We find ourselves at a curious juncture.

On the one side, the numbers of people positive for the Covid infection are quite high. On the other hand the day of the vaccine is fast approaching.

Let us open up these two statements.

The number of people certified as being infected has certainly gone up especially if we compare it to other times when the numbers were very low.

These past days the daily number was on average just short of 100. The number of deceased averaged around four a day. The number of active cases is around 2,000.

For us, these are quite high numbers and many of us feared the spike could not be arrested and could seriously affect the effectiveness of the health system.

We have come here by a tortuous path – the airport was closed down for a number of months. So were shops and bars. Then they were reopened only for bars to be closed again.

The airport is open but flights have been drastically cut. There were days when Air Malta reduced its flights to just one or two. There were days when there were no flights to be had to the UK.

Now that Christmas is coming, concern is mounting that the usual festivities will bring about an even steeper spike especially when the flu’ season coincides with a recrudescence of Covid.

Appeals have been made to people to skip the usual family gatherings and meals. These appeals mirror those made abroad but there – in the UK and in Italy, for example – the  measures are far more draconian. In Italy for instance, people cannot move from town to town. In the UK everything depends on which colour your area is.

Then there is a further consideration to make. In Italy, for instance, the latest figures for the daily infections spoke of 23,000 in a day and 20,000 average daily infections in the UK. Bringing the numbers down to Malta proportionally would speak of 191 if Malta was Italy or 160 if Malta had the UK rate. Clearly, at around 100, our rate is considerably lower.

So it is true what the government has been saying that Malta’s rate is lower than that of other countries. Obviously this statement needs qualification and a wider analysis.

The point is that these figures, especially for Italy, explain the rather draconian rules being planned for Christmas – no skiing at least until January, Christmas Midnight Mass at 10pm...

The Covid pandemic has brought about a huge economic crisis with job losses, huge public deficits and missed years for those just out of school.

Industries, enterprises and entire sectors have been swept away. The worst hit are those enterprises structured around interpersonal dealings, tourism above all, restaurants and bars, travel.

While other industries have adapted to post-Covid rules, and learned to work from home, the above-mentioned industries cannot do that.

But now, just when many were going under and the others learned to cohabit with a mask and to conform to the harsh rules of distancing, washing of hands, no handshake etc., comes the news that a vaccine has been developed.

The UK government, beset by doubts regarding the impending Brexit, latched on to the UK-developed vaccine and the fact Britain no longer has to wait for the EU permission to test and approve a new vaccine and this will start to be distributed as from this week.

The US and EU regulators cautioned a less hasty approach but eventually approval by the US and EU regulators is fast approaching too.

The world was on the cusp of changing its economies to cope with the pandemic when hey presto! here comes the vaccine and everything will be solved. We can go back to all our wasteful past.

Or do we? Have all those elderly died in vain? We have learned valuable lessons on personal hygiene, on the importance of clean air, on the perennial threat of viruses and contagion – was that all in vain?

All around us and even in our people, many are reacting against the strict rules, not just the enforcement of the mask rules, quarantine, even the vaccine itself. So are these people right after all?

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