The Guardian view on local lockdowns: devolve power, trust people | Editorial

Downing Street's pandemic response is a toxic combination of control-freakery and incompetence

Not much about the government's response to the coronavirus pandemic looks effective with hindsight, but once the decision to go into a full national lockdown was taken, the instruction was at least delivered efficiently. Stay at home" was a message clearly understood.

Some Conservatives even complained that it had been too effective, making it harder to coax people back into economic activity when that became the Downing Street imperative. Since then, the message has become garbled, and not just because regional lockdowns have been used. That concept is simple enough. The problem is rules that look contradictory, or that come and go capriciously.