[ad_1]
Boris Johnson’s speech to the UK on the way out of the running of the bulls has been criticized as confusing, incoherent and downright dangerous.
But is there a subtle method at stake in Prime Minster’s communications strategy? Downing Street certainly wants people to think that way.
In fact, the word subtle has figured heavily in ministers’ statements in recent days. Maybe they are right.
Perhaps the strategy is to encourage debate and conversation among society at large, to place the responsibility on individuals to decide for themselves whether or not they will return to work.
Promote companies, small and large, decisions about what constitutes safe working conditions. Promote the decisions of parents and schools about whether it is okay for children to go to school.
The new catchphrase, at least for England, is “Stay Alert”. What does that mean?
Nicola Sturgeon said he does not know what it means and will not use it in Scotland. Wales and Northern Ireland will also not use it.
A disunited kingdom? A communications disaster?
Not if you want people to talk about the true meaning of the tipping point in disease management and the economic damage it is doing that we have reached.
Instead of a single set of detailed orders from above, we’ve been given some general principles, a vague timeline, and a catchphrase that means … pretty much whatever you want. And that may be your strong point.
In managing the exit from the running of the bulls, nobody has a monopoly on wisdom. By using a frankly meaningless catchphrase to mobilize, or provoke, debate and discussion about what to do next, the government is forcing people to participate in the process.
By forcing them to think for themselves, they may be seeking “the wisdom of the crowd.” Rather than trying to centrally control all aspects of the reboot of the economy, the strategy may be to outsource the reboot to … everyone!
So the message seems to be, it’s up to you to find a way to restart the business you work for. As long as you “stay alert,” and comply with existing advice on social distancing, handwashing, etc., then it is time to start kicking off the economy.
But there is still a pandemic to deal with, and a deadly one at that. And Britain is part of that group of European countries that have been badly affected by the virus.
Therefore, the government is introducing a new measurement tool, the sliding scale of one to five, which will be the criterion against which unlocking measures will be tested.
If things are working and the scale is falling from its current level of four (five is the point where the NHS is overwhelmed by the disease), and heading towards level one, then more and more sectors of society and the economy may have restrictions lifted.
But if the infection rate starts to rise again, Boris Johnson said he will not hesitate to “slow down again.”
But the key link between the Covid Alert System and the outsourced activity of millions of people will be a massive virus testing system with a fast response time.
This has been a weak point in the British system (as it has been in other countries as well). There has been an accumulation of capacity in the last few weeks, but it is not enough even for the existing strategy.
Moving into the new period of “Stay Alert” will require what Boris Johnson called a “global system to test potential victims and track their contacts. So ultimately, we are literally testing hundreds of thousands of people every day “
And that is not going to happen quickly. So unlocking will be the work of months, not days. At least that’s what Boris Johnson expects.
The problem with outsourcing the planning and execution of a massive and complex exercise like this is that groups could go beyond safe limits and lead to an increase in infections and deaths.
But the benefit of the hive mind approach is that it can move faster and more agile than the central government.
Balancing the disadvantages and benefits of this approach is the job of the government. With less to focus on, they should be able to focus on the essentials, in particular containing the spread of the virus and ensuring that the health system has the capacity to deal with it.
Your tools are testing and the alert system.
If they fail, the risk of policy breakdown, and the loss of life that comes with it, is very real.
[ad_2]