To think we are heading for a full 2 week national half term lockdown

[Midlifelights]

DS’s school ramping up the preparation to teach on MS teams & making sure they can all use it & have the tech in place.

Teachers indicating that it’s going to be half term plus another couple of weeks after.

Given the rising numbers, it’s seems more likely that’s what’s coming - and maybe even a full lockdown this time & not the half arsed one we had before.

Aibu? I am worried as my kids really hated it last time but with so many new cases, it just seems the likely path

Sorry haven't RTFT, but are the local lockdowns actually reducing cases? I thought I heard that apart from Luton cases are still rising in those areas. Is it just too soon to see results, or are too many not complying, or are they just not effective?

If they don't seem effective then any national one would only be worthwhile if much stricter I suppose. I don't think they will ban outdoor exercise, I seriously hope not as a flat dweller with no outside space. They might limit it to just walking I guess and no sports but that seems fairly unlikely too.

I know they keep saying we can do it (bring cases right down) because we have done it before, but we have never actually done it with the seasons against us.

Alexander has to cover up his failings and another pair of little mittens, yes another pair, so more restrictions on the way.

Sorry to be dense but what do you mean about the mittens.....are you saying....another mini Boris is on the way?

herecomesthesun no I don't want that but as I work in the leisure industry, I'd like to earn a living rather than two weeks of zero income. Leisure is a sector massively affected currently let alone in a lockdown and many of us are self-employed - Rishi's scheme nowhere near compensates us - all very well having lockdowns but people still need to pay mortages and bills etc.

@Bxjd

People on benefits have been getting extra money since the last lockdown, I’m sure it was for 12 months they get something extra each time there paid.

Oh yes, £20 whole extra pounds a month. What an extravagance for those who usually choose between heating and eating.

The kids being at home all day every day will swallow that up before you can blink.

I am in an extremely fortunate position (no mortgage/rent, enough money, no worries about affording bills...) so I've been donating time and money to local food/baby banks to help out.
Lockdown was starving people. It was ensuring people had no hot water. Kids had no clothes because they'd outgrown them.
I had men/women who had previously been self-employed for only 6 months or so (so not entitled to the wank government support) who were on their knees, waiting 8-10 weeks for our useless, disgraceful, not fit for purpose 'welfare system' to get their first payment (or to be told that it was £0 for the month.)

Another lockdown like that and COVID cases may drop for a short while (before shooting up again) but suicides will go through the roof. The public are on their knees.

@Inkpaperstars

Alexander has to cover up his failings and another pair of little mittens, yes another pair, so more restrictions on the way.

Sorry to be dense but what do you mean about the mittens.....are you saying....another mini Boris is on the way?

Lord, he's not impregnated someone else has he?

I won't cope. Will be seriously considering suicide. The last one very nearly broke me.

Who are all these women who actually want to have sex with Boris. Vom. Talk about no taste.

@ListeningQuietly

myrtilles The theatres are shut because they cannot open with social distancing. The concerts and ballet and opera are shut The cinemas are closing for good next week The nightclubs have been shut since March The museums are on their last legs as are the Zoos and theme parks many pubs and restaurants are dying with the 10pm curfew

Furlough ends in 28 days
tens of thousands of people are going to be made redundant next week

there is no normal for Half term.
Shocking that anybody thinks there could be.

I think you are trying to twist what I was saying. You know that what I meant was that there should not be a lockdown over half term that would prevent people seeing relatives, doing activities that are still on or going on holiday etc. If we had a lockdown at half term even more people would lose their jobs as families would not be able to spend money if they were locked in at home.

I am appalled at the way the government is treating industries that have not been able to reopen fully and spent a whole afternoon writing a letter to my MP on the subject this week. Eg I think that theatres should be subsidised for empty seats that can't be filled as a result of social distancing.

Like everyone I am trying to do my bit eg. keeping my gym membership going when I'm feeling a bit anxious about going and have rebooked two theatre shows rather than asking for my money back etc etc.

