It's the lockdown, not COVID-19, which will destroy the NHS. (Patreon)

The sick irony of the "Stay home, protect the NHS" mantra is that the lockdown is actually going to destroy the NHS. It's a glaringly obvious inevitability to anyone with even the most elementary grasp of economics.

Tax revenue is in free-fall while the cost of the "economic relief" package is soaring.  Massive tax hikes and spending cuts- beyond anything seen before in our lifetimes -will need to be implemented to salvage the economy. The NHS will be one of those casualties, and will be privatised as a result. As we speak, the vast majority of hospitals are extremely quiet, with far fewer patients than normal. Once the lockdown is lifted, the carnage will ensue. Millions who were denied treatment for months will return in droves. Thousands of missed cancer diagnoses during lockdown will result in a deluge of extra patients in the coming months and years, coupled with an exponential increase in ill-health due to soaring levels of poverty and destitution. "Stay home, protect the NHS" is quite literally turkey's voting for Christmas.

The fact that the vast majority of the public can't see the magnitude and inevitability of these consequences is absolutely staggering. Peter Hitchens has long lamented the fall in educational standards in the western world- specifically Britain -and herein lies the proof.

**Shoutout to Toadman for his recent post about this on the community page**