To be ashamed to be British

[yesterdayschild]

Every day more and more British deaths. When compared to other countries some of them third world, we have an appalling death rate from Covid 19.
Why oh why did the government allow 3000 Spanish to enter just to watch a football match when Spain would not allow them to watch in their own country.
Why was the Stereophonics concert allowed when other countries had locked down.
Why are thousands of people still entering the U.K. with no checks.
Why are our NHS staff still begging for PPE

I am feeling very very low about all of this and wish I lived in some other country.

The main thing the govt did wrong in the lead up was not cancelling large gatherings, even if they weren't willing to do full lockdown. Personally I think we should have acted at the same time as Ireland and France, then we could all be emerging together. It will be harder for us to stay at home if we see Europeans going shopping.

ludicrouslemons

From your link -
"Tellingly perhaps, NHS England, the body which oversees the running of the NHS and was found most wanting by the report, has no mention of the exercise on its website."

No mention of it?

I'm not a journalist and I found it mentioned here (quite easily) - NHS England;

www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/board-paper-300317-item-10.pdf

Personally I think we should have acted at the same time as Ireland and France

"Coronavirus: Lawsuits fly in France as blame game begins."

"Prime minister and health ministers pursued in court for alleged manslaughter."

www.irishtimes.com/news/world/europe/coronavirus-lawsuits-fly-in-france-as-blame-game-begins-1.4213267

There is going to be some explaining to do if an island nation obsessesd with controlling borders ends up with the worst infection rate in europe.

obsessesd with controlling borders ends

Not really true, though is it. We have very open borders.

Not really true, though is it. We have very open borders.

One of the main arguements of Brexit was the ability to control borders. The UK continued to allow people to enter the country from badly affected nations without testing at airports whilst some EU member states closed theirs to control the spread. Just one of the great Brexit contradictions and highly embarassing for the UK and the Brexit obsessed government.

One of the main arguements of Brexit was the ability to control borders.

Yes, and that's what a lot of people who voted for Brexit and the latest government voted for (far less than half of the population though).
But it's not what the government want. If they did, they would implement stricter border controls and they haven't.

But it's not what the government want. If they did, they would implement stricter border controls and they haven't.

Yes, which is quite the contradiction isn't it especially given the the Prime Minister was one of the most vocal Brexiteers in the country. Stopping the spread of C19 would seem like a very good reason to shut borders. Its a better reason than any of the Brexiteers came up with in 2016.

I'm not ashamed to be British but I do get what the OP means. I have friends overseas who are phoning me appalled at what's happening here. They are in Hong Kong, New Zealand, Australia and Canada so are happy with the way things have been handled there.

quite the contradiction

Not at all - I thought the strapline was 'Global Britain'.

mondaynoon
I wouldn't swap places with your friend in Hong Kong.

*have heard some say that a true evaluation of how the various countries have done will not be truly known until the pandemic has come to an end.”

Of course some say this, surely everyone would say this. Because it is bloody obvious. We won’t know how many people have died from this pandemic until there isn’t a pandemic anymore.

It certainly is. We’ve gone from “no magic money tree” to “whatever it takes” in less than three years.

And we’ll be paying for it for about a decade. There is a difference between deciding you can’t afford to pay for all the “nice to haves” in a society because you need to reduce the deficit, and knowing if you don’t support a nation through a global pandemic, many more people will die from starvation. Don’t be foolish and think they had a load of spare money lying around fewer than 3 years ago and we’ere just refusing to spend it.

unfortunately drug policy is a matter reserved to Westminster. Scottish MPs have lobbied for the policy to allow for more aggressive drug treatment but it doesn't suit the WM narrative to allow Scotland to improve.

Utter, utter rubbish. There are plenty of things ScotGov could do to reduce drug related deaths. There doesn’t need to be a change in law from UKGov to aid that. Of course it suits SNP narrative to dupe their followers into believing her hands are tied.

Not at all - I thought the strapline was 'Global Britain'.

Global Britain - whilst claiming to want tighter border control and less migrant labour. That is a contradiction and a problem with slogans - they fall apart once you unpack them.

Apparently people in all these other countries are complaining about their governments too and saying ‘I wish we were more like France, Korea, (enter country name of your choice)’. What is uniquely British about your predicament is feeling apologetic for being British. How very British!

whilst claiming to want tighter border control and less migrant labour

They want skilled/talented people from around the world (including Europe) but fewer unskilled people from the EU. Even Nigel Farage has said that. Highly paid foreign nationals living near me prop up our private schools.

They want skilled/talented people from around the world (including Europe) but fewer unskilled people from the EU. Even Nigel Farage has said that. Highly paid foreign nationals living near me prop up our private schools.

"Breaking Point" posters aren't going to encourage foreign workers to these shores. Nursing applications from EU citizens dropped dramatically after the referendum at a time the UK desperatly needed healthcare professionals. Eastern european fruit pickers have recently been flown into the country proving the UK needs labour for both low/high skilled jobs.

They want skilled/talented people from around the world (including Europe) but fewer unskilled people from the EU.

They also want cheap EU fruit pickers, though.
Even Farage knows that seasonal migrant work doesn't suit modern UK lifestyles.

The point of being out of Europe is that we could pick and chose who comes in and how long they stay for. It’s not saying any group are or aren’t allowed in surely .More freedom not less.

They also want cheap EU fruit pickers, though.

They can't stay indefinitely though.

I find this kind of thing really annoying. What happens in your country/other people from your country do is not a reflection on you. Thinking that it is has the same underlying presuppositions as racism. Just be rational, please.

Nursing applications from EU citizens dropped dramatically after the referendum at a time the UK desperately needed healthcare professionals.

Although Brexit coincided with a stricter English language test for nurses introduced in 2016, plus an improvement in the economies of several EU countries such as Spain and Poland.

Why don't you save your embarrassment (though it's a bloody strange thing to be embarrassed about, if you ask me) for when all the dust has settled on this. Aren't Germany's numbers increasing because they're easing lockdown? It may well be that, as governments are forced to lift lockdown for economical reasons, we see a large increase in deaths in countries hitherto less badly impacted.

Just had a message from friend in Bangkok. She is a GP.
Free mask and hand gel on every corner.
Free testing for high risk people.
Cheap testing ( around £10) for anyone
Free hospital treatment for covid19 patients
Early treatment for anyone with symptoms
Free meal every day for those who need it.
Free visa for travellers stuck there.
Temperature check in shops.
Compulsory quarantine for citizens returning home.
Calm, well organised, practical.
It can be done.

2017 - "HCL Workforce Solutions (part of HCRG) is a leading recruiter of temporary and permanent health and social care staff throughout the UK."

"We surveyed EU nurses who we’ve placed in roles over the last few years, hoping to get a sense of what their biggest struggles have been–and if they’ve left the UK, what had triggered the move."

"More than 35% of respondents, whether they’ve stayed in the UK or not, specifically referenced the IELTS test as their number one problem. Brexit, by contrast, was mentioned by less than 15% of respondents. Language problems, in general, were also mentioned by many of the nurses surveyed."

hclworkforce.com/blog/survey-says-ielts-bigger-problem-eu-nurses-brexit/

Just had a message from friend in Bangkok.

And yet Japanese citizens will have a poor opinion of Thailand after reading this - published a few hours ago -

"Public suicide attempt highlights plight of millions of Thais waiting for virus aid."

www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2020/04/29/asia-pacific/social-issues-asia-pacific/public-suicide-attempt-thailand-coronavirus-aid/

www.theguardian.com/society/2019/may/08/nhs-nursing-crisis-worsened-by-brexit-exodus