THE palpable excitement at the reopening of shops and restaurants in Warrington was clear for all to see.

I had a walk through the town the other day, and it felt something like normal again.

People were smiling and having fun, it looked like a weight had been lifted.

Families were together, friends were catching up. It seemed like Covid had been left behind.

And with so many people now vaccinated, hardly anybody had been catching the virus and there are very few people in hospital.

Yet we have weeks and weeks to wait for all restrictions to be lifted and even that is not guaranteed.

So my question is, what are we waiting for?

This is not September when there were rising cases and no defence.

We have the vaccines, the most vulnerable have had them.

So let’s get on and open up.

There must come a time when we look after the livelihoods and welfare of all the people in our town who have been struggling this past year.

JOAN TAYLOR Orford