'R' rate is less reliable than a weather forecast - Dr. John Lee, Daily Mail

Keeping R below one is not the only way to map a route out of lockdown.
R is an artificial construct and not even a number we know with any certainty.
R is calculated using mathematical models which have repeatedly been found to reach wrong-headed conclusions.
R is not a strong enough number to bear the burden of any Government policy.
Epidemiology models share the same serious problem as meteorology because of weak data.
Lack of testing means we don’t know how many people have been infected, or have recovered.
Changes to death certification during this epidemic mean that we genuinely don’t even know how many people have died as a direct result of COVID-19.
It is becoming increasingly clear that assumptions central to the models that generate R are flawed.
Worries that R was apparently heading back towards one were missing the point. For some segments of society, including most people of working age, that would be a good thing.
Another implication of seeing R this way, which is quite a relief, is that social distancing can be consigned to the dustbin of bizarre historical episodes.
R is calculated in ways that the Government can produce at will to justify a policy that is no longer tenable.