The government’s record on protecting the economy during Covid has been impressive – but the toughest months lie ahead

Editorial: Without the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, the economy would have fallen into a slump from which it would not have recovered – even so, the economic aftershocks of Covid will persist for years

Rishi Sunak’s measures were widely praised at the start of the pandemic (Reuters)

As Britain’s official Covid death toll reaches six figures it is worth recalling how, when the pandemic was taking hold last spring, Sir Patrick Vallance declared that keeping fatalities below 20,000 would be a “good outcome”. On that measure, and by international standards, the government’s performance on meeting the medical challenge has been appalling.

By contrast, the government’s record on protecting the economy has been much more impressive. The fact that unemployment has risen to a four-year high of five per cent of the workforce – some 1.7 million people – is obviously disappointing. But without the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and the various other measures, this figure would not only be higher but pushing the economy into a slump from which it would be impossible to break free. It is a disaster that never happened because of international efforts to save the world from a deep recession.  

Even so, the economy faces difficulties in the months ahead. Some patients who survive Covid emerge from hospital with life-changing disabilities. These are still not properly understood, but they could well deprive people of their incomes and quality of life for years, if not decades, to come. Long Covid will be with them long after their initial illness.