WHEN a government has the entire population on a string, as is currently the case, then it is always liable to pull it a little bit tighter rather than loosen it off a bit.

For the past four weeks, the vast majority of people have followed all the health guidance and stayed inside given the nature of the coronavirus pandemic.

Stay home, stay safe, has been the mantra for weeks now and as the grim death toll mounts, we have accepted the restrictions knowing that it’s all for the greater good.

After all, we all know that one day soon we are all going to be let out again once the danger has passed.

But we are now entering into a critical phase into the relationship between the citizens and those that govern over how long we can reasonably expect to be kept indoors.  There is a growing sense of feeling that we have all done our bit, now it’s the government’s to do theirs and offer us a way out with a reasonable timetable.

But instead we are consistently told it won’t be any time soon and we must all continue doing what we’re told and be done with it. Some ministers even suggest that if they announce plans too early then the public would jump too soon and threaten a deadly second wave.   At the same time, the tentacles of the State, which have controlled us for the better part of six weeks, seem to be strengthening their grip rather than slowly letting go.

The Chief Medical Officer informed us the other day that we must cut down our alcohol consumption and eat healthily, while the police have been given greater powers which include monitoring workplaces to check on social distancing measures.

People are already getting fined for making non-essential journeys to parks, all the while we have government ministers trotting out every day to reel off one grim statistic after another while telling us to stay indoors... or else.

These, of course, are extraordinary times and the threat from the coronavirus must be seen off using extraordinary measures. Every sensible person in the land knows the lockdown is essential and we have all done our bit to help. But there is a fine line between the government imposing necessary restrictions and the nanny state lecturing us and increasingly we appear to be heading down that path. It is a difficult balancing act for ministers, but just saying no, not now, breeds contempt. Nanny doesn’t always know best.