Is Covid a Common Cold?

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Large events like glastonbury are no more dangerous than many small events. So the large events themselves aren't particularly difficult in terms of transmission. It's the contact that people make between each other, and whether they do that in their back garden with their friends,. or they do it in glastonbury, really doesn't make that much difference. I wonder if we could look forward a bit now, graham? We sometimes hear scientists say that covid is eventually going to become like a common cold. Is there any sign of the severity of disease lessening, and is that an inevitable trajectory for covid?

The UK is yet again facing a wave of Covid infections, with cases soaring by more than half a million in a week at the end of June. This time, the wave is driven by even more transmissible variants of Omicron known as BA.4 and BA.5. But with all Covid precautions gone, and many of us heading to bars, pubs, festivals and sporting events as the summer rolls on, is it much of a surprise? Ian Sample asks Prof Graham Medley if infections will translate into hospitalisations and deaths, and whether we can expect ongoing cycles of Covid waves in the months and years to come. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/sciencepod