Letters: Why should we suffer because of the selfish minority?

The hospitality and leisure industry is up in arms at the prospect of a passport system for entry to their venues, be it pub, restaurant, cafe or theatre. It maintains it will decimate its viability and profitability. Those running that industry fail to take into account the number of people who won’t go out for fear of contracting the virus primarily from those selfish enough to flaunt themselves unprotected. My wife and I recently returned from Paris, the inhabitants of which are not renowned for their meek acceptance of government edict. Yet every cafe, restaurant, and bar required patrons to present on entry their "pass sanitaire" – their vaccination passport – which was checked by the waiter or barman by a simple app on their mobile phone. No-one objected; venues were busy, and everyone felt comfortable.

What the anti-vaxxers and the leisure industry have failed to grasp is that after a bit of grumbling people will accept the passport system, business will possibly increase and the infection rate will decrease. Nor do they seem to understand that unless we get this virus to a manageable level then the "civil liberties" for all of us will be overruled by another lockdown.

The vaccination programme is not the answer to everything and neither is the wearing of masks. However it is beyond all doubt that they have had a major impact in containing the disease and it beggars belief that some people, for whatever selfish reasons, are prepared to put us, the usual large silent majority, at risk. It is high time our Government stopped pandering to these few and got on with the job regardless of whatever short-term unpopularity with the minority that they may incur.

Robert Buntin, Skelmorlie.

FOLLOW THE RULES, ENJOY LIFE

I ENJOY Joanna Blythman's writings as a restaurant reviewer and food critic but I am beginning to tire of her relentless paranoia with regard to the efforts of government and scientists to combat Covid ("Omicron is being used to heighten fear levels. We must not be spooked", The Herald, December 4, and Letters, December 6). Undoubtedly, a lot of mistakes have been made, particularly in the early stages, and the antics of Boris Johnson, especially with regard to face masks and socialising, do not help. However, our First Minister has been much more consistent in her approach and she is trying to engage in a more balanced approach in the face of the new variant.

Many of us are trying to proceed with caution until such time as the virus is clearly under control but, unlike Ms Blythman, we still manage to go about our lives without too much difficulty. Walking my dog, Ben, is one of the great joys of living and I also am fortunate to join my mates on the golf course. In the past two weeks, my wife and I have dined out with friends on two occasions and she is out with a small family group as I write. I have been enjoying a midweek outing to the pub ever since the guidelines were relaxed and I attended The Manfreds gig at the Glasgow Concert Hall last Friday evening. The event was well attended and it was encouraging to witness the vast majority observing the face mask rule both in the auditorium and on the train to and from the event.

Perhaps if Ms Blythman had her vaccines and booster and followed the fairly simple and sensible guidelines given out by the big, bad authorities, she would be much more able to participate in the everyday enjoyment of living. Also, she could have the satisfaction of knowing that she is contributing towards the safety of her fellow citizens.

Gordon Evans, Glasgow.

ALTERNATIVE VIEW IS WELCOME

BOTH Doug Maughan's and Angus McKee's letters (December 6) taking aim at Joanna Blythman's Saturday article need correction.

Mr Maughan's calculation of the Covid-19 Infection Fatality Rate (IFR) for Covid 19 is in fact the estimated Case Fatality Rate (CFR), something very different. Because the number of infections (as opposed to positive tests) is not known (because not everyone is tested) the IFR has to be estimated. Estimates vary widely but some are as low as the 0.1% quoted by Ms Blythman. It should also be noted that the deaths figure used in Mr Maughan's calculation is those within 28 days of a positive test whether or not this was the reason for the death. The IFR and CFR will both vary widely over the different age groups within a population, with the numbers for codgers like myself being much higher than that of a young healthy person.

Mr McKee attributes the statement "no one in South Africa is known to have been hospitalised with the Omicron variant" to Ms Blythman when in fact she made it clear that this was taken directly from Dr Angelique Coetzee, the South African doctor who first identified the variant. This has been reported in a number of media outlets. Perhaps this doctor, chair of the South African Medical Association, is at least as qualified as the Herald correspondent Helen McArdle (whose much more gloomy picture Mr McKee prefers to see) to put the current situation regarding Omicron in context?

Whatever we may think about Ms Blythman's input on the matter she does at least bring some alternative opinions.

Allistair Matheson, Selkirk.

* MY wife and I were in the audience at two well-attended concerts on Sunday (December 5) – one in the afternoon in the Usher Hall in Edinburgh, the other in the evening at the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall. In both venues there were clear notices advising the audience to wear face masks. This was reinforced by announcements on the public address system. The Usher Hall concert was a Children's Classic Concert with a family audience where children were accompanied mainly by parents and grandparents. I would say that the adults complied 100% with the request to wear face masks.

The evening concert in Glasgow was a mainly adult audience, a number of whom showed a complete disregard for the request to wear face masks – even to the extent of entering the building wearing a face mask then removing it on taking their seat in the auditorium. Is it any wonder the West of Scotland health board areas continue to show the highest levels of Covid infections?

Ian Mills, Blanefield.

POLLS SHOW REAL DIFFERENCES

LAST Thursday saw local and Westminster by-elections which had similar starting points but very different outcomes. One by-election was in Highland Council, the Fort William and Ardnamurchan ward, while at Westminster it was the Old Bexley and Sidcup constituency. Both had come about due to the death of sitting Conservative incumbents.

The Highland Council ward saw the SNP take the seat with more than 51% of the vote. The Westminster constituency saw a 13% drop in Conservative support, yet they managed to hold onto the seat with more than 50% of the vote, quite staggering considering all the recent shenanigans and sleaze at Westminster on the Government benches.

The message? The Westminster by-election tells us that the Conservatives can take the voters for granted, whereas here in Scotland it's clear that you can’t treat the country with contempt; we have had enough of it.

Catriona C Clark, Falkirk.

FM'S POLITICAL POSTURING

SO what is it in Nicola Sturgeon's psyche which requires her to take the opposite tack to most UK Government policies? Is it simply the case that her attempt to take such adverse actions is designed to further her addiction to finding a means of breaking up the Union?

Ms Sturgeon's latest ploy is to try to withdraw support from any further North Sea developments, or in this specific case oil and gas extraction from a field to the west of the Shetlands. One might ask if this is just a political move to retain the support of her allies, the Greens? Or is it merely another feeble attempt to further her cause of undermining the UK Government?

Whatever her motive, she simply does not have the clout to stop any such overall UK developments. I would go so far as to say that it is just bluff on her part – mere political posturing.

Robert IG Scott, Ceres, Fife.

Read more: Covid is far from over. We can't give up now