Is it the violin one ?

[quote MaskingForIt]**@IndiaMay* B. I'm in the south east and cases are low so why should the economy tank here when we dont need to lock down*

Why did the economy in my area have to tank when we had low rates in March, but London and South East were high? We were told that we were all in it together.

Unsurprisingly when other areas are affected the selfish south don’t want to be locked down. Newsflash. We didn’t last time, when you lot had it bad.[/quote]
This x a million. So annoying people throwing ‘the north’ to the wolves. ‘Why should we isolate when levels are low in our wonderful area where everyone follows the rules so well’.

Oh yes, £20 whole extra pounds a month. What an extravagance for those who usually choose between heating and eating.

The kids being at home all day every day will swallow that up before you can blink.

I am in an extremely fortunate position (no mortgage/rent, enough money, no worries about affording bills...) so I've been donating time and money to local food/baby banks to help out.
Lockdown was starving people. It was ensuring people had no hot water. Kids had no clothes because they'd outgrown them.
I had men/women who had previously been self-employed for only 6 months or so (so not entitled to the wank government support) who were on their knees, waiting 8-10 weeks for our useless, disgraceful, not fit for purpose 'welfare system' to get their first payment (or to be told that it was £0 for the month.)

Another lockdown like that and COVID cases may drop for a short while (before shooting up again) but suicides will go through the roof. The public are on their knees.

There are plenty on MN who will STILL try and argue that all that is worth it, if it means than a few less people contract Covid. They will argue and argue and argue, in the fact of all evidence, that all that suffering and pain and poverty and hardship, is worth it.

It's baffling.

It bemuses me that anyone would think an extra £20 per month to a subset of the people struggling is going to do anything much.

And it seems this North/South argument is being deliberately stoked.

Remember, it wasn't the people who lived in London and the southeast who insisted you in the north (and in the west and in the south west) went into lockdown when you didn't need to last time.

It was Boris Johnson and his small inner clique of politicians. If you want to direct any anger at anyone, direct it at them.

The South had no say in the previous total lockdown - they didn't say ok stuff the north let them suffer too but now that so many have lost jobs or are on reduced hours or have no savings and are really struggling, there is no reason to lock down areas where the cases are relatively low which are tending to be in the south at present. Not saying stuff the north just to try and keep open areas where the numbers do not support a complete lockdown - that is just being logical not being anti-north.

Yes, we in the north should make sure we are targeting our anger at Londoncentrism appropriately. That is, the Londoner living in No 10 Downing Street, not just random ones with no influence.

Additionally, us having been forced into locking down on London's timetable with no thought whatsoever for us doesn't mean making them lock down now when they don't need to is a good idea. We shouldn't hamstring the economy any more than strictly necessary.

Hester,

You are labouring under the illusion that not locking down would cost a few lives but we would be happier and economically better off.

It is just not the case. We would be worse off and poorer, as well as losing more lives.

These scenarios have all been modelled by people who know what they are doing.

And, no, I am not interested in discussing Sweden. We have little in common with Sweden for many reasons.

The country with the hardest lockdown (China) has escaped the worst of the economic hardship. I am not advocating doing what they did, which would not work in a democracy. However, against a disease, hard and early is the most efficacious.

Our local primary put on such a poor show for all the pupils that weren't allowed to go to school there might be a rebellion if they tried again - I mean an email suggesting a few kids TV programmes didn't take much effort at all. I think the teachers had very clean gardens/homes since did bugger all work. For clarity there were on average twenty pupils in KW class and so teachers had to work every few weeks

If they do want to have children online learning then there should be a minimum standard of online lessons for all. Primary should in my opinion attend school secondary age pupils a different matter.

You say these things as though they are absolute fact @larrygrylls.

And who the fuck mentioned Sweden? You

I am not "labouring" under any illusion FYI. It is about trying to steer a balanced course through an unprecedented challenge, while overall being pragmatic and realistic.

