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Post by claphamshrew on Apr 26, 2020 19:45:57 GMT 1
www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/26/no-evidence-no-10-advisers-attended-sage-during-previous-crises-coronavirus-dominic-cummingsDowning Street’s political advisers have never before attended meetings of the UK government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage), according to a review of all publicly available minutes of meetings over the last decade. The Guardian revealed on Friday that the prime minister’s chief adviser, Dominic Cummings, and another No 10 aide who worked with him on the Vote Leave campaign have been attending Sage meetings. The government has been adopting an unusually combative approach to journalists in recent weeks after a slew of articles by investigative reporters raised questions about how ministers are responding to the Covid-19 pandemic. [br Disappointing and worrying that you didn’t include the paragraph that was in the middle of the ones you did copy, so here it is to provide a little more context to the above. “The nature and scale of this emergency, which is impacting the UK in a more direct manner, differs from those that Sage has been mobilised for in the past and, as such, the rotating expert attendance and list of government officials involves a broader set of representatives,” the spokesperson said. Downing Street did not dispute the minutes. Seems like a reasonable response to me. Others may be more cynical of course. |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 26, 2020 19:49:23 GMT 1
www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/26/no-evidence-no-10-advisers-attended-sage-during-previous-crises-coronavirus-dominic-cummingsDowning Street’s political advisers have never before attended meetings of the UK government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage), according to a review of all publicly available minutes of meetings over the last decade. The Guardian revealed on Friday that the prime minister’s chief adviser, Dominic Cummings, and another No 10 aide who worked with him on the Vote Leave campaign have been attending Sage meetings. The government has been adopting an unusually combative approach to journalists in recent weeks after a slew of articles by investigative reporters raised questions about how ministers are responding to the Covid-19 pandemic. [br Disappointing and worrying that you didn’t include the paragraph that was in the middle of the ones you did copy, so here it is to provide a little more context to the above. “The nature and scale of this emergency, which is impacting the UK in a more direct manner, differs from those that Sage has been mobilised for in the past and, as such, the rotating expert attendance and list of government officials involves a broader set of representatives,” the spokesperson said. Downing Street did not dispute the minutes. Seems like a reasonable response to me. Others may be more cynical of course. Are you suggesting that Inspector Northwestman is being selective in what he copies and pastes to fit an agenda, same as his comment on refusal to answer questions at the daily briefing today, which was also not quite the truth?? |
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Post by claphamshrew on Apr 26, 2020 20:05:10 GMT 1
[br Disappointing and worrying that you didn’t include the paragraph that was in the middle of the ones you did copy, so here it is to provide a little more context to the above. “The nature and scale of this emergency, which is impacting the UK in a more direct manner, differs from those that Sage has been mobilised for in the past and, as such, the rotating expert attendance and list of government officials involves a broader set of representatives,” the spokesperson said. Downing Street did not dispute the minutes. Seems like a reasonable response to me. Others may be more cynical of course. Are you suggesting that Inspector Northwestman is being selective in what he copies and pastes to fit an agenda, same as his comment on refusal to answer questions at the daily briefing today, which was also not quite the truth?? Appears to the case which is disappointing as I thought he was one of the only posters with an objective viewpoint. Looks like I’m going have to give this thread a miss like Gwynnedblue has decided to. I’d already started taking the majority of the posts with a substantial pinch of salt given the political leanings of the contributors. |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 26, 2020 20:07:57 GMT 1
Are you suggesting that Inspector Northwestman is being selective in what he copies and pastes to fit an agenda, same as his comment on refusal to answer questions at the daily briefing today, which was also not quite the truth?? Appears to the case which is disappointing as I thought he was one of the only posters with an objective viewpoint. Looks like I’m going have to give this thread a miss like Gwynnedblue has decided to. I’d already started taking the majority of the posts with a substantial pinch of salt given the political leanings of the contributors. Well, over the last few weeks, if there is an anti government agenda, or something to give them a kicking about, you can bet your bottom dollar he will post so many links to it, and all round deliveries of really depressing stuff.... you would think there are better things to do, but whatever makes him happy.... |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 26, 2020 20:31:49 GMT 1
Over 20,000 people have died in this country that we know of.
