How is the Tory government doing?

The sensible, cautious, caring approach would have been to build (equally rapidly) more Nightingale Hospitals specifically for the elderly folk discharged from NHS hospitals. 
Alternatively, existing, largely unused Nightingale facilities could have been a safe haven.

What actually happened prioritised Covid patients over the equally deserving elderly sick. That was wicked.

From Thatcher onwards, the Tories have a history of callous attitudes towards such issues as Windrush, welfare, fox-hunting, the creation of the hostile environment, Grenfell, care home residents, herd immunity, the bedroom and poll tax etc...and yet are remarkably generous to Tory donors, tax-dodgers, the wealthy etc.
They are not known as the "nasty party" for nothing.

No surprise:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-53592881

Also no surprise - Boris caught out lying yet again:

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/boris-johnson-rapped-watchdog-after-22440423

And now Boris promotes 36 cronies to the Lords making it nearly 830 strong.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-53606083

In his 50's, ex minister?  How surprised will we be when we learn who it is I wonder ? The journos are hovering.

Interesting financial forecasting coming out today as the Bank of England try to work out what sort of economic stimulus would help.
Initially the Government were predicting a "V" shaped recovery i.e. we'll get hammered but bounce back quickly. Then they realised that wasn't going to happen and suggested a "U" shaped recovery i.e. it would take longer to get started but then we'll rocket back to where we were.
But after one of the worst weeks for job losses in history the forecast is for another million job losses and a "K" shaped recovery i.e. we all go down but then some sectors will start to recover whilst other sectors notably retail and travel will just continue to decline and perhaps cease to exist altogether. 
All of which points to the idea that society and our lifestyles will never be the same again.

You've got to laugh:- the man with no moral compass whatsoever is telling us that it's a moral duty to get children back to school..... not that I disagree that every effort should be made to make schools as safe as possible for staff and students so that a full return can go ahead with confidence asap. 

An effective test/trace system would be a good idea! Whatever happened to our "world-beating" one?

okocha wrote:

An effective test/trace system would be a good idea! Whatever happened to our "world-beating" one?

1. Three weeks ago the government admitted that their system was illegal as it contravened the data Protection Act
2. So it became a "voluntary" scheme - so those who don't want to be traced have every right not to be
3. The system itself is predominantly phone -based so large tranches of those identified couldn't be contacted to ask if they would share their data anyway.

All of which adds up to a shit sandwich - so Local Authorities are starting to look at setting up their own independent track and trace systems like this one in Blackburn announced this week.

If the UK is ever to get a functioning and joined-up track and trace system there need to be fundamental changes including:
1. guaranteed data protection
2. recognising that failure to disclose/isolate is a threat to others and therefore criminalising it with fines and if necessary jail time
3. feet on the ground to track down those known to have been in contact with carriers who aren't answering the phone
4. ASBO type bracelets for repeat offenders to ensure they quarantine
5. Police powers to intervene

Sounds draconian but it will get positive results if you'll forgive the pun.

Why do pubs, clubs and restaurants have to shut down for schools to open fully? I don't see the connection, but it seems to have been presented as an either/or. A trade-off. 

If pubs, restaurants, clubs go into lockdown again despite the safety regimens imposed in them, surely parents will assume that there is still danger at large, and will not want to expose their children to risk within educational establishments where little children will find it difficult to observe the rules for long.

Clearer logic, explanation and messaging required, avoiding all rhetoric.

okocha wrote:If pubs, restaurants, clubs go into lockdown again despite the safety regimens imposed in them

How many pubs have you been in on a Friday or Saturday night since they re-opened?

The thinking goes something like this I believe.

The virus IS in the community and at 'safe' level (it's not running wild so to speak)

The infection rate as gone higher because a huge chunk of people (largely 40's and under) simply aren't taking it seriously and are not social distancing, wearing masks, keeping in their 'bubbles'.

This is about manageable so far.

When schools go back - and with all the best will in the world - there will be big problems because of non compliance by the kids and/or their parents.

Not necessarily in the schools themselves but on the way to and from.  

There used to be hoards of parents meeting up outside the infant and junior schools, to have pick up/drop off their little ones and have a chat and a gossip with the other mums and dads, when I used to take my daughter some years back and I doubt that's change.  

The older kids will be messing about with their mates on their walk home/ school buses, etc, not social distancing and with loads of kids outside of their family bubbles.

The virus seems to not harm them but it doesn't stop them catching it and passing it on.  There are questions as to how easy/difficult it is for them to catch it/pass it on - but there is clear evidence that they can and do.

I would guess adding this 'new' level of risk to what people have been doing so far will 'tip' the balance away from being 'manageable' to once again getting out of control and triggering another lockdown that nobody wants (apart us oldies and ill who are at risk).

It's hard to say what impact of people going to the pubs/beach has had on spreading the virus as it seems (and I'll say it again) that the spread of the virus is being driven either from workplace spreads or spreads in large family multi generational homes - the Asian communities in general.

Fwiw Bradford report 73 cases alone today and it's been in lock down for a week already, the next highest is Birmingham with 63 who isn't in lockdown, third highest Oldham with 44 and then Leicester with 34 (half the number of Bradford and Leicester total is the fourth worst for new cases today in the entire country). Read those stats as you wish, I only post them as a factual snapshot of todays cases.

