I met Simon once, and found him to be a delightful person. This piece, however, is extraordinary in its eeyore-ishness, in its negativity. Of course our current Prime Minister’s apparent belief that a bit of boosterism is all that is required to emerge from this crisis (we’re all world class and everything is marvellous) is absurd. These are terribly difficult times, in all sectors. But to simply say how terrible it all is, to complain of the difficulties that have arisen, without any shred of positivity at all, is, I fear, to make failure inevitable.
@sooty mangabey
Yes, I think agree with you! The negative stories and doom-threats (true or not) have produced short-term financial donations and support, but I not sure how long they can be used and how many times they can be repeated before they start to do the opposite.
Yes, I'd also agree. There's a fine line between stressing the seriousness of a situation and making it seem hopeless before you've started. I'm sure he's having a rough time but I think a little more positivity and show of confidence across the zoo's communications would really help the situation.
@Maguariet al I understand your comments and I agree with them up to a point: but the Wild Planet Trust and its collections have been in an even more difficult position than most other zoos in the country.
1) The whole economies of Devon and Cornwall are largely dependent on tourism, which had already been affected by poor weather in recent summers, so the whole area has suffered greatly under lockdown and will continue do so, to a lesser extent, while current restrictions remain. How many families will have to go without a holiday at all in 2020?
2) Paignton Zoo was already in a difficult position because of the bovine TB outbreak. A good deal of money has had to be spent on new fencing for the hoofstock paddocks, many of which remain empty because of the slaughter of infected stock and the natural deaths of several elderly animals. Although transport restrictions were lifted a while ago, no new animals had arrived to restock them before lockdown. In addition Reptile Tropics had to be closed due to storm damage in mid-February and is still closed - I presume it is now fully repaired, but judged unfit for reopening under Covid restrictions. Until it can opened, together with the Desert House, the zoo's capacity to accommodate visitors and the length of their visits will be reduced.
3) The Trust has already had to close Living Coasts. There may not be many further economy measures that they could consider before taking even more drastic action.
