Professor Susan Michie:

The question was raised about meals versus no meals as well as other questions about behaviour in terms of non-essential travel and how people would respond to borders and test, trace and isolate. In all these situations three things need to be in place. People need to have the knowledge of what they are and are not allowed to do, and for that clear and consistent information must be provided. Secondly, they need to be motivated; I will come back to that. Thirdly, they need to have the opportunity, and use of environment is extremely helpful in terms of supporting behaviour change.

In terms of pubs, I mention meals versus no meals, absolutely, as was suggested. If people are sitting down and those seats are spaced then one is much more likely to have social distancing than if people are moving around. We know that alcohol disinhibits behaviour. We have seen with alcohol that even when people have good intentions or are motivated, after a couple of drinks they forget and hug each other, are near to each other and are face to face, etc. Eating food tends to reduce the amount of alcohol consumed and the impact of the alcohol on people's behaviour.

I agree with Professor Heneghan that in order to get to zero Covid there needs to be clear, specific, precise policies. The statement being presented today is about an idea and it needs to be followed up with a statement about what those policies will look like. However, in all the cases it is important to motivate people and to take the population with the Government, as I have said before.

One thing that has been shown to be effective in that regard is getting people to think not just about themselves but about their families, their communities and societies. We need to get people to think about the "we" and about other people. It is about using a moral leadership to motivate people to comply with adhering to the spirit as well as, if relevant, the law of what is essential travel. It is about getting tested when one suspects one is ill, giving contacts, which is often a tricky thing to do, and about isolating. These are difficult things to achieve and one needs public health expertise to achieve them.

Importantly, I said one needs to have knowledge and motivation but also, the opportunity. Isolation is key to this strategy, and test, trace and isolate is key to achieving zero Covid. We need to make sure that people are not disincentivised, that is, if a person is going to lose money because he or she cannot work then he or she should have financial compensation. If a person is unable to isolate at home, he or she should be offered alternative accommodation. This is being done in those countries that have successfully kept community transmission low, even quite poor countries like Vietnam and places like Kerala that have been outstanding in their achievements. They have made sure it is not just about people knowing and being motivated but about enabling and supporting them to do that. That is an important message to take into all the areas being considered.