It seems as I say that we've reached a sort of acceptable balance with control of the virus in the community and in order is to open the schools then something has to be taken off the table so to speak and that would be closing the pubs - if for no other reason it is one of the few measures that can be policed and enforced effectively.

There's a very long way to go yet and until everyone starts to take it seriously and social distance, etc, the longer it is going to carry on.

Sad but true.

okocha wrote:Why do pubs, clubs and restaurants have to shut down for schools to open fully? I don't see the connection, but it seems to have been presented as an either/or. A trade-off. 

If pubs, restaurants, clubs go into lockdown again despite the safety regimens imposed in them, surely parents will assume that there is still danger at large, and will not want to expose their children to risk within educational establishments where little children will find it difficult to observe the rules for long.

Clearer logic, explanation and messaging required, avoiding all rhetoric.

Ye I think you hit the nail on the head that it’s a trade off to keep the virus in check - and that makes sense on the face of it at least.

The big question remains over why we don’t have a track and trace app sorted still. Without a strong system surely we’re just in the same boat as we were with the first wave?

Behind the scenes I think the government have accepted they were too slow last time and didn’t handle the first wave well. And now seem to be over compensating with caution of the second wave - I prefer the latter attitude to the first.

The Government awarded a PPE contract worth £252 million to Ayanda Capital Limited, a ‘family office’ owned through a tax haven in Mauritius, with connections to Liz Truss. It is the largest PPE contract we have seen to date. 
In response to judicial review proceedings issued by Good Law Project, the Government has admitted that the 50 million FFP2 masks they purchased from Ayanda Capital – for a price that we calculate to be between £156m and £177m –  “will not be used in the NHS” because “there was concern as to whether the[y]… provided an adequate fixing.”
So, unless Government finds another use for, or seeks to sell, those unsuitable masks, that money has been wasted. And as for the remaining 150 million Type IIR masks purchased from Ayanda Capital? Government has admitted they also require further testing and have not been released for use in the NHS.
We have also unearthed another absolutely remarkable feature of the £252 million Ayanda contract. Matt Hancock’s lawyers have now admitted they planned to enter into that contract with a £100 company wholly owned by Liz Truss’ adviser Andrew Mills and his wife. Mr Mills asked – and Government agreed – to enter into it with Ayanda instead because the £100 company (Prospermill Limited) didn’t have “international payment infrastructure.” Just how much has this arrangement prospered Mills?

Typical Tory corruption and of course nobody will be punished.

Surely contracts this size should be put out to tender? Not agreed through what appears to be nepotism? This just seems to be one of many similar examples subverting due process to pay off friends since Boris and Cummings took office.

T.R.O.Y. wrote:Surely contracts this size should be put out to tender? Not agreed through what appears to be nepotism? This just seems to be one of many similar examples subverting due process to pay off friends since Boris and Cummings took office.

The tracing app for example - which also failed.

I hope you managed to catch last night's Have I Got a Bit More News for You on a fairly recent episode of the programme shown again on Dave, with Victoria Coren Mitchell in the chair. It was blindingly funny....but probably not so much if you are a Tory fan....as it had eye-watering revelations of immorality concerning Boris and his cabinet. Shameful stuff interwoven with very witty asides from Merton, Hislop and, surprisingly perhaps, guest panellist, the old cricket commentator, Henry Blofeld.

Did you know that Henry's dad was the inspiration for Ian Fleming's choice of Blofeld as the villain's name in one of the books? He and Fleming were at school together.

okocha wrote:I hope you managed to catch last night's Have I Got a Bit More News for You on a fairly recent episode of the programme shown again on Dave, with Victoria Coren Mitchell in the chair. It was blindingly funny....but probably not so much if you are a Tory fan....as it had eye-watering revelations of immorality concerning Boris and his cabinet. Shameful stuff interwoven with very witty asides from Merton, Hislop and, surprisingly perhaps, guest panellist, the old cricket commentator, Henry Blofeld.

Did you know that Henry's dad was the inspiration for Ian Fleming's choice of Blofeld as the villain's name in one of the books? He and Fleming were at school together.

Incidentally, Blofeld would have made a fine cricketer if he hadn't been run over by a bus.

No wonder he was obsessed by them during his commentaries.

T.R.O.Y. wrote:Surely contracts this size should be put out to tender? Not agreed through what appears to be nepotism? This just seems to be one of many similar examples subverting due process to pay off friends since Boris and Cummings took office.

They are.

Unfortunately due to the urgency with the pandemic the tender process was suspended.

I guess from your question that you've never been involved in a tendering a contract of the size, as if you had you would know the amount of time it would take to draft the tender document, invite offers to tender, deal with questions/queries/clarifications/amendments to, etc, etc from those interested in tendering, await a period of time (weeks/months) for the tenders to be written by the companies, evaluate and compare the returned tenders, question/clarify issues arising, and finally awarding the contract.

Clearly not everything was done properly - but needs must.

The thinking was get things done now and sort out any illegality afterwards.

I don't think they had any other choice but to do what they did if they wanted PPE immediately and in direct competition with all the rest of the world.

Mistakes will/have happened as a consequence.

As for Track and Trace it seems to me the Govt put all its eggs in one basket, the telephone app, and when that failed had to get the current telephone system up and running PDQ.