The rule of six is completely unenforceable

No blanket law can contain the warring Covid tribes, let alone those of us who have already had the virus

This is the first day on which the “rule of six” applies. Will people observe it? Can it be enforced? This may sound glib but a lot of people will observe the rule and plenty of others will not. I have noticed previously, with Brexit, that personality type is a pretty good predictor of what people will do. Those with a Roundhead sort of personality will observe the new rule scrupulously. They reckon that the Government is following the advice of highly intelligent, expert scientists and that it is obvious, good sense to act in accordance with what they recommend. In any case, this personality type is keen to be a good citizen upholding rules, official advice and laws.

On the other hand, the Cavalier personality type instinctively dislikes being constrained by rules and is quick to find reasons why they are stupid and do not deserve to be obeyed. The cavaliers have noticed, among other things, that although cases are rising, hospitalisations and deaths have not followed suit. And anyway, life is short and they don’t mind taking a few risks. The Cavaliers will be having dinner parties for eight and more.

Another division will be between people in different circumstances. Personally, I have already endured Covid-19. It was two weeks of feeling ghastly followed by three months of gradually reducing fatigue before eventually getting back to full health. I know that there have been a small number of authenticated cases of people being re-infected but I believe it is most likely that I have a high degree of immunity for the time being. Therefore I almost certainly cannot catch it or pass it on. So I feel relaxed about meeting up with anyone willing to see me. But my brother is in a completely different position. He has an underlying condition. He has good reason to be careful and cautious about his contact with other people and he is.

A blanket rule of six cannot cover these and many other different circumstances. Individuals will make their own decisions based on their circumstances, despite the threat of fines. So is the rule of six pointless? No. Right or wrong, it is a blunt way of telling everyone to be careful. Is it enforceable? You must be joking.

I hope and believe that the



majority of activists who demonstrate and protest on behalf of Black Lives Matter, Extinction

Rebellion, transgender rights and other causes sincerely believe that they are doing something worthwhile. They often bring imagination, time and energy to what they are doing.

But every time I see these people bending their knees, bullying others to do so, writing graffiti or blocking newspaper distribution, I feel a sense of waste. The causes for which they are struggling are mostly won already. The vast majority of well-intentioned people are against racism and have been for years. The Government itself is taking various actions against climate change. The activists would like change to go further, no doubt, but their campaigns are not revolutionary except that some of their leaders are using these movements as camouflage for their Marxist, anticapitalist agendas.

I wish that, instead of campaigning angrily for causes that are already largely accepted, they would use their energy in support of some who truly need it. Right now there are women in jails who have been grabbed from the street and imprisoned by masked men. On the basis of previous reports, we can be sure that many will be beaten and otherwise tortured. Some will be raped in their cells.

These are women who have done nothing but demonstrate against dictatorship in Belarus. They are struggling for basic democracy – something that Extinction Rebellion and BLM can happily take for granted. I wish that more young people would imagine what it must be like being in a dank cell in Minsk being interrogated and tortured with no certainty about when or if you will see your loved ones again. There are also the hundreds of thousands of Uighurs kept in what are effectively concentration camps, and others imprisoned and intimidated by the crushing of free speech and democracy in Hong Kong. These are three current and immediate instances of oppression in the world. They are truly worthy of protest campaigns.

We have just had a glorious, 

sunny weekend – a welcome relief from this uncertain, worrying time. On Saturday, I was lucky to escape to a fantasy of Fifties charm. As a guest on a Saphos steam train, I set off from Paddington to the Cotswolds, sitting in a beautifully restored first-class dining car of the old sort with seats modelled on wing-back armchairs. The upholstery was a recreation from the Fifties. The tablecloths and napkins were gleaming white cotton. On the return journey, the sunset illuminated the carriage with a golden glow and groups of people on the hills around Stroud waved at us as our steam train puffed by. All that was needed was for the tune of Nimrod to come into one’s head to bring love of country and nostalgia to a delicious climax.