Another round of lockdowns this winter will destroy some economies
Latvia has already pulled the trigger on a new lockdown. Pubs and restaurants are closed, as are schools. People have been ordered to work from home and there is an 8 p.m. curfew. Other countries like Romania are wondering whether to follow suit.
Countries like Italy have taken a different tack - mandatory vaccine passports. Workers can be suspended without pay and fined if they are caught without a vaccine passport. Three million people have already been suspended from their jobs.
Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi justified the mandate - and then went on a bizarre rant against Britain, accusing the UK of “abandoning all caution”
Why on earth was he commenting on British affairs when the UK never comments on Italian business?
Answer: there is a crab in the bucket thing going on (where crabs will pull back any crab that looks like escaping).
The UK is an outlier. It opened fully on 19th July. There are no mask mandates or vaccine passports. The government simply told citizens to exercise personal responsibility and recommended vaccination. Most adults have been double jabbed, no coercian was required. Employers do not ask about your vaccine status. Everything is back to normal.
The British economy is growing really fast as a result.
The British government can afford to keep things open because deaths are low even as cases rise
If the UK govt can resist the call to lockdown again, "because everyone else is doing it", a gap will open up economically between the UK and the EU.
Last year everyone was locked down, so everyone's economy was doing badly. This time some will be locked down, destroying their economies. Others will stay open and reap the benefits.
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I think this has also to do with the economic situation of say Italy. Italy is bankrupt by any measure, and was already before Covid. There is plenty of reason to become authoritarian, and Covid is the best excuse. Look at Greece just as bankrupt, and trying to cover it up by scaring it citizens with Turkey/Erdogan. Even know Erdogan has his hands full with other problems, and the last think in his mind is attacking a European country. Haven't checked the situation in Spain, but they are bankrupt as well so I wouldn't be surprised if they tried to become more controlling of their populous.
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STOPWell Austria has locked down, so now we have a real life experience.