Cash risk and mental health alert

Lee Boyce asked whether coronavirus could spell the end for cash.

“Even our local ice-cream man is only taking card payment now: you have to go on his website, book a slot, pick your flavour and pay by card, before he jingles his way into your cul-de-sac,” he said.

Not only is it quicker and safer to use cards, he said, but, when shops finally open and have a limited number of shoppers in, due to social distancing, it will be quicker for people to pay by tapping their card, rather than rummaging around inside a bag for loose change.

“Essentially, as fewer consumers use cash, the economics supporting the provision of a cash infrastructure is under threat,” he said.

Before the pandemic, forecasters believed that just one in six payments by 2028 would involve cash.

“This now looks unrealistic depending on how retailers behave post-lockdown and consumers, who have switched to card, and never go back,” he said. “Experts warn a decline in cash use expected to take place over five years could now happen within five months.MPs have stepped in and written to the Chancellor this week demanding urgent action to save the UK’s cash system from collapse.”

He argued that it was important we still have a choice whether to use cards or cash and said it was easier to budget with cash than by simply tapping a card.

“How can you teach children the value of money without them ever handling it? If people don’t go back to using cash, we’ll simply have to face the fact that cashless Britain - like Sweden - will become a reality sooner rather than later. Only then will many bemoan the loss of choice. “

The Guardian

Ankur Khajuria, an NHS surgeon and lead researcher into a study looking at the effects of Covid-19 on mental health, cited some of the testimonies of healthcare workers across the UK who are feeling depressed, anxious and ready to leave their professions because of the circumstances they are in, be that a lack of PPE or concerns about passing on anything to their families.

“A perfect storm is gathering,” he warned. “Previous research has shown that stress-related psychiatric illness may be prevalent in up to 50% of UK doctors and 40% of nurses.

“Our ongoing research has found that out of 868 UK healthcare workers surveyed, more than 60% have felt down, depressed or hopeless during the pandemic; nearly 80% have had sleeping difficulties; and 60% have felt lonely.”

He argued that there was something of a postcode lottery in the UK when it came to NHS trusts providing adequate PPE and well being support.

“Government and policymakers need to act now to support the mental wellbeing of healthcare workers throughout all phases of this pandemic,” he said. “Wellness hubs in hospitals need to be widely available, with virtual consultations and talking therapies, PTSD support and access to psychologists. Taking action now will be crucial to curb an impending mental health epidemic in the UK.”

The Daily Express

Leo McKinstry said the row of Dominic Cummings was overshadowing the progress that has been made recently in respect of the coronavirus.

“In fact, a stream of good news has flowed for days, from the expansion of testing capacity to the fall in infections,” he said. “This week the Government was able to announce that it had signed deals with more than 100 suppliers across the world for a vast increase in equipment.

“In addition, domestic production is to be ramped up through orders to British firms for more than two billion items of PPE.”

He said two new technologies were undergoing trials and could lead to tens of thousands of tests being processed simultaneously.

“On every front, there is a sense that the worst is over,” he added. “On Tuesday the death toll fell to 134, the smallest total for six weeks, while hospital admissions for Covid dropped to 471, the lowest rate since the end of March.

“As the country basks in early summer sunshine under blue skies, a sense of fear is being replaced by an embrace of normality.

“Even the economic outlook is not as gloomy as a few weeks ago.”