Few people will have been surprised by the prime minister’s announcement on Tuesday of a new series of restrictions designed to limit the resurgence of the coronavirus. Even his statement that we are likely to be in its grip for at least another six months was no real shock.
But none of that diminishes the devastation of the measures and the likely consequences. As we report this week, many caterers are already on the brink of collapse and may now be pushed over the edge.
But the impact is far wider than one industry. Almost all non-Orthodox synagogues have been closed for six months; they are now almost certain to remain shut for another similar period — at least. That means that a huge number of people will have been unable to visit their synagogue for over a year.
The same applies to most Orthodox members, too. Their synagogues might have opened but the numbers allowed in have been strictly limited.
