No need for panic
29 November 2021
The blog was started to report on the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the tool and equipment hire industry. Since then many new words and phrases have entered into common usage, such as furlough, Zoom and lateral flow testing and now there is another twist in the saga to record.
The Government announced at the end of last week that they and other authorities are concerned about a new coronavirus variant first detected in southern Africa.
Called Omicron, following the World Health Organisation’s naming system of adopting Greek letter names like the earlier Alpha and Delta variants, it is described as being “heavily mutated” with many differences to previous variants.
Essentially, scientists are concerned that Omicron might be more easily transmissible and that it could be more resistant to the vaccines. They won’t know until completing laboratory tests which could take two to three weeks, but pharmaceutical companies behind the man-made vaccines are confident they would be able to adapt them quickly.
Cases have already been reported outside Africa, in the UK, other European countries and Hong Kong, and the variant is expected to spread worldwide.
So how concerned should we be?
The UK government has acted quickly in introducing measures such as requiring PCR tests for travellers arriving in the UK and self-isolating until they have a negative result, and in reinstating mask-wearing in shops and on public transport – although perversely, England is not making this mandatory in hospitality venues like pubs and restaurants, unlike Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Measures will be reviewed in three weeks and the current message is that there is no need to panic. Patients so far have experienced mild symptoms, although most have been in lower age groups. The government is also relaxed, with Health Secretary Sajid Javid even advising people yesterday to plan as normal for a “great” Christmas.
In terms of business, the message is similar. While stock markets inevitably fell sharply after the news of Omicron, the chiefly affected sectors were those like travel and energy. There’s little to suggest that the strong recovery in the UK and other parts of the world – much of it driven by construction activity – will be derailed.
The likely immediate outcome for the hire industry is, therefore, for a typical pre-Christmas rush in activity as sites shut down for the holidays, followed by preparations for the new year re-opening.
The preventative measures won’t unduly affect construction sites and hirers, and the main challenges will likely continue to be the inflationary pressures, recruitment difficulties and supply chain disruptions, discussed earlier on the blog.
The government stresses that vaccination is the best line of difference, so it’s vital that people get their first, second or booster jabs when offered.
So there’s no need for panic but we must remain vigilant.
Picture: Fusion Medical Animation
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