100,000 have died worldwide.
Our population is probably less than 1% of the overall world population.
I think it's fair people are questioning government policy.
I know Tory voters that are. Especially the one's who work in the NHS.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 26, 2020 20:38:43 GMT 1
Over 20,000 people have died in this country that we know of. 100,000 have died worldwide. Our population is probably less than 1% of the overall world population. I think it's fair people are questioning government policy. I know Tory voters that are. Especially the one's who work in the NHS. There are certainly questions that need answers, however is now the time for that frenzy? Yes ask why something was done at a certain time, ask why we did not close down earlier, but be at least a bit wider minded than they are all liars, there is an agenda, they don’t care etc etc. Also remember that hindsight agenda is no real way of hanging them... you cannot give them grief for a decision made on say 12th March with a view of what was known on 30th March, which seems to be going on... |
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Post by claphamshrew on Apr 26, 2020 20:50:59 GMT 1
Over 20,000 people have died in this country that we know of. 100,000 have died worldwide. Our population is probably less than 1% of the overall world population. I think it's fair people are questioning government policy. I know Tory voters that are. Especially the one's who work in the NHS. I agree that any Government need to be held to account on certain matters but unfortunately many journalists would rather attempt to politically point score, ironically alienating many of the general public who they claim to serve. They seem too ignorant to realise that when they do ask a pertinent question or produce a credible investigative piece of journalism it’s already been written off by many because of the political point scoring agenda they’ve engaged in, in between. It’s just like the general election and that certainly didn’t do the Government any harm. |
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Post by SeanBroseley on Apr 26, 2020 20:52:21 GMT 1
There are two SAGE committees. SAGE-M which is modellers. SAGE-B which is the behavioural "scientists". SAGE-B will be where Cummings has his say. Could do with more public health experts.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 26, 2020 21:00:35 GMT 1
There are two SAGE committees. SAGE-M which is modellers. SAGE-B which is the behavioural "scientists". SAGE-B will be where Cummings has his say. Could do with more public health experts. If they went to both, it really would not bother me, if I was Boris and new the meetings were taking place I would certainly delegate someone to attend..... if nothing else, but to take notes |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 26, 2020 21:07:51 GMT 1
I am also waiting for the frenzy on Thursday and baying of Blood of Matt Hancock, when the 100000 tests are not done, when really it will be nothing more of embarrassing, but no one will be happy until he is sacked, which achieves nothing, he is doing one of the hardest jobs in history of government, and overall he’s doing a decent job, but people won’t be happy until a scalp has been had....
No doubt who that will be led by on here is there??
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Post by salop27 on Apr 26, 2020 21:32:39 GMT 1
Over 20,000 people have died in this country that we know of. 100,000 have died worldwide. Our population is probably less than 1% of the overall world population. I think it's fair people are questioning government policy. I know Tory voters that are. Especially the one's who work in the NHS. 205 000 is the total deaths worldwide. |
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Post by staffordshrew on Apr 26, 2020 21:51:20 GMT 1
It will be good to get Boris back. There can surely be no one with more devotion to ensuring the whole cabinet perform out of their skins than someone who nearly died from it and saw the NHS in action from an ICU bed.
If they are all working out of their skins we can't ask for any more.
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Post by zenfootball2 on Apr 26, 2020 22:14:54 GMT 1
The first thing Boris needs to do is stop listening to Professor Neil Ferguson The Imperial College epidemiologist and kick him into the long grass .
