The Green Party is accusing the government today of shirking its responsibilities by pushing Covid Christmas decisions onto individuals.
Rather than be clear and science-led, the government is ploughing on with Christmas rules that risk a further spate of infections in January, leaving people with impossible choices to make.
Green Party co-leader Jonathan Bartley said: “In homes up and down the country there are anxious conversations going on about what to do over Christmas, now just a week away. People are desperate to see their loved ones but they also understand that the rules the government has chosen to impose will not keep us safe. Rather than prioritising public health, ministers have been goaded by their backbenchers into a position that risks another surge in cases and deaths in the new year.
“What’s needed is a clear sense that the government is taking responsibility for controlling the virus so that we can know that we are doing the right thing and keeping our families and communities safe – we just don’t have that at the moment. Instead there is confusion and apprehension.
“Covid has exposed the inequalities and weaknesses in our society, which result from 30 years of offloading political responsibilities onto individuals and businesses. From inadequate social housing and over-stretched hospitals to a welfare safety-net that is full of holes and levels of air pollution that are killing children, this is all part of a pattern of neglect and abdication of responsibility.
“Covid has taught us this year the importance of community, collaboration, working together to find solutions – we need to see that reflected in the behaviour of our politicians too. Only then will we be able to make the kind of progress that’s urgently needed on the climate crisis, and avoid ending up in messes like the one we’re currently living through with Brexit.”