Academy of Ideas's video: From Zero Covid to let it rip : did anyone do Covid right

This debate took place at the Battle of Ideas festival 2022 on Sunday 16 October: https://www.battleofideas.org.uk/session/from-zero-covid-to-let-it-rip-did-anyone-do-covid-right/ SPEAKERS: Professor Sunetra Gupta professor of theoretical epidemiology, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford; award-winning novelist Peter Kurti director, Culture, Prosperity and Civil Society program, Centre for Independent Studies; adjunct associate professor, School of Law, University of Notre Dame Australia; author, Beyond Belief? Thinking Again about the Voice to Parliament Rob Lyons science and technology director, Academy of Ideas; convenor, AoI Economy Forum Freddie Sayers executive editor, UnHerd; former editor-in-chief, YouGov; founder, PoliticsHome CHAIR Max Sanderson editor of weekly podcasts, Guardian INTRODUCTION In March 2020, governments around the world decided what kind of strategy to adopt in response to the rapidly spreading coronavirus. From ‘zero-Covid’ to ‘let it rip’ – and everything in between – each saw its fair share of positive and negative column inches. But as we were so often told, comparisons between countries were always going to be hard while the virus was still rampant. Now, almost three years on from the identification of the new virus, do we finally have enough evidence to say whether anyone actually got it right? How would we even begin to measure that? Like so much in the pandemic, will an answer depend on which of the numerous measurable effects one values the most? And ultimately, is it even possible to compare different countries – each with their own complex and unique set of socio-demographic factors? With thanks to Paul Rodriguez for film and editing work.