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Post by staffordshrew on Apr 26, 2020 22:35:10 GMT 1
The first thing Boris needs to do is stop listening to Professor Neil Ferguson The Imperial College epidemiologist and kick him into the long grass . I don't know about that, but I do think that he needs a published second and even third opinion. The same with pronouncements about being in lockdown until the end of the year, which I think came from Chris Witty. Advisors can advise all they like, but it's for the government to operate the levers. There will always be some who say we are too slow out of lockdown or too quick, that's why I feel a bit more confident about a Boris who has had it, I don't think he's going to come out of lockdown too quickly as he might have before, when he might have been too eager to appease Tory doners who want to get back to making money. |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 26, 2020 23:02:24 GMT 1
Over 20,000 people have died in this country that we know of. 100,000 have died worldwide. Our population is probably less than 1% of the overall world population. I think it's fair people are questioning government policy. I know Tory voters that are. Especially the one's who work in the NHS. 205 000 is the total deaths worldwide. Yes, thanks. 10% of deaths with less than 1% of the population. Compared, to say Germany. |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 26, 2020 23:06:11 GMT 1
Over 20,000 people have died in this country that we know of. 100,000 have died worldwide. Our population is probably less than 1% of the overall world population. I think it's fair people are questioning government policy. I know Tory voters that are. Especially the one's who work in the NHS. I agree that any Government need to be held to account on certain matters but unfortunately many journalists would rather attempt to politically point score, ironically alienating many of the general public who they claim to serve. They seem too ignorant to realise that when they do ask a pertinent question or produce a credible investigative piece of journalism it’s already been written off by many because of the political point scoring agenda they’ve engaged in, in between. It’s just like the general election and that certainly didn’t do the Government any harm. Yes, well Corbyn would know all about this. But, I am not really talking about the press. I am talking about people on here, and other platforms, trying to shut people down when being critical of the government. |
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Post by SeanBroseley on Apr 26, 2020 23:29:10 GMT 1
Has anyone at any stage expected the 100,000 per day tests? As soon as the words left Hancock's mouth it was clearly baloney. Why did he even say it? Partly because he knows he can and he won't have to take any responsibility for it.
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Post by claphamshrew on Apr 26, 2020 23:51:36 GMT 1
I agree that any Government need to be held to account on certain matters but unfortunately many journalists would rather attempt to politically point score, ironically alienating many of the general public who they claim to serve. They seem too ignorant to realise that when they do ask a pertinent question or produce a credible investigative piece of journalism it’s already been written off by many because of the political point scoring agenda they’ve engaged in, in between. It’s just like the general election and that certainly didn’t do the Government any harm. Yes, well Corbyn would know all about this. But, I am not really talking about the press. I am talking about people on here, and other platforms, trying to shut people down when being critical of the government. Struggling to find many examples of people trying to shut other people down on this thread to be honest. I wouldn’t call providing different interpretations or suggesting flaws and bias in others posting shutting down if that’s what you mean. It works both ways on here on a whole manner of subjects, political, football or otherwise. There’s also far more posts of criticism of the government than praise on this thread so I’m not sure what you’re getting at unless you’re referring to the likes of Twitter and Facebook which I don’t use. |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 26, 2020 23:57:54 GMT 1
I agree that any Government need to be held to account on certain matters but unfortunately many journalists would rather attempt to politically point score, ironically alienating many of the general public who they claim to serve. They seem too ignorant to realise that when they do ask a pertinent question or produce a credible investigative piece of journalism it’s already been written off by many because of the political point scoring agenda they’ve engaged in, in between. It’s just like the general election and that certainly didn’t do the Government any harm. Yes, well Corbyn would know all about this. But, I am not really talking about the press. I am talking about people on here, and other platforms, trying to shut people down when being critical of the government. I find it ironic that the loudest shouter of them all gets called out for copying and pasting sections, deliberately to mis lead, and then gets called out again for lying about the daily briefing.... |
