TODAY marks another big step on the roadmap to lockdown easing, with socialising in groups of six indoors allowed, the inside of hospitality venues reopen and some international travel returning.

This is of course all excellent, made possible through lockdown reducing the case numbers and the success of the vaccination programme.

This time last year, as we came out of the first lockdown, I was not happy with the speed restrictions were lifted. Going early allowed Covid to bubble under the surface, leading to the horrendous situation we saw by Christmas.

The vaccines have changed everything this time round, and the government is rightly remaining cautious. As Prime Minister Boris Johnson conceded on Friday the troubling Indian variant could cause "serious disruption" to the final stage of lockdown easing which, as it currently stands, is set for June 21.

For us to remain on track, for no rerun of what happened over the autumn and winter last year, the answer can not be just vaccines. We need to learn the lesson, what happened then that led to Covid to spread and variants like the Kent strain to emerge.

This means, for example, mask wearing on public transport and shops should stay for however long it takes.

A working from home and in office balance needs to be struck by employers.

The return of crowds to entertainment and sporting venues should be done in limited numbers, building over time.

And yes no initiatives like the Chancellor's 'Eat out to help out' of last year, until safe to do so.

There should be no rush, all decisions based on evidence and the best scientific guidance at the time.

Failure to do these things means there could be the disaster of a variant the vaccines don't work against, and the risk of going back into a lockdown again. None of us want that, so let's prevent it.

This is the time not to be complacent, but to act sensibly with no repeat of the mistakes of a year ago.