Covid-19 and Politics

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Squeegee Beckenheim said:
The thing is - if we'd locked down hard and early, we could have had similar results to New Zealand - bringing cases down so low that we could have almost completely re-opened after a much shorter lockdown. As it is we're just setting the stage for a) tonnes more people dying, b) another lockdown later in the year, or c) a & b.
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That would have required:

  • Listening to the scientists
  • Learning from foreigners
  • Working to create a consensus
  • Strong leadership
  • Decisive action
  • Sticking to a course of action

Any one of these is beyond the compass of the current crop of shirkers, dilettantes, grifters and imbeciles who make up the UK's government. :mad:
 
The Don said:
It's looking increasingly like Boris Johnson will announce that pubs in England iwll be opening again soon:



https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-53129845

Yes, England is on track because the decision making process isn't driven by the science any longer, it's driven by the economy and public sentiment. :mad:

Out local award-winning micropub, the Queen's Head, opened for off-sales on Friday and managed to sell 3 firkins (over 200 pints) in an hour and a half. The landlord was able to get three more for Saturday and trade was slow, it took nearly 2 hours to sell out. This is far more beer than he'd ordinarily sell (the pub only seats 10) but people are eager to support local businesses :)
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The only science Boris is interested in is "You've already had it so you're probably safe".

My local has been doing delivery pizzas at the weekends as they have a log fired pizza oven, to be honest they haven't been anywhere near as good as when I've had them on the premises, possibly they don't have their chef at the moment as most chefs come from abroad and may have gone home before lockdown*, but I've still had them a couple of times as I want to do my bit to help them survive it's a great pub, dog friendly and has a nice garden (which, if it goes under will probably end up with another half dozen houses on it).


*Possibly it's just my perception, I was given a pizza oven a while back and modesty aside I do a really nice one, 24hr dough, fresh basil in the sauce, at least three cheeses.
 
The Don said:
That would have required:

  • Listening to the scientists
  • Learning from foreigners
  • Working to create a consensus
  • Strong leadership
  • Decisive action
  • Sticking to a course of action

Any one of these is beyond the compass of the current crop of shirkers, dilettantes, grifters and imbeciles who make up the UK's government. :mad:
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And attending Cobra meetings...
 
New outbreaks in Germany.
This is what happens when a country which had a far more effective lockdown and far more clear messaging from government goes back to "normal" good luck Britain.
 
More news on UK excess deaths:

The total number of "excess deaths" in the UK since the coronavirus outbreak began has now passed 65,000.
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https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/wor...f1c6f00b6cac0667aec09b&pinned_post_type=share

That's nearly 0.1% of the UK population. The current estimate is that around 5% of the UK population has been , or is, infected. This has the capacity to run and run especially if no effective vaccine is found and if immunity is temporary for those who have had it.
 
While the government is rushing headlong to open up the economy as quickly as they can, business owners are complaining that they haven't had the guidance necessary to make sure they're safe and don't have enough time to set up properly:

But how prepared are businesses to reopen with social distancing guidelines in place? The BBC has spoken to a pub, a salon and a B&B.

All point out different things. "I'm feeling really anxious about reopening as I just don't know what's coming," says B&B owner Lindsey Holland from Gloucestershire.
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Meanwhile Simon Daws, who runs a pub in Cheltenham, says he's not confident that reopening will be a success.

"We really need more notice than a couple of weeks to get the right beer in and get staff back from furlough, but we want people to come back to the pub."
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https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/wor...f1d9340b6cac0667aec0c6&pinned_post_type=share

Which is business as usual for this government, make a grand announcement in haste with little or no thought or guidance and then leave the "trivial" details of actually making it work to other people (who can then be blamed when it inevitably goes horribly wrong). :mad:
 
UK PM Boris Johnson tells MPs that restaurants, pubs and hairdressers will reopen in England from 4 July
Mr Johnson says 2m distancing rule is being reduced to 1m plus
Cinemas, museums and other attractions will also reopen, but not "close proximity" venues like indoor gyms

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-53146191
 
Captain_Swoop said:
UK PM Boris Johnson tells MPs that restaurants, pubs and hairdressers will reopen in England from 4 July
Mr Johnson says 2m distancing rule is being reduced to 1m plus
Cinemas, museums and other attractions will also reopen, but not "close proximity" venues like indoor gyms

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-53146191
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Great idea. There's no way that people sitting in a cinema, 1 metre apart, could be the source of a super-spreader event. :rolleyes:

I'd rather be in the gym, especially if you book a session and the equipment is cleaned assiduously afterwards - though in truth I'd rather not go to the gym either.
 
I was surprised about Johnson's phrasing when he spoke of putting a 'human shield' around the NHS, human shields are there to be, if necessary, sacrificed to protect something else and it isn't normally considered a good thing, in fact it's the opposite of what the NHS is about. I'm sure it's not what he intended but it made me think of all the people that have died in care homes.
 
Boris confirming that from the 4th of July everyone can drive blind to Barnard Castle, jump off Durdle Door and do a conga round Wetherspoons
 
Captain_Swoop said:
Boris confirming that from the 4th of July everyone can drive blind to Barnard Castle, jump off Durdle Door and do a conga round Wetherspoons
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Only if they live in England.

I live in Wales, really need to get to Barnard Castle (in the process of selling my late father's home there) but cannot travel further than a recommended 5 miles from my home for anything other than essential reasons.

That said, I'm glad that the Welsh government is taking things slowly. I'm more eager not to have Coronavirus than I am to have a pint at The Lion.
 
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