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Post by indalo on Apr 27, 2020 2:40:20 GMT 1
I am also waiting for the frenzy on Thursday and baying of Blood of Matt Hancock, when the 100000 tests are not done, when really it will be nothing more of embarrassing, but no one will be happy until he is sacked, which achieves nothing, he is doing one of the hardest jobs in history of government, and overall he’s doing a decent job, but people won’t be happy until a scalp has been had.... No doubt who that will be led by on here is there?? I'm sure he'll be sharpening his pitchfork at this very moment ready to lead the Blue and Amber charge again later this morning .Must be exhausting all that grubbing around on the internet looking for snippets from 'reliable sources'to support the political agenda. |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 27, 2020 8:43:56 GMT 1
Yes, well Corbyn would know all about this. But, I am not really talking about the press. I am talking about people on here, and other platforms, trying to shut people down when being critical of the government. Struggling to find many examples of people trying to shut other people down on this thread to be honest. I wouldn’t call providing different interpretations or suggesting flaws and bias in others posting shutting down if that’s what you mean. It works both ways on here on a whole manner of subjects, political, football or otherwise. There’s also far more posts of criticism of the government than praise on this thread so I’m not sure what you’re getting at unless you’re referring to the likes of Twitter and Facebook which I don’t use. I am not talking about this thread in particular, and I obviously have no problems with people who provide an alternative view. What I have a problem with is people talking about negativity, when people raise perfectly valid points. This is as opposed to offering a counter arguement. It's just another way of stopping discussion. |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 27, 2020 8:51:38 GMT 1
Are you suggesting that Inspector Northwestman is being selective in what he copies and pastes to fit an agenda, same as his comment on refusal to answer questions at the daily briefing today, which was also not quite the truth?? I’d already started taking the majority of the posts with a substantial pinch of salt given the political leanings of the contributors. Seeing as you mentioned it. Maybe the question needs to be what underlying issues have caused us to be where we are now? I don't know if you know anybody who works in the NHS or care sector, but they will tell you about chronic underfunding and a lack of appreciation of what they do. |
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Post by northwestman on Apr 27, 2020 9:41:56 GMT 1
www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/26/no-evidence-no-10-advisers-attended-sage-during-previous-crises-coronavirus-dominic-cummingsDowning Street’s political advisers have never before attended meetings of the UK government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage), according to a review of all publicly available minutes of meetings over the last decade. The Guardian revealed on Friday that the prime minister’s chief adviser, Dominic Cummings, and another No 10 aide who worked with him on the Vote Leave campaign have been attending Sage meetings. The government has been adopting an unusually combative approach to journalists in recent weeks after a slew of articles by investigative reporters raised questions about how ministers are responding to the Covid-19 pandemic. [br Disappointing and worrying that you didn’t include the paragraph that was in the middle of the ones you did copy, so here it is to provide a little more context to the above. “The nature and scale of this emergency, which is impacting the UK in a more direct manner, differs from those that Sage has been mobilised for in the past and, as such, the rotating expert attendance and list of government officials involves a broader set of representatives,” the spokesperson said. Downing Street did not dispute the minutes. Seems like a reasonable response to me. Others may be more cynical of course. Others may indeed be more cynical. That's a classic Downing Street response to muddy the waters as far as I'm concerned, so not worth highlighting, as it airbrushes out as to whether 'Cummings was taking part in a meeting of supposedly independent scientific experts' and actively participating. Nevertheless, I included the link to enable everyone to make up their own minds on the issue. Had I highlighted this paragraph, I would also have pointed out its blatant attempt to obfuscate. If you want to read an article to counterbalance Number 10's spin, then try this one, which I have added elsewhere: www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/26/attendees-of-sage-coronavirus-meetings-worried-by-presence-of-dominic-cummingsThe involvement of the prime minister’s chief political adviser, Dominic Cummings, in meetings of the scientific group advising the UK government’s response to the coronavirus has left other attendees shocked, concerned and worried for the impartiality of advice, the Guardian can reveal. One attendee of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) said