The dangerous thing about this so-called "Barrington Declaration" advocating discredited "herd immunity", is not that the government will go along with it, but that this supposed "split" in scientific opinion allows Johnson to go on being indecisive. 1/4 https://www.sciencemediacentre.org/expert-reaction-to-barrington-declaration-an-open-letter-arguing-against-lockdown-policies-and-for-focused-protection/

As I've shown in this thread, public opinion is firmly against such an approach, and in practical terms it would mean potentially tens of thousands of unnecessary deaths plus putting maybe a quarter of the population under house arrest. 2/4 https://twitter.com/ChristabelCoops/status/1311333987244179463?s=20

No government would want to implement something so deeply unpopular (and dangerous).

But for a Prime Minister such as Boris Johnson, who struggles to take difficult decisions, and who is under pressure from libertarian backbench Tory MPs... 3/4

...*and* from his more popular Chancellor who wants to prioritise the economy over public health, it will be another reason to continue dithering. Which probably means cases will continue to rise. 4/4