The Government hope that everyone will obey the rules following a new, hard-hitting campaign fronted by the Chief Medical Officer, Professor Chris Whitty. The ad break and social media message was launched last night – and will be aired frequently on all channels. Professor Whitty stresses that while vaccines provide ‘clear hope for the future… for now we must all stay at home’. Launching the new adverts, Boris Johnson warned that hospitals were now under more pressure than at any other time since the start of the pandemic. The Government hopes that Professor Whitty has the credibility to ensure that people will comply with the lockdown regulations.
Professor Whitty says: ‘Covid-19, especially the new variant, is spreading quickly across the country. This puts many people at risk of serious disease and is placing a lot of pressure on our NHS. Once more, we must all stay home. If it’s essential to go out, remember: wash your hands, cover your face indoors and keep your distance from others. Vaccines give clear hope for the future, but for now we must all stay home, protect the NHS and save lives.’
His message is to be reinforced by a major new poster and media campaign which also urges people to ‘act like you’ve got it’ adding that ‘anyone can spread it’. Vivid, stark images, such as the posters below, share the message: ‘Coronavirus. If you go out, you can spread it. People will die.’