Before our own lockdown, when France, Spain and Italy were sadly experiencing what was to come for us, a psychologist friend of mine observed how the politics and culture of a country impacted the approach governments were taking to Cover 19. Was it surprising, that more authoritarian regimes were able to clamp down on a population and enforce lockdown more effectively than those with more liberal, social cultures? Probably not, but when the Government presented a chart of death rates across countries a week or so later I also wondered about the impact that different approaches taken by male and female leaders around the world might also have. Whilst many leaders procrastinated, weighing up the obvious impact to the economy, against the, impossible to know, potential death rates, both Angela Merkel and Jacinda Ardern were decisive and incredibly quick to act. Was it that they were more readily able to see the holistic picture, and sense that immediate action would safeguard both the people and the economy? Tellingly, both Germany and New Zealand seem to have succeeded in keeping numbers of infection and deaths down. Jacinda Ardern's approach also offered me peace of mind as we neared our own lock down. Googling in the early hours before Boris' confirmed lockdown, faced with possible lock down for months, with work and schooling to juggle alone, I couldn't find any guidance for single parents. Falling upon an article in New Zealand, I found provisions had been made for single dwellers, with or without children to 'buddy up' for the long haul, as well as clear direction for divorced parents, sharing child care. The messy complexities of life was up there with the economy.
