Coronavirus

[theakston2k]

Erm, they haven't relaxed the rules. The law has remained the same. The advice has tightened. They decided against tightening the law and tightened the guidelines/advice instead.

Isn't that exactly what I said? The government have made the right decision to relax the restrictions and not subsequently retighten them over Christmas as the police wouldn't have enforced them so what would be the point.

[pauld]

Isn't that exactly what I said? The government have made the right decision to relax the restrictions and not subsequently retighten them over Christmas as the police wouldn't have enforced them so what would be the point.

They haven't relaxed the restrictions. They have kept the law the same and tightened the guidelines.

[theakston2k]

They haven't relaxed the restrictions. They have kept the law the same and tightened the guidelines.

So what exactly has changed between the 23 and 27 of December then if they haven't relaxed the rules? Boris Johnson even said they've chosen to maintain the approach as they don't want to criminalise peoples long-made plans over Christmas which suggests if they didn't relax the rules over Christmas, families would have been breaking the law if they gathered together. Anyway this is all semantics, it's clearly the correct decision for families to be able to see each other within reason, there's a lot of things to criticise the government about but I don't believe this is one of them!

[pauld]

Anyway this is all semantics, it's clearly the correct decision for families to be able to see each other within reason, there's a lot of things to criticise the government about but I don't believe this is one of them!

As I said earlier, it's not so much where they've ended up that's the problem, it's the constant indecision and flip-flopping. Undermines the message and public health is all about giving out a consistent message to the public. When the govt looks like it doesn't know whether it's coming or going like this, it just convinces people they haven't got a clue what they're doing and encourages them to ignore all the advice altogether.

[theakston2k]

But on this occasion there hasn’t been any flip flopping from the government as they’ve stuck with the original plan and just given stronger guidance. All the flip flopping seems to be coming from the scientists and as usual Labour who are saying the rules should be stronger but won’t say how.

[Batch]

they wouldn't dare u turn over Christmas now.

What public confidence is left would be gone, the middle finger would come up and we'd do what we want anyway.

I see Wales are making 2 household + 1 person who lives alone the law.

[pauld]

But on this occasion there hasn’t been any flip flopping from the government as they’ve stuck with the original plan and just given stronger guidance. All the flip flopping seems to be coming from the scientists

WTF? You've had some bloody daft takes on the govt's handling of COVID, but this is a pearler even for you. Scientists on SAGE have consistently advised against the Christmas relaxation right from the start but govt chose to ignore them and are now backpedalling as the results of the spike from the US doing the same for Thanksgiving have become clear.

TBF the govt are at least consistent in being inconsistent, they've been ignoring the science while trying to claim to follow it from the outset. As per the Sunday Times piece from earlier this week

https://archive.fo/2H9re

[theakston2k]

WTF? You've had some bloody daft takes on the govt's handling of COVID, but this is a pearler even for you. Scientists on SAGE have consistently advised against the Christmas relaxation right from the start but govt chose to ignore them and are now backpedalling as the results of the spike from the US doing the same for Thanksgiving have become clear.

Again I’m not just focusing on virologists when I say scientists, the virus is only one area of science that needs to be factored in. There are professors of social behaviour, psychologists and all sorts advising the government. If you listen to the behavioural scientists they are of the opinion that effectively banning Christmas would have had the opposite of the desired effect. Calum Semple who sits on SAGE even said previously it would be beneficial to people’s well-being to relax the rules at Christmas but there will be a price to pay. So I don’t think it’s unfair to say that the scientists are giving mixed messages and flip flopping depending on their area of expertise and there’s no consensus.

[BambooToTheFuture]

Why do you two have to bring up that Norvern cunt Flitcroft?! 

[horlock07]

NHS Trusts are already having to reassess their vaccination programmes having been informed over the last day or so that they will be getting less vaccines before Christmas than they were promised (and on which they based their programmes), they are also not expecting to see the Oxford vaccine until way into the new year.

[Sippo]

The NHS are also training more and more staff to analyse tests.

[tans]

Bristol moved to tier 2
Herefordshire moved to tier 1

[Batch]

Berkshire to tier 3.

may effect some of our supporters

[otanswell]

What we saying for April time then? Supposed to be going Amsterdam and would rather spend my time smoking puff and staring at hookers through windows rather than having to listen to Chris whitty saying I can’t leave me house to walk up the shop

[RobertT]

It's going to get worse before it gets better.

In the USA, current daily death numbers exceed the average for any other cause of death now, higher than Heart conditions and Cancer and getting close to beating both combined.  Good job the reaction is just overblown.