If you don't live in the UK.....

[Headlesschic]

How much coverage is our current political scandal getting where you are? Is there much in your media about Dominic Cummings etc.? How is being reported? Is the UK a laughing stock? Genuinely interested.

[ToffeeYoghurt]

But everybody else doesn't have to follow the rules. Not the hundreds of thousands of international travellers. Heading off across the UK often on public transport.

The rules are pointless and a farce whilst we have wide open borders with no proper quarantine.

The rules were apparently there to stop the spread of infection. Not because the government fancied making some rules for the sake us having some rules to follow just because rules. The lack of border restriction is far more concerning in terms of potential infection spread.

Whilst there going on, what Dominic does is irrelevant.

[Selmaselma]

ToffeeYoghurt, it is clearly a big deal if he can't adhere to the rules that he made and everyone else has to follow. As for not restricting arrivals, that is independently from CumGate a massive issue.

[Eggybreadleg]

All my US colleagues have mentioned coverage of the uks misahndling of the pandemic. I think the uks handling of it has been seen as ruthless and it's shocked quite a few Americans who think of Brits as gentle socialists.

[Durgasarrow]

U.S. Mostly about the high death rate and about how badly the crisis was handled in the UK--starting late, confusing messages about what to do, "herd immunity," etc.

[metalkprettyoneday]

In NZ. No one I know is laughing about it as most have family and friends in UK so it’s quite worrying. Feeling fortunate we have a good leader at the moment so people were happy to do a strict lockdown to get it over with. Boris doesn’t seem to be taking things seriously .

[Lweji]

Of course it's political. A member of the government breaking the government rules.
He should have resigned immediately or at least apologised.

Like the old saying about Caesar's wife having to be above suspicion. But I suppose that is not a problem for this PM.

[itstrue]

NZ - very little about UK politics

Death toll - shocked and sad about that.

[ToffeeYoghurt]

the fact that the UK alone in Europe has kept itself completely open to international arrivals throughout the pandemic
This is why I believe the Cummings issue is political. How can it possibly be a big deal what he did when the UK has received hundreds of thousands of international travellers. With no checks or quarantine. These people have been leaving the airports on public transport.

I also agree with a pp.
Cummings is a distraction. Massive outrage about it conveniently coinciding with news on the UK having the highest death rate in the world. The government wants to open up - but hasn't taken the same measures other countries have that would make it possible to do more safely.

[EveryoneLoves09876]

New Zealand family won't stop going on about how much better they handled it.

[EveryoneLoves09876]

Australian family think death rate is awful and are really worried about us. They also think Boris and Brexit are a massive Trump-like joke, whilst acknowledging that they have their own issues.

[Lweji]

US. We don't hear much about the UK. Everyone's governments seem to have handled it badly.

I'd advise you to look at Worldometer.

Check deaths per million and number of tests per million on the main table. Then look at individual countries and notice when the first cases started and what the curves look like.

Only countries doing badly will make the news, really, but you should be able to find enough comparisons with countries who've done fairly well.

Even China, after the initial outbreak period managed to get it very much under control.

[Maduixa]

I'm in Poland.

The Cummings situation was/is reported here, but not as major news. The take has generally been: Cummings broke the rules, the UK press and the public are angry, Cummings excused himself, Johnson has defended Cummings and refuses to fire him/call for his resignation even though that is what is usual in such cases, "even" MPs in Johnson's own party are critical, and it appears that there is more information to emerge. There's an implication that Johnson is dependent on Cummings and/or that he is driven by personal loyalty.

It is suggested that there are likely to be public protests in the UK about this as there have been here - keeping 2m distance and wearing masks, of course! - over roughly comparable criticisms of the Polish government.

The main "news" here re the UK throughout the pandemic has been (1) the PM (and Prince Charles) having CV, (2) the fact that the UK has the highest death rate in Europe and the government keep switching tactics to combat it and (3) the fact that the UK alone in Europe has kept itself completely open to international arrivals throughout the pandemic (although apparently Serbia is now also accepting international flights unrestricted, from Friday).