they felt Cummings’ interventions had sometimes inappropriately influenced what is supposed to be an impartial scientific process. A second Sage attendee said they were shocked when Cummings first began participating in Sage discussions, in February, because they believed the group should be providing “unadulterated scientific data” without any political input. Downing Street is insisting there is nothing untoward about the pair’s attendance at Sage meetings, saying they are largely taking part as silent observers. “It is factually wrong and damaging to sensible public debate to imply [Sage] advice is affected by government advisers listening to discussions,” a Downing Street spokesperson said. “It is entirely right that No 10 advisers attend to better understand the scientific debate and the decisions that need to be taken.” However, the two other Sage attendees the Guardian spoke to painted a different picture to that presented by No 10, which has been striving to play down the influence of the two advisers. Both Sage attendees declined to be named. “I have been concerned sometimes that Sage has become too operational, so we’ve ended up looking as though we are making decisions,” one of them said, making clear that Cummings had been involved on those occasions. “It contravenes previous guidelines about how you make sure you get impartial scientific advice going through to politicians, who make the decisions.” Referring to both Cummings and Warner, the Sage attendee added: “When a very senior civil servant or a very well-connected person interrupts, then I don’t think anyone in the room feels the power to stop it. When you get to discussing where advice might be going, there have been occasions where they have been involved, and a couple of times I’ve thought: that’s not what we are supposed to be doing.” A second Sage attendee said Cummings had played an active role meetings from February onwards. They said they were initially shocked to discover Cummings was taking part in a meeting of supposedly independent scientific experts. “He was not just an observer, he’s listed as an active participant,” the source said. “He was engaging in conversation and not sitting silently.” The second attendee said Cumming’s involvement was worrying because of his reputation in Whitehall and the questions his participation raises about Sage’s role as a neutral body of expert advisers. The reaction from the two Sage attendees contrasts with that of Prof Neil Ferguson, the Imperial College epidemiologist whose models have played a guiding role in the government’s response to Covid-19. He appeared unconcerned when asked, in a video interview, about Cummings attending Sage meetings. “There have been a number of observers at those meetings, who have not interfered with business at all,” he replied. Sage membership is not fixed, but changes according to the nature of the crisis being faced. Independent scientific experts on the group are supposed to assess evidence impartially and pass their advice to Cobra, the civil contingencies committee convened in the Cabinet Office. 'Downing Street is insisting there is nothing untoward about the pair’s attendance at Sage meetings, saying they are largely taking part as silent observers' is a classic cynical attempt at obfuscation as far as I'm concerned. 'Largely taking part as silent observers' fails to clarify as to when they were not silent observers, and what input they then provided. And the evidence of the two attendees suggests the input was not negligible. The minutes of all these meetings need to be released. So clearly it depends whose version of events you accept, the 2 attendees on the committee, or the government statement and Ferguson. |
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Post by Worthingshrew on Apr 27, 2020 10:35:20 GMT 1
I hope the future policy is not going to be decided by one person’s experience, rather than the scientific and medical evidence.
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Post by zenfootball2 on Apr 27, 2020 11:19:06 GMT 1
after the lockdown as countrys try to work out how to manage international travel and rebuild trade it will be intresting to see what if anything they do about China. As Australia presses China on probe into Covid-19 and demanding an international investigation into the origins of the virus and how it spread. China seems to have laid out its stall anyone who wonts to investigate Chinas responce to covid 19 and possible causes will pottentially suffer economic consequences. the guardian 11 Apr 2020 - China is cracking down on publication of academic research on covid -19 SYDNEY (REUTERS) - "Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne has cautioned China against attempts at "economic coercion" as Australia pushes for an investigation into the coronavirus pandemic that China opposes. Chinese ambassador to Australia, Mr Cheng Jingye, said in a newspaper interview on Monday the "Chinese public" could avoid Australian products and universities." the Guardian International students bring in an estimated $35.2bn, www.cnbc.com Chinese students make up the largest portion of international students in Australia, accounting for about 0.6% of the country's GDP. Data from the education department showed that in 2019, there were more than 261,000 Chinese nationals enrolled in local educational institutions at various levels.5 Mar 2020 DFATwww.dfat.gov.au › publications › trade in 2016 Australia exported 23.1 % of its products to China Australia has been very critical of china especially the block purchasing through chinese companies of medication/ medical equipment and PPE they literally flew tones of equipment out before the true scale of Covid-19 was known Prior to covid -19 warning about overliance of China as a trading partner and the sizable % of Chinese students at Universities, large scale purchase of key agriciutural sectors and mining was ignored. china also owns 99 year lease on the port of darwin. |
