Ben Wealthy

I recently returned from a COVID-secure holiday (as far as is possible) to Scotland. Preventative measures included: a private cabin on a sleeper train from London to Inverness, staying in a ‘pod’ on the Isle of Skye, eating lots of salmon (aids physical distancing), travelling by ferry (on deck) and walking and cycling (huge thanks to Andy Bike ) around North Uist (recently made famous by the Channel 4 documentary The Scottish Island that Won the Lottery ) which has a world-beating natural ventilation system (the wind) and where you are more likely to come into contact with a lamb or a loch than a human. International travel is unlikely to take off over the summer months. We all have a unique opportunity to explore Britain’s stunning coastline, countryside and cities in a safe and respectful way. This will provide a lifeline to the tourism and hospitality sectors and remind us of the adventures available closer to home. Enjoy it.  Of course, it would be naïve to romanticise the Highla

“The ultimate hidden truth of the world is that it is something we make and could just as easily make differently.” David Graeber   To coin a phrase from Professor Sir Michael Marmot, why treat COVID-19 and send people back to the conditions that made them more susceptible to it in the first place? Why indeed.   In the early stages, celebrities clambering to narrate the emerging devastation described the virus as “the great equaliser.” Madonna opted to provide her epidemiological commentary in the nude from inside a bath filled with rose petals. Clumsy attempts to encourage a mood of unity revealed a lack of understanding of, or interest in, our tragically unequal age and the consequences for individuals, society, and the economy.   Perhaps over the last year, through the pain of the pandemic, we have become more familiar with the characteristics of our country. We can hope. The story of a new virus chimes with an old story of health inequalities more broadly. The most diverse and disa