Without public faith in government actions, the UK will never beat Covid-19 | Liam Smeeth

As a scientist, it's clear to me that the collective action vital to success relies on leaders being honest about their strategy

• Liam Smeeth is dean of the Faculty of Epidemiology and Population Health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine

The UK should have been a world leader in tacking Covid-19. It has universal healthcare delivered through a single, joined-up system, a historically strong public health community and outstanding government scientists and scientific advisers. Instead we lead the world in the worst league tables: Covid-19 cases and deaths. The initial response from the UK government was too late, but eventually action came. Boris Johnson's address on 23 March was a strong and clear call to unite and take action together to tackle the epidemic. The whole country visibly got behind the efforts, and by early April there were clear signs the epidemic was slowing.

The key tools - social distancing, contact-tracing and self-isolation - only work if people fully engage