Robert Dingwall, professor of sociology at Nottingham Trent University, argues for an opening out of the public debate about the evidential and normative basis of current UK Government COVID-19 policy. His essay appeared in Times Higher Education on 1 October 2020 (but is reproduced here outside the THE paywall). This is a really important argument to be heard in view of the straight-jacket which, whether tacitly or explicitly, has been imposed by the Government on public discourse about public health policy.