to think Derbyshire police need to read the LAW and understand that you can't fine people when they are not breaking it

[chomalungma]

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-derbyshire-55560814

Surrounded by police, treated like a criminal for driving 5 miles to a beauty spot for a walk.

It is not illegal to drive to exercise.

What they did was go out for the afternoon. Not exercise

They did both. Perfectly legally.

@Desmondo2016

Quite simply the 'exercise' they were doing was walking which can be done out their front doors with a less attractive backdrop.

What they did was go out for the afternoon. Not exercise..

And don't get me started on all the people who suddenly see exercise as their daily right when they didn't give a monkeys about it before.

Honestly, we should have the power to demand sight of people's Strava history!

Why don't you try and visit North Korea then, where you can have all of that, and see if you still like the idea of police enforcing laws that don't exist, harassing law-abiding women, breaching your personal data information, and using random makey-uppy laws to prevent people carrying out legal activities?

Presumably you think that bored people stuck all day in houses should be prevented from exercising if their stolen Strava data doesn't support an extensive past history of exercise?

I don't think many people would be very happy to live with your idea of how to run a country.

Bit late to the socially distanced party but what exactly is the issue with their makeup and the way they're dressed? They just look like two women dressed up warmly to me and I wear more makeup than that on a daily basis...

A pal just sent me this and I immediately thought of the thread ... sorry it's the dreaded Daily Mail, but quite fun all the same:

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9129555/A-English-lockdown-Met-Police-probe-officers-spotted-flouting-Covid-curbs-INSIDE-London-caf.html

I think the police have a major issue to deal with when extremely law abiding, rule following families like mine, including me who breaks out in a sweat at the very idea of doing something in a legal grey area... Are starting to wonder what is going on with the highly inconsistent, unnecessarily harsh way they police are dealing with the current situation. A lot of what is being reported seems absolutely bonkers, and this is another case where things have just gone too far.

Put it this way, when we heard about this on the news, even my extremely straight laced "black and white the law is the law" DH said that it sounds like widespread abuse of police powers is underway without any common sense, and that if we were stopped in similar circumstances he'd rather spend thousands on legal fees to fight it than "give into these bullies because if people like us give in, what happens if you don't have the language or cash to highlight the injustice?".

In 20 years I've never heard my DH say anything like that about the police!

Something has gone very, very wrong without any oversight here.

@Kindredkat I am feeling exactly like your husband!

In general, I get why there is the disconnect between guidance and the law. The law needs to be reasonable enough to be relatively easy to comply with, and to get voted through parliament (hence no distance or mention of local). But the government actually needs us to do more than they are able to legislate for - hence the guidance describes a stricter set of “rules”. But this entire thing has backfired, because I’m sure many thousands of people who assumed the law said “local” have now discovered from the media coverage of this case that it doesn’t, and are wondering what else is legal vs guidance.

@ToadsThePeanutButterSnob

Bit late to the socially distanced party but what exactly is the issue with their makeup and the way they're dressed? They just look like two women dressed up warmly to me and I wear more makeup than that on a daily basis...

It's because people are jealous

I'm not going to post on this again. It's simple: STAY AT HOME

THATS NOT THE ADVICE. WE ARE ALLOWED TO EXERCISE.

*And don't get me started on all the people who suddenly see exercise as their daily right when they didn't give a monkeys about it before.

Honestly, we should have the power to demand sight of people's Strava history!*

Well, since the sport I normally play is banned and my gym is shut, I'm walking and jogging outside a lot more now. So yes, if I used it, my Strava would have increased massively. Of course a lot people are exercising outdoors more than they were this time last year.

I just had to google Strava, never heard of it. I imagine most people who aren’t athletes haven’t either.

Lots of people post their Strava results on Facebook. That's how I know about it. I track my walks with it.

@VinylDetective

I just had to google Strava, never heard of it. I imagine most people who aren’t athletes haven’t either.

Do people use Strava for walks? I used occasionally for cycling ages ago and it was all about showing off how fast you are which is kind of the polar opposite of a long walk.

Its bullshit. With 5-7 miles is what most people would consider local, and the rules say you can meet one other person in a public place for exercise. Walking is exercise and the two were trying to do something which was good for their physical and mental health and took a warm drink in the cold weather. The police should be ashamed when there are people actually breaking the rules and no one is doing anything about it. I hope they challenge the fine and don't pay it!

