FACE coverings and masks were made obligatory in shops in England on July 24.

According to the Office for National Statistics on that date, the seven day rolling average on infections was 677 cases.

A week later this had risen to 820 and as of writing it stands at 945 cases.

So, masks don’t work then? Just the opposite?

Or it could be that they do work and other factors are responsible for the rise. The point is that we do not know.

Surely now would be a good time to do more (or even some!) proper, definitive trials as to mask effectiveness if we are to continue to be blindly forced to use them.

To continue with the mantra “they can’t do any harm” is no longer any kind of justification of their use, if it ever has been.

D Duell, Durham