Failure to follow festive rules could put your family at risk, warns Sheffield business leader

As I trade titles, it reminds me we will once again be entering a period of different labels for similar restrictions.

Whatever they are called is the inescapable reality the virus is by no means beaten and the same disciplines still apply – i.e. distancing, hand hygiene and wearing masks.

The only new factor is the onset of Christmas and the inevitable conflict between associating with loved ones to celebrate, but in doing so increasing the risk of the virus spreading.

I think it would be stretching our imagination too far to think compliance over Christmas and New Years’s Eve will be other than challenging and, in all probability, not universal.

However, the harsh reality is the level of non-conformity will come at a price, with the new restrictions announced to apply after lockdown two probably already factoring this in.

The paradox is, for a bit of family fun, we could we putting those we love most at risk.

It is – and always has been – our personal responsibility to protect ourselves and those around us, particularly the most vulnerable.

We have been able to keep our schools open – no mean feat and credit to all concerned – and to maintain services and not overwhelm the NHS, but it still under great pressure.

Front-line workers in all sectors have been heroes and are deserving of a relaxing and happy Christmas.

We, too, need to recharge our batteries after a tough time and restore morale, particularly those who have been self-isolating, or worse have lost livelihoods and loved ones.

Time to consider, too, those in our midst whose loneliness will be a threat to their wellbeing – continuing the numerous acts of good neighbourly kindness we displayed during year will be even more needed over the festive period.

Hopefully the new year will restore our confidence with the roll-out of the long-awaited vaccines and a more responsive test-and-trace system.

We have come through a lot, with many lessons learnt, not least how dependent we are on each other and how health and the economy are linked.

The biggest lesson surely is how critical our own behaviour is to protect ourselves and others and that everyone’s freedoms must be exercised with responsibilities also.

If we do that, we can still have a relaxing Christmas, albeit with some restraint while being alert to those less fortunate than ourselves.