It seems there are now 2.5 million people in the UK on the Government’s list of those who are extremely vulnerable, all of whom will have received the letter above. When you add in people like me who are not on the list but are living with and shielding someone else, that must mean that well over 3, if not 4, million of us are staying at home for the long term.

On Monday I wrote that at least 1.5 million people were being shielded. The first tranche of about 900,000 were sent letters from the Government soon after lockdown was imposed on 23rd March. They had been identified from NHS records because they were receiving chemotherapy or dialysis, were transplant recipients or had a limited number of other specific conditions.

Over the next couple of weeks, GPs were invited to identify others who had conditions that were not on that limited list but who would be seriously at risk if they were to catch the virus. This process added a further 600,000, hence the figure of 1.5 million.

But it seems it didn’t stop there, and GPs have been gradually adding others with complex conditions.

It has not been a simple process. For one thing we don’t yet have a unified medical records system in the UK. Consultants still send letters by post (or even by fax – remember that?) to fellow consultants or GPs. On top of that, people often have several medical conditions which impact on each other.

My favourite Gertrude Jekyll rose has just come into bloom again in my garden

Garden Centres opened again yesterday. I was pleased to spot my much-loved local one, Chessington Garden Centre, in news reports. Photos of the coronavirus testing centre next door to it at Chessington World of Adventures keep cropping up in the media, so I guess one or other is putting Chessington firmly on the Covid-19 map.

As soon as lockdown was imposed Chessington Garden Centre started online sales for the first time. Last month the BBC noted that it was livestreaming gardening advice on Facebook. In fact, it is an independent family run business that has always been innovative, experimental and deeply wedded to the local community throughout its 60 year history. It has a laudable environmental policy, which includes an onsite reed bed system for re-using water, a green roof, and an 81% waste recycling rate. As local councillors committed to sustainable working we held them up as an example to other local businesses. What is more, each year they run the best Santa’s grotto for miles around.

Now I’m quite happy to confirm that I am not a gardener. In some ways I wish I did enjoy weeding and seeding, because I can see what pleasure it brings to people. Gentle exercise in the open air, surrounded by beautiful blossoms and scents, not to mention the pleasure of eating food you have nurtured from seed – what’s not to like?

Today is our younger grandson’s 11th birthday and we have been invited to his Zoom party – in fancy dress. I have been challenged to go dressed as my son, his father.

Luckily, I still seem to have a lot of things in the house that belong to my two sons, even though they both moved out over 20 years ago, and I have managed to unearth an old school tie and blazer. The blazer is rather small and would fit my grandson now, so I will have to sling it across my shoulder instead of wearing it. But a white shirt and tie will help me to look the part. My hair will be the big giveaway, of course, but I’m not going to dye it.

I have also discovered how to do backgrounds for a Zoom call. And the BBC has been enormously helpful in releasing some wonderful photos of empty sets that you can download and use. And joy! – I have found one of a classroom at Grange Hill, which will provide a suitable backdrop to my schoolboy efforts. It also brings back happy memories of the days when my sons were young and deeply in awe of a member of the wider family who played one of the teachers in Grange Hill.

You can brighten up your Zoom meetings by relocating to the Strictly ballroom, the Queen Vic, Fawlty Towers or the Ab Fab champagne fridge.  And – for Lib Dems everywhere – there are six, yes six, different Tardis interiors.

Amazingly, our bin collections have continued as normal during lockdown. I can remember what happens when they are not collected over a long period of time, so am really grateful that the service has not been curtailed.

During the Winter of Discontent (1978-79) waste was not picked up for around 4 weeks. Piles of smelly rubbish appeared on the streets and rats were seen. There was no recycling in those days, so food waste was mixed in with plastic and paper. We were encouraged to “Burn or bury all you can” – a rather unfortunate public message to appear on the gates of the local cemetery and crematorium.

Refuse collection is an unpleasant and physically challenging job, and I have huge respect for the people who do it. But I was alarmed this morning to see that our local teams were exposing themselves to high levels of risk. Not only are they handling waste which could well be infected with the virus, but they do not have masks or disposable gloves. Even more worrying is the fact that they are unable to socially distance themselves while working.

Bin collectors have reported that they don’t feel safe when working.