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Post by zenfootball2 on Apr 27, 2020 11:34:36 GMT 1
with wet markets cited as a possible cause of the covid -19 it is mind boggling
that a number of media sites state that wet markets are still open in Thailand, Indonesia and Whuan has resopened its wet market
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Post by northwestman on Apr 27, 2020 11:38:50 GMT 1
after the lockdown as countries try to work out how to manage international travel and rebuild trade it will be interesting to see what if anything they do about China. In January, when doctors in Wuhan discovered there was human-to-human transmission of Covid-19, Beijing silenced them, and lied to the world about the dangers of the new virus. It refused to engage with the World Health Organisation, leaving other countries to guess the nature of the threat. And it failed to take action against its notorious wet markets. Instead of taking responsibility for its role in the pandemic, China has opted to exploit the geopolitical opportunity it presents. It refuses to countenance an international inquiry into the origins of the virus, and has instructed its diplomats and state-controlled media companies to launch a campaign of relentless misinformation. China orchestrated the election of Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus to run the WHO in 2017. Under Tedros, who as Ethiopia’s health minister was accused of covering up cholera epidemics, the WHO has parroted China’s version of events about Covid-19, repeating Beijing’s early lines about the transmissibility of the virus and praising the Chinese response. There is no doubt that China uses its economic muscle to pressure countries to vote to change international human rights standards and cover up its own abuses. The reality of dealing with China: It will abrogate its treaty responsibilities. It will cover up the truth. It will bully and intimidate its neighbours. It will capture international institutions and use them for its own purposes. It will abuse international laws and norms until it gets what it wants. It cannot be trusted, it is a danger to the world. Daily Telegraph. |
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Post by zenfootball2 on Apr 27, 2020 12:04:43 GMT 1
after the lockdown as countries try to work out how to manage international travel and rebuild trade it will be interesting to see what if anything they do about China. In January, when doctors in Wuhan discovered there was human-to-human transmission of Covid-19, Beijing silenced them, and lied to the world about the dangers of the new virus. It refused to engage with the World Health Organisation, leaving other countries to guess the nature of the threat. And it failed to take action against its notorious wet markets. Instead of taking responsibility for its role in the pandemic, China has opted to exploit the geopolitical opportunity it presents. It refuses to countenance an international inquiry into the origins of the virus, and has instructed its diplomats and state-controlled media companies to launch a campaign of relentless misinformation. China orchestrated the election of Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus to run the WHO in 2017. Under Tedros, who as Ethiopia’s health minister was accused of covering up cholera epidemics, the WHO has parroted China’s version of events about Covid-19, repeating Beijing’s early lines about the transmissibility of the virus and praising the Chinese response. There is no doubt that China uses its economic muscle to pressure countries to vote to change international human rights standards and cover up its own abuses. The reality of dealing with China: It will abrogate its treaty responsibilities. It will cover up the truth. It will bully and intimidate its neighbours. It will capture international institutions and use them for its own purposes. It will abuse international laws and norms until it gets what it wants. It cannot be trusted, it is a danger to the world. Daily Telegraph. it seems beletadley that Australia has woken up to this but will the politicians have the backbone to stand up to them, Australia have taken two very big economic hits the bush fires caused billiobns of dollars of damage, killed livstock and damaged farms then shortley afterwards Covid -19 arrived. www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-04-08/japan-to-fund-firms-to-shift-production-out-of-chinaJapan has earmarked $2.2 billion of its record economic stimulus package to help its manufacturers shift production out of China as the coronavirus disrupts supply chains between the major trading partners. |
