The NHS is at breaking point. At the moment they are not being explicit about the policies they are adopting to stop breaking completely.
However I suspect leaving ambulances queueing outside, and prioritising younger victims with a greater chance of recovery will be amongst them. This just avoids patients in corridors on trolleys waiting and (possibly) dying with no immediate treatment in prospect.
If the load increases significantly, an explicit strategy will need to be implemented to avoid meltdown within the hospital. Unless the load on frontline staff is controlled, there would be a collapse of effective capacity making the crisis even deeper.
A motoring analogy - normally average speeds are unaffected by traffic volumes. But if volumes increase beyond a certain point, average speeds decline and rapidly become stop/start. This is not a linear process - hence motorway variable speed limits to keep traffic flowing.
So back to the two old ladies having a cup of coffee. It seems an over-reaction, but (a) we don't know the real story, and (b) I accept the police will occassionally get it wrong.
If it sends the very clear message that non-compliance will no longer be taken lightly, but dealt with rapidly irrespective of the individual, I completely support their actions.
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