Michie, who is a Professor of Health Psychology at UCL and a leading member of SAGE, said such control measures should become part of people's "normal" routine behaviour.

"Vaccines are a really important part of pandemic control but it is only one part. [A] test, trace and isolate system, [as well as] border controls, are really essential. And the third thing is people's behaviour. That is, the behaviour of social distancing, of… making sure there's good ventilation [when you're indoors], or if there's not, wearing face masks, and [keeping up] hand and surface hygiene."

"We will need to keep these going in the long term, and that will be good not only for Covid but also to reduce other [diseases] at a time when the NHS is [struggling]… I think forever, to some extent…"

"I think there's lots of different behaviours that we have changed in our lives. We now routinely wear seatbelts – we didn't use to. We now routinely pick up dog poo in the parks – we didn't use to. When people see that there is a threat and there is something they can do to reduce that [to protect] themselves, their loved ones and their communities, what we have seen over this last year is that people do that."

Michie's comments once again emphasize how many scientific advisers have become drunk on COVID-19 power and never want to relinquish it.

"Unsurprisingly, Channel 5 News made absolutely no effort to scrutinise these claims. The programme's presenter raised no objection to the idea that mask-wearing and social distancing could continue "forever", resorting only to friendly laughter," writes Michael Curzon.