@JamesMiddletonsMarshmallows

I'm not going to post on this again. It's simple: STAY AT HOME

THATS NOT THE ADVICE. WE ARE ALLOWED TO EXERCISE.

This. Plus the virus is not being transmitted by people going for walks, whether it is from their homes or in quiet areas a few miles away.

For that we need to look at schools, offices where people should be WFH, public transport and people who think 'being in a bubble' gives them the green light to behave as they would in non covid times.

@VinylDetective

I just had to google Strava, never heard of it. I imagine most people who aren’t athletes haven’t either.

DH uses Strava for all his walks but he does generally walk at least 20 miles and runs marathons every other week so is quite keen, he isn't fast though, it's more endurance type thing

Having read the BBC report, I agree this is ridiculous and self defeating and will do nothing to inhibit the spread of the virus. I suspect Derbyshire police sent a few people to all their local beauty spots to deter travellers, which is fine. But given the legislation is open to interpretation and the police are supposed to be working with their communities, why fine them straightaway? I do hope the women fight this.

I've seen the west Midlands police commissioner thinks police should have power of entry to the homes of suspected covid lawbreakers. Not sure how I feel about this, also seems ripe for abuse

God some of you would HATE me.

I'm going walking in another country tomorrow 😱😱😱

Picking my kids up from their dad's. He lives 2 hours away, in Scotland (I'm in England). He's a couple of miles from a gorgeous woodland area and apparently the snow is amazing so when I pick them up at 2pm, we will go there and walk until we are shattered. Then off to Maccy D's, the plan being to take our time and I will set off home at 6.30pm so as they will fall asleep in the car. It's what I do EOW. Pre-lockdown we'd go to a soft play or trampoline park, usually with friends (I used to live there and like to meet up with old pals). But I always hang around because if I don't they fall asleep in the car at 3pm and are up too late.

If an officer stops me they won't be getting any details off me. I don't trust them as far as I can throw them

Oh I should have mentioned that I have a dodgy knee that I was supposed to get surgery on last summer but COVID put paid to that. So I can't drive 2 hours then drive 2 hours straight home, I need to walk regularly otherwise I gets so stiff that I can't walk.

Goodness it's just awful isn't it. Those coppers need to be sent to Derbyshire.

@JamesMiddletonsMarshmallows that sounds idyllic.

[quote noidea02]@VinylDetective dog walkers round you clearly make more effort with their makeup and style than they do round me then. Still doesn’t answer the question of why there was a third person taking photos.[/quote]
I'd say it was a posed photo by journalists akin to the Daily Mail 'sad face' pics.

The ladies dressed up, (or put on their usual gear, I dunno, I'm a fat scruff) as any of us would, got coffee cups and stood for a photograph. Maybe if the rozzers had seen that too they'd have been fined a second time...

And don't get me started on all the people who suddenly see exercise as their daily right when they didn't give a monkeys about it before.

I don't visit gyms. I don't exercise as a rule. But there is a HUGE difference to not exercising during non-Covid daily life when you're on your feet much of the day popping to the shops, out to see friends, taking kids to school etc to suddenly having most of that general everyday movement stopped.

Going for exercise walks in the countryside probably doesn't equal half of the steps you'd have covered from a pre-Covid day. So someone who wouldn't normally go for "a walk" now feels the need. And to me, that's understandable.

I think they managed to do a bang up job of scaring everyone in lockdown 1 and they’re really keen to do it again.

There was a lady who refused to speak when she was asked why she was at the train station. Mental health issue or something. It did go to court and she did get found guilty. Only they accepted afterwards the law was improperly applied.

Then there was the lad fined in Oxford for breaking a Welsh law. Apparently the plod didn’t realise it wasn’t a law in England. Here we go again.

But there is a HUGE difference to not exercising during non-Covid daily life when you're on your feet much of the day popping to the shops, out to see friends, taking kids to school etc to suddenly having most of that general everyday movement stopped

Yup

I am supposed to be meeting a friend for a walk next week, she’s just texted saying shes a wee bit worried about driving the 3/4 miles to meet me

And don't get me started on all the people who suddenly see exercise as their daily right when they didn't give a monkeys about it before

I'd prefer overweight people got out for a walk and reduced their weight. That is actually doing more to combat covid than hiding away indoors.

Anyway a lot were using gyms, swimming pools, tennis courts etc and now they've all closed. All that's left is running, cycling and walking (and - er - angling - I have no issue with it, but I wouldn't have classed it as exercise!)