Most people in the two Provinces also fear a second wave
Translated by Thomas Ansell
Most Northerners are being cautious during the Coronavirus outbreak, reports the Asser Courant. This is evident from research by both the UMCG and the University of Groningen- which was done in the second and third week of July.
“It seems to me that Northerners are being cautious and that a majority of people are trying to keep social distancing. That suggests that the mindset of lots of people in the North is to follow government advice”, says Professor Lude Franke, a researcher at the UMCG.
According to statistics, more than 70 percent of Northerners have cancelled foreign holiday plans due to the Coronavirus. Of the 30,000 people questioned by researchers, almost nobody was planning on travelling to a country outside of the EU, or to a country with ‘orange’ negative travel advice.
Just 14 percent of those questioned will be taking holidays in another country; in other years this has been as high as 60 percent. Of those travelling outside of the Netherlands, the most popular destinations are Germany and France.
As for the future, most Northerners do not see sunshine. 78 percent of those questioned think that the outbreak will continue into 2021, and 67 percent anticipate a second wave of the virus. If this were to happen, then 89 percent of those questioned would support another lockdown. Significant numbers of those asked suggested that regional lockdowns would be the best way to control a second outbreak, and that guidelines should be different for age groups and those with a higher risk.
If a vaccine were to be developed, 93 percent of those asked would be vaccinated.
