Covid lockdowns were no more effective at controlling the pandemic than letting people adapt their own behaviour to the threat, a major Oxford University-backed study suggests. 

Researchers modelled virus death and unemployment rates in response to different pandemic policies.

Results showed imposing blanket shutdowns, which forced people to stay home and closed essential shops, squashed fatality rates for the virus. 

However, leaving people to adapt their own behaviour — similar to the controversial approach used in Sweden — was just as effective, data revealed. 

Experts concluded that both policies led to 'similar trade-offs' for people's health and the economy, with both approaches triggering huge job losses.

The researchers said strict non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) — lockdowns, social distancing and face masks — were 'critical' to reducing the spread of Covid.

However, they noted that individuals changing their behaviour of their own accord — such as by minimising contacts and less frequent trips to shops or restaurants — could have also minimised deaths. 

To determine the effects of both approaches, the researchers created an economic model based on the first wave of the pandemic.