@HesterShaw1 Indeed. Perhaps I should have said "people on mumsnet are convinced". "The science" is not an amorphous mass and there is considerable disagreement on the best approach. Not on here though!

@HesterShaw1

Which is precisely what every government in the world is trying to do.

Are you on a different Mumsnet tootles? Because I’m certainly seeing a fair amount of disagreement about all sorts of things. There’s a very wide range of views expressed about all aspects of public policy on the pandemic, although the majority opinion is indeed that this is a big deal which has killed an enormous number of people and has the potential to do so again if given half a chance.

@HesterShaw1

Oh yes, £20 whole extra pounds a month. What an extravagance for those who usually choose between heating and eating.

The kids being at home all day every day will swallow that up before you can blink.

I am in an extremely fortunate position (no mortgage/rent, enough money, no worries about affording bills...) so I've been donating time and money to local food/baby banks to help out.
Lockdown was starving people. It was ensuring people had no hot water. Kids had no clothes because they'd outgrown them.
I had men/women who had previously been self-employed for only 6 months or so (so not entitled to the wank government support) who were on their knees, waiting 8-10 weeks for our useless, disgraceful, not fit for purpose 'welfare system' to get their first payment (or to be told that it was £0 for the month.)

Another lockdown like that and COVID cases may drop for a short while (before shooting up again) but suicides will go through the roof. The public are on their knees.

There are plenty on MN who will STILL try and argue that all that is worth it, if it means than a few less people contract Covid. They will argue and argue and argue, in the fact of all evidence, that all that suffering and pain and poverty and hardship, is worth it.

It's baffling.

It enrages me.

It doesn't affect them, while they're 'working from home' in the warmth, with plenty of food (and storage space), enough money to pay the bills and a 2.4 family that all gets on incredibly well.

Well, until those desperate people turn to crime to feed/clothe/warm their families and their homes become at risk.

@DilysPrice yes sorry, I read another thread that seemed to be the Matt Hancock talking points. Hadn't rtft on this one, sorry. None of us including the government has a clue, but the bank certainly does when we can't make the mortgage...

@CrappleUmble

It bemuses me that anyone would think an extra £20 per month to a subset of the people struggling is going to do anything much.

It's unbelievable, it's just how out of touch people truly are.

I find it funny how, this time last year, UC was 'more than enough' and claimants that were starving were being told 'it's about budgeting, you should be grateful'.
Now the MCs are needing to claim (and get a taste) it's 'not enough to live one, I get no help with my mortgage, I can't afford x,y,z'.

Incredible how the narrative changed.

@HesterShaw1

Oh yes, £20 whole extra pounds a month. What an extravagance for those who usually choose between heating and eating.

The kids being at home all day every day will swallow that up before you can blink.

I am in an extremely fortunate position (no mortgage/rent, enough money, no worries about affording bills...) so I've been donating time and money to local food/baby banks to help out.
Lockdown was starving people. It was ensuring people had no hot water. Kids had no clothes because they'd outgrown them.
I had men/women who had previously been self-employed for only 6 months or so (so not entitled to the wank government support) who were on their knees, waiting 8-10 weeks for our useless, disgraceful, not fit for purpose 'welfare system' to get their first payment (or to be told that it was £0 for the month.)

Another lockdown like that and COVID cases may drop for a short while (before shooting up again) but suicides will go through the roof. The public are on their knees.

There are plenty on MN who will STILL try and argue that all that is worth it, if it means than a few less people contract Covid. They will argue and argue and argue, in the fact of all evidence, that all that suffering and pain and poverty and hardship, is worth it.

It's baffling.

Yep.

And if you suggest at all that it’s not worth it then you’re accused of murdering grannies, hating old and vulnerable people, and all sorts.

As for the modelling being carried out by people who know what they are doing, there are still plenty of knowledgeable people who disagree with those models. We won’t know til it’s over who was right and wrong