What do you think Boris’ announcement will be on Sunday?

[fourpeasinapod]

So Boris is to make his lockdown review announcement on Sunday as per the three week schedule.

I’ve heard reports that he may possibly relax restrictions - possibly even starting as early as next Monday.

Does anyone think this is just the media saying that or does anyone think the rules will stay the same or perhaps be made stricter?

Why are they so determined to send schools back? I get that child safety is a big issue but surely fighting this virus is just as important?

The government are a fucking joke. They don’t know what they want to do

@fourpeasinapod probably because so many people have been saying they can't wait until Monday when they can go and see friends and family across the country, without a thought about social distancing!

We've had a message from DCs' school today to say when schools are able to open they don't have the staffing or the space to provide 2m social distancing, that they will be unlikely to be able to provide food on site against due to space and staffing, and that they won't be able to run a full timetable for the same reasons particularly as the corridors aren't big enough to allow 2m between people (1960s low ceiling, narrow rabbit-warren style with added lockers down one side). They head has said that nothing is set in stone as there has been no announcement yet but they cannot in good conscience open if they are not satisfied that they can keep pupils safe and that he and the governors want us to know that we should be prepared to carry on with remote learning for the remainder of the summer term.

I just don't understand how they can say lockdown is for 3 more weeks yet Monday they will be lifting some restrictions. So not continuing for 3 weeks then.

@MaddieElla I know I’m so confused! They were all for easing restrictions yesterday and now they’re saying they’re not!

I guess the numbers aren’t good enough yet

I understand France; obviously a bit difficult and seems unfair if you are in a red area but if you are in a green area and there are only 20 cases within 50 miles what is the point in those people being unable to work shop etc and being paid by the state instead of contributing
There is really no evidence in either Germany or Denmark that easing lockdown has caused a problem there was a one day spike in R but if you look carefully at all stats instead of just the worst ones by the end of the week it was no different to the week before
if we are 2 weeks behind Spain and Italy with peak it seems reasonable to be 2 weeks behind with easing lockdown France eases on 11th may so for us that would equate to 25th may

@fourpeasinapod I think they are only considering sending schools back because that will allow more people back into work. Children and teacher safety be dammed!

I would love the lockdown to be relaxed, but looking at the numbers of deaths, every day, I don't think we are ready. If you read the foreign press, we are a cause for great concern, worldwide.

It doesn’t matter if we are ready or not. What matters is if companies reopen and most are in the next couple of weeks. Except hospitality and airlines. Most are reopening and going to be expecting their staff in.

That’s it, that’s the key driver, if the companies open, people need to be able to go to work. Going to work for most people is not optional. Having staff work is not optional for most companies. They are not employing people as charitable voluntary acts.

So everything that enables people to go to work needs to open at the exact same time, be it schools, more public transport, or paid child care. Because if people who need these things can’t access them they will loose their jobs, when their companies reopen and they can’t go to work. Companies aren’t going to say, oh that’s ok,you stay home, let me keep furloughing you, we will employ someone to take your place till you can come in, or we can do with out you.

They are going to say work or leave. Maybe some short unpaid leave available. But that’s it. When the company reopens, furlough ends and people are expected to work.

Get back to work ! Get back to school etc

It doesn’t matter if we are ready or not. What matters is if companies reopen and most are in the next couple of weeks. Except hospitality and airlines. Most are reopening and going to be expecting their staff in

Well, schools simply aren’t going to be open as normal in the next couple of weeks. We wouldn’t have the staff to do so anyway.

I was honestly convinced that there was maybe an end in sight but now it seems so unlikely

It's an absolute shit show.....we've got months of this ahead of us. The cost to the country is going to be devastating

I've given up now I'm at my lowest I feel like we will be in lockdown for years to come now government is a shower of shit our freedoms have been taken away they keep putting out absolute crap to try and keep us all thankful and happy when we aren't there's a small minority that would love for this to continue but the rest of us want out now.
His speech on Sunday will be another load of shit about basically how nothing's going to change and a load of waffling crap that he does so well without actually answering the questions

@2beautifulbabs I know I’m the same! I want to see my family sometime before 31 December!

I have absolutely zero confidence in this pathetic Government. I also want to be able to see my close family. Their breathtaking incompetence means we are all going to suffer much longer than other countries in Europe. Ironic, considering we're an island! That advantage also squandered due to the open borders. Their 'strategy' is non-existent. I don't expect anything sensible on Sunday, just the usual bumbling, ambiguous stuff from Boris Johnson. Probably just a pat on the head for us for being good citizens and obeying the lock-down and for us to expect more of the same for the foreseeable.

Lord knows, there's been so much conflicting information. It doesn't help that the press speculates so much.

I would expect there would be a couple of relaxations on Sunday but aside from that it's lockdown as usual.

Does anyone think we will have at least some sort of easing by the end of June? That’s when the three month period will be up

End of June?! I'm going to have to switch off a bit until Sunday when plans should be clearer

So on just one page of this thread we have people saying that it’s a mess because we might come out of lockdown,and then in the next posts posters are saying it’s unfair if we don’t come out of lockdown.You can’t have it both ways.

Personally I would have tightened restrictions three weeks ago along the same lines of Franceand Spain, but people would have complained about that as well.

There are no winners here regardless of what decisions are made.

This is the problem with speculation. The press have taken remarks from ministers and “sources” and ideas of what might happen and formed an idea of what they think is likely. Then when the actual announcement is different it looks like a u turn or indecision, but those reports were never actually factual, they were guesses. There was a statutory review yesterday. It makes perfect sense to me not to announce any changes at all on the eve of a bank holiday- that doesn’t mean the changes are going to be big. There are people frothing about schools returning in June but all that’s ever been said is that it won’t be before June. I think we just need to wait and see, then act on each announcement as it is made. I really feel like press guesswork is actively unhelpful.

I want to go to sleep and not wake up until this is over

I don’t see how opening schools will work at all. I think a lot of staff will refuse to go.

Opening schools won’t work. However, I don’t think staff can refuse. They’ll be sacked