The Covid-19 outbreak has provoked a crisis of such enormous proportions that things will not just go back to the way they once were. When some semblance of normality emerges, things will be different. We are set for huge social, cultural and economic changes. It’s unlikely that we will suddenly wake up in a world where anxieties around the crisis have vanished into thin air. Rather, a new normality will gradually emerge from its ashes during a transitional period that could last for an extended amount of time.
When lockdown restrictions are eased, it’s probable that we will enter a phase where life will hang between normality and lockdown. The government may again assert its need to tighten the rules depending on infection rates or the capacity of the health system. The operation of some businesses may be severely restricted and some social distancing rules may remain for some time. In short, we are not going to be able to draw a line in the sand behind coronavirus when the lockdown ends, as much as we may like to.
How the world will look after the outbreak is difficult to call. It depends on many factors, for instance whether or not countries are able to reduce infection rates around the world, and how long it takes scientists to formulate an effective vaccine.
However, there are a few changes that we can infer from what we have already seen during the crisis.
Working culture seems set to change for good. For many, social distancing has seen a complete shift to working from home. Technologies like Zoom and Slack have enabled many to move seamlessly into this way of working. If employees can maintain the same kind of productivity while working from home, there will probably be a large shift towards remote working in the long run.
The impact of large scale remote working would be huge. London and Manchester would no longer see their daily deluge of commuters from the surrounding area. Experts have hinted that this could change the entire makeup of the country. Rural villages and suburbia could again become a centre of working life. Big city offices may only host a businesses’ core staff and be used occasionally for whole-company events. Flexible office spaces or co-working spaces could become a regular feature in suburbs, towns and villages.
The Covid-19 outbreak also looks set to accelerate the country’s shift to becoming a cashless society. People are being discouraged from using cash as it’s thought that cash can carry the virus, raising the risk of transmission. The crisis may mean that we are increasingly accustomed to using contactless to make transactions and this could continue even after a vaccine is found.
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