Moving down the priority list is going to get harder as people who are not particularly at risk refuse to participate. And then if a large majority refuse to participate the situation becomes muddied. If the virus continues to be spread in the younger population what effect will this have? There are reports of younger people in hospital so the risk will still be around. Presumably the vaccine will offer a large amount of protection for those who have had it. But percentages quoted of even 90% are not brilliant – you would not cross a road if you had 90% chance of being unscathed.
So large gatherings will be off limits for anyone who wishes to avoid the virus – football and rugby matches, pop concerts, cinema, theatre, pubs, restaurants, etc. Basically lockdown will be self imposed unless there is a general compliance with vaccination (something we are not seeing with masks and social distancing, travel, etc. at the moment.
This then has an impact on the economy. I am sure there are many people who will avoid pubs and restaurants, who will not get on a plane, who will avoid cinemas etc. if there is any chance of infection (or at least a higher than necessary chance).
I would like to see the government seize the impact of covid and Brexit to have a radical reset of the economy. Scrap the bloody coal mine in Cumbria, scrap ideas of new nuclear power plants, invest in solar panels, insulation, etc. Encourage local farm produce.
A last thought – how to create a change in our consumer society so that quality prevails over quantity. Maybe there should be a tax based on the cost of disposing of the item divided by the number of years it can be expected (by warranty) to survive. So a washing machine for example – a cheap one with a 2 year warranty would have a surcharge of 50% cost of disposal say £100. A quality one which was more expensive but had a 10 year warranty would only pay an extra £10 as opposed to the £50 on a cheap one. Given the replacement costs of a cheap item it would therefore be cheaper in the long run to buy the better quality one. One then comes to the problem of those who just do not have the cash upfront? I am sure there would soon be a quality second hand market in quality equipment, but also reckon that schemes that benefit longevity could be devised.
An analogy -seat belts help protect you from injury but do not allow you to drive like a maniac, you can still die or kill others. The vaccine is like that.