Being of a certain age, I was very keen to ensure I had my autumn Covid booster and flu vaccinations.

It’s a long time since I had flu and I have no desire to get it again. It’s not just a bad cold.

And the same applies to Covid. I did catch it in summer and remain convinced the relatively mild dose was because I was completely up to date with my Covid vaccines.

As we go into winter, I am also mindful of the potential for the so-called twindemic, the dangerous possibility of catching Covid and flu at the same time.

Because of my age and other factors I am technically in an at-risk category so I am still being careful about who I come into contact with and where I meet them.

But it appears I am in a minority as far as us older people are concerned and it’s young people who are the most worried about new outbreaks of illnesses such as Covid and flu this winter, new research has found.

Despite being statistically less likely to develop serious illness, those aged 16 to 34 are far more fearful of a new outbreak than older generations.

The study, conducted by the Champs Public Health Collaborative – a public health partnership between nine local authorities across Cheshire and Merseyside including Warrington – revealed that 29 per cent of 16 to 34 year olds surveyed said they are ‘very concerned’, compared with only 18 per cent of over 65s.

Dr Paul Fitzsimmons, Medical Director at Warrington and Halton Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, said: “It might seem surprising that those who are statistically less likely to get seriously ill from Covid-19 and other winter illnesses are most concerned about outbreaks.

"But we know that disruption to education and social lives, plus the negative mental health impacts of lockdown, have clearly left a lasting mark on younger generations who are now fearful of what could happen again.”

On another topic, I have to confess that black tie dinners are not my favourite events but I’m aware that many people actually enjoy dressing up in their finery – dinner suits and sparkly dresses – especially when there is a chance of winning something at the end of it.

I’m referring, of course, to awards dinners – and boy have I been to a few of those in my time, not always willingly.

I mention this after reading the reports of a recent event, the Warrington Business Awards 2022. Don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against this kind of gig if it’s your thing.

For the finalists and winners, it can be a useful marketing tool to boast about on their websites.

And judging by the pictures from the event, it looks like the attendees had a good time.

But I do have a question. Given this is the ‘Warrington’ business awards, presumably designed to celebrate and reward ‘Warrington’ businesses, how come the event wasn’t actually held in Warrington?

The venue was The Mere Golf Resort and Spa in Knutsford and at £100 a head, it seems a shame to take all that revenue out of the town.

As an aside, I had Sky News on in the background while I was writing this and my attention was drawn to an advert by the Trussell Trust, the UK’s main food bank charity, making an emergency appeal for people to give a donation of £5 to help them to feed people who are struggling at the moment.

Yep, £100-a-head at The Mere versus £5 to feed hungry families. Talk about cognitive dissonance.

And finally, I wrote last week about Warrington South MP Andy Carter’s somewhat flexible views on the issue of fracking. First he was opposed to it, then when 44-day prime minister Liz Truss said she was going to allow it again, he shifted to ‘it can go ahead if local people want it’.

But now current prime minister Rishi Sunak has come out against fracking, I suspect Mr Carter can happily revert to his original position of being opposed to it.

That will be a relief to all of us, not least Mr Carter.