government's lack of self-awareness that has resulted in the UK being the world leader in failing to control the pandemic.

As the country opens up after lockdown, we are still left without an effective track and trace system and the UK government is still insisting that they will call the shots to impose local lockdowns. Surely the far more effective outcomes in the devolved nations of Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales should tell them that the centre cannot hold. The government must accept that local knowledge and networks are far more relevant to suppressing the pandemic than continuing with the impotent posturing and perpetual failure by the PM and his discredited cabinet and special advisers.