Is it time for a more regional approach to tackling coronavirus?

A more nuanced approach could bring a number of benefits, particularly with the infection rate varying so much across England, writes Janet Street-Porter

London now has a lower coronavirus infection rate than much of the rest of the country (AFP/Getty)

When the first ministers in Scotland and Wales decided to assert their right to continue a stricter lockdown than the rest of the “United” Kingdom, did it advance the argument for a more regional approach to relaxing current guidelines?

Should the government be adopting a more nuanced strategy, when the latest rates of infection vary so widely?

According to a new study from Public Health England and Cambridge University, the R (rate of infection) figure remains highest – at 14 per cent – in the northeast of England and Yorkshire, whereas in London, the R-rate has dropped to 0.4 (every ten who test positive only infect four others). On the day fewer than two dozen Londoners caught the virus, more than 4,300 succumbed in the northeast.