[SachaStark]

My Norwegian friends tell me that our high death rate is being reported a lot in their news, and they’ve heard about ministers resigning, but not so much about CumGate specifically.

They’ve said that the attitude towards the situation in the UK is one of shock, and lots of comparisons to the US.

[Goodiewhemper]

The Italian paper La Repubblica reported on the Cummings scandal and compared him to Rasputin. Not positive at all.

[SantiagoSky]

Well said, GalesThisMorning. They really shouldn’t get away with this.

Here in Switzerland the situation in the UK is in the news but not as the main headline. I found the link to the Euromomo numbers that show the high excess mortality for the 15-64 age group in England in the Swiss news instead of the UK news.

[GalesThisMorning]

US. We don't hear much about the UK. Everyone's governments seem to have handled it badly

I think that's untrue and its really important not to buy into this idea that a horrific death rate couldn't be helped and no one is to blame. Especially when we are being spun that narrative by two of the wealthiest nations on earth.

Clearly some nations made better choices and saved lives and their economy far better than the UK and US. This matters. We should have been able to cope with this better. Our governments (I am American and British) made arrogant, I'll informed, dangerous choices every step of the way that. If we let them convince us now that its because of population density, our obesity, or our own poor health than they get to avoid being held to account and nothing changes.

Fuck that. Cummings is a distraction from the real failings but that level of arrogance and callous superiority runs through our government and that's what got us here.

[LaurieMarlow]

Ireland here and yes it’s getting coverage. Anyone I know is shocked that the British public are being played for fools and lied to. We feel so sorry for those people who made sacrifices to obey the rules themselves.

The elite clearly has such contempt for the little people. The bizarre thing is that not all Brits seem to realise this.

It all looks terribly dysfunctional from the outside

[Mrstwiddle]

Canada here, only U.K. news is about the figures. Don’t agree with the previous poster that U.K. is seen as a laughing stock since Brexit, I suspect if as a Brit you have that opinion, people here will be polite enough to go along with it.

[1300cakes]

I'm in Australia and I'd say it's been reported a medium amount and most people know about it, I've discussed it with my friends and family and they all knew about it.

Most people have said their feeling on it is shocked, disturbed, disgusted, incredulous, etc. Laughing stock isn't the word, that implies a feeling of superiority and we definitely don't feel that way - our politicians and advisers are just as bad unfortunately, if not worse, when it comes to lying, being above the law and being corrupt.

[snowqu33n]

See for yourself Japanese news in English on NHK.

www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20200527_08/

[PurpleTalkingTrees]

Yes it’s been reported and he sounds like an idiot, but that’s politicians isn’t it, they’re above the law. Two politicians in Australia did similar recently, one was expendable so lost his job, other less so so got away with it.

What worries us more is what others have said, your covid situation. With the reported death rate of 37,000 dead which doesn’t include care home deaths, I wonder how you will all come out of it when and if it ends for you.

[midnightstar66]

My friends and family are in Cyprus, who locked down fast and have nearly eradicated the virus. Lockdown is over and dc all back in school. New cases are nearly all coming from UK repatriations. Many are ex pats and all are aghast rather than laughing. the death rate and general incompetence is what's being reported and discussed rather than and specific event. As a country who relies massively on British tourism they are all pretty worried right now

[StrictlyAFemaleFemale]

Denmark. I cant really answer as I dont follow the news since journalists cannot fathom the difference between England, GB and UK. Nor the difference between ethnic minorities, immigrants and muslims. I havent seen anything on danish twitter or fb about it.

[PineappleUpsideDownCake]

Iam curious about the coronavirus coverage. I think initially we (england ) had the awful Italy coverage partly as the prrss could spin we're not like there. It interests me that the English media isnt spinning it as horrifying and shocking in the way Australia is. I wonder if it's a mix of propoganda on both cohntries parts.

[MysweetAudrina]

Ireland and we have had a few conversations about it in our house but not surprised really to see a tory acting like a tory. We have our own scandal here. Our taoiseach was sun bathing in a local park (within the guideline restrictions) but he had his top off and this seems to have sent the fb masses into overdrive.