“They are destroying everyone's life!
They literally lock us up like rats.
We can't go out, we can't leave the country, we can't go shopping.
They want to control our lives!
»Plague Liane, a resident of London who is waiting for her bus.
The caregiver who is pulling on her cigarette had to revise her Christmas plans after Boris Johnson decided to cancel the release scheduled for the period of December 23-28.
The British Prime Minister had insisted that it would be "inhuman" to deprive the British of Christmas.
But on Saturday, he had, once again, to reverse his decision in the face of the very rapid progression of the disease in London and the south-east of the capital, since plunged into level 4 of the coronavirus alert, the level on higher.
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The worst part is that this decision does not satisfy anyone.
Those worried about the spread of the virus at family gatherings and fearful of the new strain of Covid-19, find this decision, if warranted, to come much too late.
“Millions of families will be heartbroken by this news, but I raised the problem with (the Prime Minister) on Wednesday and he ignored it,” Keir Starmer, the opposition leader, said.
If the new strain of the virus is more contagious than the moose virus, some scientists are questioning the conclusions drawn by the government.
"There is now sufficient circumstantial evidence to implicate this variant in higher transmission rates, but it is still unclear to what extent this mutation has contributed to the increase in cases and I still believe the main reason remains the wrong one." government handling of the situation, ”says Aris Katzourakis, an evolution and genomics specialist at the University of Oxford.
Tired of restrictions occurring one after the other
Among the Conservatives, discontent prevails on the side of the ardent defenders of freedom who are tired of the restrictions intervening one after the other.
The five-day break had been voted on by parliament and some MPs are calling for the new restrictions to be put to a vote again.
This rebellion is not the only one to shake the rank of the majority.
The other problem for Boris Johnson is obviously Brexit.
Despite the successive deadlines imposed by London and Brussels, the negotiations continue to turn in circles.
Some conservatives fear that the Prime Minister will back down to Brussels in matters of sovereignty for fear of the economic disaster looming on the British horizon in the event of an exit without a trade agreement.
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They have already warned Boris Johnson that they will not support him if the deal he presents them does not respect the British red lines.
But despite threats of rebellion, Tim Bale, professor of politics at Queen Mary's University in London, believes the Prime Minister can still survive this dual crisis, provided he demonstrates his competence.
“If we observe its popularity rating in the polls, it is still 40%, he analyzes.
The introduction of the vaccine helped to restore confidence.
But for this confidence to continue, the campaign will have to be deployed properly in the coming months.
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A "no deal" risks turning against the Prime Minister
The same is true for Brexit, according to the expert.
The negative effects of the future rule change at the borders are starting to be felt with traffic disruptions in the Dover region, but until December 31 there is still a chance to limit the breakage.
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On the other hand, if the post-Brexit transition period ends without an agreement, the consequences for the British are likely to backfire on the Prime Minister.
"Shortages and price increases in January will cause damage to the electorate of Boris Johnson," said the expert.
The next British general elections are only scheduled for 2024 but Tim Bale doubts that the population will forget the bad political decisions that will have been taken in the meantime.
And the consequences of a no-deal Brexit could still be felt by then.