Parliament rose for the Summer Recess last month, after yet another period of working with social distancing under COVID restrictions.

As I write, these are being relaxed in England as we move through Step 4 of the planned emergence from national constraints on the conduct of our daily lives.

It provides a time to reflect on this unprecedented period in peacetime, in which the nation has been obliged to live our lives without normal contact with each other. I have been struck by the impact this has had on our relationships.

The lack of day to day contact with family and friends has been very difficult over the past 16 months or so. For those who have lost loved ones especially so.

But there has also been a remarkable resilience shown by people across our communities, with helping hands extended to those in need, as the whole country has come together to combat this pandemic. None more so than those in our NHS, treating those caught up with COVID, and the volunteers helping others and the teams of people enabling vaccination of the adult population.

I was briefed on the day I write this by NHS leaders in Shropshire who pointed to their expectation that by mid-August all adults in the county will have had the opportunity to have received their double dose of vaccine. They are finalising plans for booster doses to be given alongside annual flu jabs from September to those most vulnerable. This has been a monumental effort and we are all grateful for the extraordinary commitment they have shown to keeping us safe.

The latest delta variant of the virus is increasing cases rapidly, but the incidence of hospitalisation is vastly lower thanks to the efficacy of the vaccine. As of today there are ten patients with COVID in Shropshire’s hospitals, six of which have not been vaccinated. The SAGE committee advising the Government expect cases to rise and that this will lead to an increase in death rates across the country, but to less than the number of people who die from smoking related causes each day.

I am struck by the division of opinion locally between those with understandable anxiety about the risk posed from new variants and the relaxation of restrictions, and those who feel we have to find a way to live our lives by managing the virus through vaccines and treatments like we do other diseases.

There is no right answer to this conundrum, only a balanced judgement. Governing the country requires making difficult decisions. I think the success of the vaccine programme justifies the decision to relax restrictions. 

But as someone with an underlying lung condition which has required me to be cautious and vigilant through this long period, I shall continue to take precautions to limit exposure to the virus in confined spaces. I am looking forward to spending as much of August as possible out of doors enjoying what I hope will be a splendid month of summer sunshine in Shropshire. I hope you can too.