May reality kick in before your coffee does

Here are the absolute coffee facts you need to know. People in the UK drink some 70 million cups of coffee a year. Brazil is the world’s largest coffee producer, with Vietnam a close second. Coffee is traded on the world’s stock markets alongside oil, gold and other commodities. Coffee is by far the most popular drink in the world. And here is one I really like. According to the ancient myth, coffee was first discovered by goats in Ethiopia. However, I’m not a coffee aficionado. In fact, I barely, if ever drink coffee at all. I prefer tea (Yorkshire, of course) or hot Vimto.

I almost never frequent a coffee shop. Very occasionally, on my early morning trips to one of the NHS Trusts I work for, I’ve stopped off at a motorway coffee shop and bought myself a spiced chia tea latte. And even then, I have to steel myself to pay the exorbitant price tag. I simply don’t see what the attraction is of, what I think as being, a somewhat pretentious café culture, although many people do. In fact, four-fifths of people who visit coffee shops do so at least once a week, and indeed nearly 20% of those who frequent coffee shops do so daily. I would rather spend my money on a bottle of wine, although admittedly, drinking a glass of the red stuff at 6am is perhaps not an advisable thing to do!

I think perhaps I’m missing something. However, you can’t have failed to miss the fact that coffee shops have been in the news last week. One in particular seemed to get a lot of attention, Pret a Manger. Apparently, I can’t pronounce the name correctly (and I’m sure I’m not alone) and J, who speaks perfect French, tells me it means ‘ready to eat’. Apparently the first Pret a Manger was opened in 1986 in Victoria Street, London and quickly became known for its handmade natural food. These days, there is even a Veggie Pret shop – top of the best sellers is the Vegan Eggless (egg), Mayo and Cress baguette. Sounds delicious doesn’t it?

But I’m wandering off the point here. Pret a Manger was all over the news last week, as a lot of MPs appeared to like to frequent one close to the House of Commons and there were almost gleeful photos of different members of the current government buying their sandwiches and coffee, either wearing a face mask or not. You would think that given the current controversy over the need to wear masks that politicians would err on the side of common sense and put them on when out and about in public. Actually, I don’t know what the issue is. Wear a mask. It’s simple.

And last week, other bloggers were also on the case. Roy Lilley (no relation to the gilded Eli-Lilly family) pugnaciously rallied against what he described as the ‘BoJo Coffee-Shop-Ometer’. It was a very clever piece of writing. He explored the dangers of Boris exhorting folk to get back to work, and in so doing, keeping coffee shops open. His argument was that Boris is using the number of coffee shops kept open as a proxy metric of the government’s success in managing the pandemic. You can read it here. I also love Roy's three C’s advice, and please, really don’t forget to wear some clothes!

The reality is that for many folk, the thought of going back to what was once before is not something they really want to contemplate. The British Chambers of Commerce and the Institute of Directors last week both noted that people are very cautious about returning back to work. Such caution is perhaps understandable, and there are good reasons why it might be the case. Many people still fear for their safety, and many are still experiencing childcare problems. But there are also positive reasons as to why some folk might be reluctant to return to the way they worked before. People have not had to travel, saving time and money and many people have enjoyed a much better work/life balance. A recent Ipsos Mori survey suggested that almost 60% of folk didn’t want to go to a pub, bar or restaurant bar because they wouldn’t feel safe; with almost the same percentage not wanting to use public transport, use a public toilet or go somewhere where there were large crowds. It’s a dilemma for many different folk. Likewise, a Europe-wide survey carried out by the Willis Towers Watson organisations appears to suggest that such caution is a Europe-wide phenomenon. There is a lot of data presented in their report, but it is worth a read.

What does the data tell us? Well many people are moving to a place of acceptance that there really is a repositioned normal. Many people have discovered that they can operate differently. And that is not just those who normally work in office environments. GPs have found they can actually ‘see’ more patients by using digital technology. The same is true for those running outpatient clinics (the bane of many an NHS Trust). I, and I’m sure it’s true for many others, have grown to love (but possibly will come to loathe) Zoom and Teams as a way of communicating with others. But there are many other things that are changing too. People are doing extraordinary things.

This is one such thing that I liked in particular - last week, the Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) organisation reported the brilliant news that over a million people had given up smoking since the pandemic began. Of those, some 41% reported that they did so because of Covid-19. That is more people in any one year since 2007! Every single person who has stopped smoking will now enjoy a better quality of life and for many, their lifespan will be enhanced and extended. Every life saved as a consequence of not smoking matters. The scientific evidence over the relationship between smoking, poor health and premature death has been overwhelming and constant over many years.

I shan’t be going to a coffee shop any time soon, but if I were tempted to go, I shall be wearing a mask. Whilst the government is aiming for a return to ‘significant normality’ by Christmas, I’m not so sure there is such a thing. He may not run a coffee shop but, like many others, I will be content to heed the advice of Sir Patrick Vallance (UK Chief Scientific Advisor) and continue to work from home, maintain social distancing and stay alert. It’s a repositioned normal that will keep us all safe.