Heavy handed police?

The stay at home instructions along with the social distancing measures are being followed and adhered to by around 90%of the UK population. The stats, the graphs, the GPS data, CCTV and satellite images all back that up. We should be full of pride.

Of course with humans you get the odd idiots doing the opposite, sunbathing, reading in parks…..having street parties, house parties and footballers take part in training sessions!

The police are quite right to take firm action highlighting these minorities and are perfectly correct to do so with the full backing of the public.

However in the last few days I am quite concerned at the bullish attitude and tone some high ranking police chiefs from various regions of the UK are using when addressing the subject of dealing with shoppers…..such as checking their shopping bags to examine exactly what they have purchased and whether or not they themselves deem them acceptable purchases. These are police officers, not the gestapo and the public would hold them in the same regard as the NHS if they stopped spoiling themselves.

Outrageous because the media and the police are not grasping that shops which are trading are doing so precisely because the Government classes them as ‘essential’ stores selling ‘essential’ items for the public.

If these retailers are trading it would be impractical, ridiculous and business suicide for any of them to be forced to close off 85% of their aisles. If people have already made the journey for their essential items to also grab other stuff at the same time. It is basic common sense. These purchases help to keep people at home and in their own gardens (if they are lucky enough to have one) doing projects to fill the days. You can’t blame the retailers or the customers.

Any retailer still trading has lost a huge amount of customers and takings will be at least 50% down with some making a loss to stay open and serve their communities. You cannot blame the stores for selling the items they have in stock. If, for example, Camelot decided it was not ‘essential’ or even appropriate to keep selling millions of lottery tickets then fair enough, the retailer would be told to stop selling them….but Camelot has not and many other weekly magazines etc are still being published.

Incidentally I think some stores are actually letting too many people in at the same times, not all, but I was in an M&S the other day which had too many of us in at that one time.

My last word on the police was I got stopped on my way to work (key worker) and, not joking…he walked up within 2 feet of me to ask where I was going and if I was aware of all the government guidelines….clearly he wasn’t.

Let’s remember though that, like the general public, a high percentage of police officers is doing great work in difficult times. We’re in this together.