Editor

The last time I walked the footpath along the flank of Pendinas towards Penparcau I got a nasty surprise. Some jobsworth had used a cable tie to immobilise the latch on the gate at the top of Parc Dinas. It was a hazardous manoeuvre to climb over the gate with a dog in my arms, and if I had fallen I would have doubtless put avoidable pressure on our NHS. So I wondered what benefit, exactly, the closure of the footpath could have in the fight against coronavirus?

I also wondered about the concrete block which now prevents vehicles from parking on Tanybwlch beach. This is a large open area. There is ample space for social distancing.

I am reluctantly forced to conclude there is another aspect to the rules of lockdown. We should not be allowed to enjoy ourselves.

How long will this situation persist? We have all accepted we are in the second three-week tranche of repression. But I was appalled to read these restrictions could stay for the over-70s for a year or more until a vaccine can be developed. I recently joined this august age-cohort. Am I to be shut away for a year or more in order to avoid embarrassing the NHS by getting coronavirus? We septuagenarians need to rebel.

Before I am roundly reproved for my selfishness, let me say I will be more than happy to commit to refusing to be put on a ventilator if I become seriously ill. I would either recover, or die more promptly, thus saving the NHS some money. What matters to me is not how many more years I have on the planet, but how many more healthy enjoyable years I get. And I will continue to climb over locked gates in order to enjoy myself.

Name and address withheld

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