The writer is a science commentator

The UK government is, if nothing else, sloganeering its way through the Covid-19 pandemic. “Hands, face, space” has been the back-to-front recent advice: space, or distancing, is the most effective way to cut transmission, with masks and handwashing sensible added precautions. Perhaps it is time for a new catchphrase: “As restrictions ease, expect disease.” That is the reality of living with a highly transmissible novel virus to which few have natural immunity, in the absence of either a vaccine or a fast, effective testing regime.

After months of telling workers to get back to offices and subsidising meals out, Prime Minister Boris Johnson last week imposed new curbs in England in the face of rising infection rates, now exceeding 6,000 new cases a day. The UK, along with other countries including France and Spain, appears to be heading for a second wave. September feels like a rerun of March, but with less public goodwill and colder weather. Hospitality venues in England will now close at 10pm; sports stadium plans to welcome fans back are postponed; fines for breaching regulations can reach ￡10,000. Some think the measures an intolerable infringement on liberty; others, including scientists on the government advisory group Sage, that they are too little too late.