LOOKING back at the development of this pandemic, it’s now clear to see some distinct developments in public attitudes. 

In the beginning, fear and panic reigned. That then gave way to a sense of goodwill and hope that Government would take the necessary steps to protect us. 

As the crisis wore on, and more of the cracks in our safety net became apparent, that goodwill gave way to frustration.

And now, goodwill has given way to righteous anger. Every day as we pour over the latest figures, it is easy to forget the raw, visceral pain that is left in the wake of every single death. For those families that have lost, the grief from losing loved ones will be indelibly marked on them for years to come.

It is galling that senior politicians in Scotland and across the UK, including unelected and unaccountable advisers, should be so blasé to deny which mistakes were made, and equally blasé about admitting other mistakes.

Take the Nike conference in Edinburgh: ‘ground zero’ for the emergence of the virus in Scotland, and, as it turns out, the North-East of England and facilities as far flung as the Netherlands. It might well be the case that the Scottish Government genuinely believes that they performed test, track and tracing as appropriate. But clearly it was not sufficient. And yet, senior politicians have failed to acknowledge the catastrophic failure of judgement that put people’s lives at risk.

Our Health Secretary, Jeane Freeman, repeatedly misled Parliament by saying 300 older people had been transferred from hospitals to care homes in March and early April, when the true figure nearer 1000 for the month of March alone. 

The First Minister sought to dismiss these valid and widely shared concerns by noting 
that the Health Secretary was tired when she made the announcement. 

I completely accept that she will be tired and will be working around the clock, as the nature of Government and this situation demands.

But I cannot accept the mealy mouthed attitude of the First Minister to say that potentially with hindsight, she would have taken a different decision on whether to move elderly patients from hospitals to care homes before testing for coronavirus. 

With figures sitting at 47% of all deaths related to coronavirus taking place in care homes, it simply is not a satisfactory answer.

It is easy to see why there is so much anger and hurt, why so many people feel let down. And this is before we even consider the events of the past week: truly a tale of nonsense fit for Edward Lear that was authored by Dominic Cummings and backed up by the hapless Boris Johnson.

We still have a long way to go in the crisis and the recovery from it. Our national leaders have an immense role to play – one that requires unabashed honesty with the public.

But they are failing to do that, and it’s a failure that our country will continue to pay for.