| Good evening everyone, Those of you who have followed this daily column throughout the current pandemic will understand that I am not one given to knee-jerk reactions. Experience has taught me that it rarely breeds success and that a more considered view is likely to be the one which prevails. So, I have advocated that we follow the advice of our health experts, rather than politicians with an axe to grind, as being the best way out of the current crisis. That has meant sticking to the guidelines set down, keeping our distance, wearing our face masks and leaving our homes only for essential reasons. Here in Lancashire we have been through this more than many other areas of the country as the R rate stubbornly refused to fall for those few months last summer when we were allowed out. Now we hear that the Government advisory group Sage is saying that there will almost certainly be a third wave of the virus and it could overwhelm us all by early autumn...and we may be facing more restrictions. While I would never recommend complacency, there comes a point when you have to look at the odds. Unless there is a whole series of mutations of the virus which negates the effectiveness of the vaccine, by then all of us will have had at least one vaccination and many will have a natural immunity. At this point, none of us can face another lockdown. It may be that some of us will choose to stay at home if there is a third wave, but surely we cannot go through further restrictions on our freedoms. Let's hope it doesn't come to having to make that choice. Until next time, take care, Gillian Parkinson, Editor Email me your views at [email protected] | 