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Post by northwestman on Apr 27, 2020 12:11:25 GMT 1
I am also waiting for the frenzy on Thursday and baying of Blood of Matt Hancock, when the 100000 tests are not done, when really it will be nothing more of embarrassing, but no one will be happy until he is sacked, which achieves nothing, he is doing one of the hardest jobs in history of government, and overall he’s doing a decent job, but people won’t be happy until a scalp has been had.... No doubt who that will be led by on here is there?? No need to wait until Thursday. 'Sources from Downing Street' already seem to have him in their sights. He has to hope that the Army mobile units improve the situation for him in the next 4 days. 'Matt Hancock was accused by a senior minister of doing ‘too little, too late’ to achieve his target of carrying out 100,000 Covid-19 daily tests as officials claimed they had simply run out of key workers with symptoms to test. The latest figures show the Government carried out almost 30,000 tests for the virus - the highest total so far in a day - but that remains more than 70,000 shy of the number pledged by Mr Hancock by the end of the month. A senior minister accused the health secretary of not acting quickly enough to put mass testing in place before the death toll began to climb. Mr Hancock will come under huge scrutiny if the testing target is missed while sources in Downing Street have already accused him of “not having a good crisis”. A senior minister said yesterday: “It is too little, too late. We don’t know if he can manage this in time.” On Sunday, Army mobile units began testing key workers showing symptoms of the disease in “hard to reach” areas as the Government continued to ramp up testing. The military will operate 96 units - two for each regional drive-through testing site - which can be driven to care homes, police and fire stations, prisons and benefits centres to carry out rapid testing for the presence of Covid-19. But senior Whitehall figures have questioned why the military was not deployed sooner and in greater numbers to spearhead the logistical challenge of mass testing'. Daily Telegraph. To be fair, perhaps it was because they were already heavily engaged in assisting in the setting up of the Nightingale Hospitals and delivering PPE and food parcels. |
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Post by northwestman on Apr 27, 2020 13:43:30 GMT 1
As Britain remains in a state of lockdown, we are reminded by the Home Secretary, Priti Patel, to abide by social distancing guidelines and to obey every other new rule that has been introduced since last month. If we do not comply, we are warned, the police crackdown will become tougher.
Yet while the vast majority of us would always do what we can to stop the spread of this ghastly virus anyway, an increasing number of people wonder why they should sacrifice their normal life when our borders remain open and our authorities fail to run basic health checks or quarantine on new arrivals into our airports.
Starting in January, countries around the world stopped flight arrivals from certain destinations altogether and carried out checks on passengers arriving from others. It is therefore bizarre – to say nothing of irresponsible – that it is only now that the UK is even considering a two-week period of isolation for people arriving from overseas, most of whom seem to be UK citizens who have been stuck abroad.
Eminent biologists have confirmed that much of the UK’s Covid-19 outbreak is a similar strain to that which struck in Italy. Any subsequent inquiry into this pandemic will likely show that Britain allowed the continued importation and spread of this disease through being lackadaisical, even though our politicians could see what was happening in Milan and its surrounding area.
A different sense of outrage – though one that is equally valid - is inspired by illegal immigrants who continue to arrive in small boats which cross the English Channel. Early on Sunday, it was confirmed that another 35 people who had made this journey had been taken into care in Dover, bringing to 531 the total number of such migrants arriving on the south coast since we went into lockdown five weeks ago. Of course, these 531 people are the ones we know about because they were intercepted. How many others have slipped through the net?
The camps from which they come are confirmed as having cases of Covid-19 within them. In fact, two people in one boat in Dover harbour apparently showed clear signs of illness. Yet our new Home Secretary, who vowed to take a tougher line on the issue of illegal entry to the UK, has chosen to remain silent. On Saturday, she chaired the daily Downing Street press conference, and she neither mentioned illegal immigration, nor was questioned on it by any reporters.
Most of those who arrive in Britain in this way do not have identity documents. Invariably, they claim to have come from Iran. And only a tiny percentage of them are ever removed.
What is extraordinary is that there is little or no media interest in this important matter. Our media outlets seem to be ignoring a story about which the public feels very strongly.
Daily Telegraph.
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