Brits back coronavirus lockdown but fear years of hardship after pandemic, poll finds

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Imogen Braddick14 April 2020

The majority of Brits support the coronavirus lockdown rules, but many fear years of financial problems as a result, a new poll has found.

The survey of more than 2,000 Brits on Easter Sunday found that 48 per cent back the Government's measures to curb the spread of Covid-19.

But 84 per cent of those surveyed by YouGov for the Telegraph expected years of economic hardship after the crisis.

It comes as Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab is expected to extend the UK's lockdown measures until May 7.

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Just 11 per cent of Brits believe the economy will bounce back “quite quickly” once the pandemic is over, while 45 per cent say it will be “weakened for a few years”, and 39 per cent believe it will be “damaged for many years”.

It comes as 19 per cent of mainly younger workers have been made unemployed or forced to take a lower salary.

A similar proportion of people said they are worried about their future and even more said they feel more lonely and unhappy as the mental health impact of the restrictions starts to take its toll.

With regards to contracting the virus, only 20 per cent believe it is unlikely that they will catch Covid-19, while 39 per cent rate their chances as 50:50.

Thirty-nine per cent of Brits believe the pandemic will claim several million lives across the world, while 26 per cent believe “many” millions will die.

Chris Curtis, YouGov’s political research manager, said the data showed that the vast majority of Brits are willing to abide by the lockdown measures despite recognising the economic ramifications.

“People are more accepting of the restrictions than previously assumed,” he told the Telegraph.

“The question is how is it going to look after 12 to 24 weeks. I would suggest that the surprising finding is this willingness to accept.

“The public are probably going to be more willing to follow these guidelines in the long run even when it becomes harder and damages the economy as it inevitably does.”

It comes as a staggering 92 per cent of respondents said they agreed with the statement: "I will probably follow the advice of the Government even if I don't agree with it or find it pointless."

But, despite the readiness to abide by the rules, 44 per cent feel the Government should have taken a tougher stance and implemented stricter lockdown measures.

Mr Curtis added: “When it comes to the exit strategy, there is one thing the Government does not appear to have to worry about – that is whether the public are going to comply with these measures over the longer term.

“The public in the UK and around the world are rewarding governments who take strong decisive action.”

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