To really not like the way the Government is doing next steps as a 'big reveal' on 22nd

[hastingsandchips]

There's something about this I think is very wrong, the way the Government is keeping us guessing about what's happening next, when it has such a massive impact on all our lives. Especially for small business. I think they should release information/plans as and when they know. Doing this 'we know and we will tell you on X day' to me is all about power and control.

1)I hate the drip feed. I want to school about schools. When are my ds's returning?

2)But what I also want to know is when is the announcement going to be made re Group 10?

In Surrey we are on Group 7, shortly moving onto Group 8, the over 55's.

This means that the Government NOW needs to specify/give details of their plans for Group 10.

See list below. Group 10:

Rest of the population

to be determined

So now, we need to be told what yet plan for Group 10 is.

I love how all these armchair experts “know” how they would have done it so much better when actually not one single government in the world has had the perfect solution here.

And the press have been atrocious. They have to constantly chip chip chip “can you give us an exact date for x/y/ can you tell us when z will happen/can’t you just give us an idea....” and so they go on, and if the government said today that schools would be reopening on the 6th of March the press would say that it’s too soon to open schools, but if they keep them closed for longer then they’ll say that schools should be open by now. The instant Laura Kuensberg opens her mouth I have to switch off because she makes me want to throw things.

And if you start giving dates now people just won’t carry on, no-one is going to think “oh, I‘M not supposed to see my friends until the 8th of April I’d better not go round there,” they’ll think “wel, April is only 8 weeks away, so I’ll go now.”

They’ve made it very clear that there isn’t going to be a sudden reopening, and nowhere has it been said that there will be a big reveal on the 22nd, that is people putting a spin on it.

They needed to see what the figures do, what the vaccination figures do and whether they hit the targets.

And regardless of anything else, the vaccination scheme has been commendable, far better than e.g. in Europe which has been a disaster.

Totally agree Oblomov21 I want to know this too

I thought the next stage for this lockdown was the 8th March, not 22nd February? I'm pretty sure that was the date we got given back in Jan?

They probably don’t know themselves yet!

@TrickorTreacle

I thought the next stage for this lockdown was the 8th March, not 22nd February? I'm pretty sure that was the date we got given back in Jan?

@TrickorTreacle The government promised to give us a "road map" out of lockdown on the 22nd February, which in recent days has changed to the week of the 22nd February.

The 8th March is the date that we have tentatively been told by the government that schools will reopen. This is because the top 4 vulnerable groups will be vaccinated by 15th Feb, and 8th March is 3 weeks on top of that (the time it takes to develop immunity once you've had the vaccination, so the date that our most vulnerable and elderly are all "safe")

BUT, the government also promised that they would give schools 2 weeks notice of reopening! So, the worry is, if the road map is announced on say the 26th of February (the week of the 22nd) this means schools can not reopen on the 8th March, as the requisite 2 weeks notice will not have been given. Hence the tension around these dates!

I don't see the big deal. They've said they're unveiling their road map then. They've also said they're considering schools returning from 8th March.

So I wouldn't expect anything to be changing until 8th March, which means a couple of weeks notice for the beginning of lockdown relaxing.

I don't even know where 22nd came from. Originally lockdown was until 15th. So announcements should have been today or tomorrow.

(at least 15th)

@TrickorTreacle

I thought the next stage for this lockdown was the 8th March, not 22nd February? I'm pretty sure that was the date we got given back in Jan?

That was the earliest date to reopen schools. Schools will get two weeks notice, which would be the 22nd.

100% agree OP - we aren't in a reality show, this isn't waiting for the results of The X Factor for christ sake. Why can't they tell us NOW what the plan is to give us our freedoms back? What is so special about the 22nd?

I also hate how we are being made to feel grateful and almost excited for the fact we might be allowed to visit our own family members or buy 'non essential items'.

The whole 'thing' is barbaric.

They can't. If the loosen up then everyone starts acting to the new rules straight away. If the tighten up everyone has a "last chance" hurrah at something and pushes infections.

They are treating us like children who can't be trusted, when in reality it's not like people can rush out to the pub if they told us, eg, pubs will open in May or even this is plan A B and C and this is the thought process/ criteria/ plan. Just treat us like adults and act like a responsible Government, rather than keeping everyone in suspense, grateful for any little bit of information doled out.

I think this 'no we're not going to tell you yet' is adversely affecting MH

I also hate how we are being made to feel grateful and almost excited for the fact we might be allowed to visit our own family members or buy 'non essential items'.

Yes exactly. And then people start to say things like 'it's all our own fault'

@InFiveMins

100% agree OP - we aren't in a reality show, this isn't waiting for the results of The X Factor for christ sake. Why can't they tell us NOW what the plan is to give us our freedoms back? What is so special about the 22nd?

I also hate how we are being made to feel grateful and almost excited for the fact we might be allowed to visit our own family members or buy 'non essential items'.

The whole 'thing' is barbaric.

So they can, you know, write it?

Compiling a report like that involves a huge amount of scientific information, which is changing, assessing the impact of the vaccine roll out, and the estimations from SAGE as to how this affects every industry.

And even then they can't guarantee it, because they will be at the mercy of other new variants.

You want a road map so bad, pull one out of your own arse, since that's what you seem to want from SAGE and the government.

@blackteaplease

I'm hoping the plan will give a series of thresholds for moving to the next step similar to the one that Scotland produced last summer in lockdown 1. That can then be tracked against the data.

Eg schools open when xx% vaccinated
Shops open when no change from schools opening.
Rule of 6 when R= x and so on

That would be the sensible way to do it. So they probably won’t.

I don't know what the precedents are any more (maybe i havent been paying enough attention?) which will sway their decision and therefore the outcome of the review.

I remember the r number thing that time - watching to see if it falls before xyz before we could come out of lockdown. This time it does feel like a big reveal and i agree it's not good.

The spin on this all the way through has been to aim to set people against each other and make any backward steps 'our own fault'. Make us police ourselves. Blame your friend/neighbour/family member - not the government ...

This is one thing the government have totally excelled at.

You want a road map so bad, pull one out of your own arse, since that's what you seem to want from SAGE and the government.

Yes heaven forbid we should want the Government to lead us or make a plan for what set of criteria might determine when business will reopen.
Makes you wonder what they're paid for really.

Nobody has even asked for a road map Just some idea of wtf we are currently aiming for eg is it whole population vaccinated, is it zero covid strategy, is it R going below a certain number, is it hospital admissions being a certain number. They don't need to write a report to tell us these things. They are choosing to do a big reveal on the 22nd and until then we can wait like a dog waiting for its food bowl to be filled

I hope they don't go back to the rule of six. As a big family we have effectively been in lockdown since September. Can't see my parents, kids can't see friends etc.

The point is they don’t know yet do they, they may have some ideas on what to do but no formal decisions have been made

They have said all along the 22nd. I just wish the press ( and MN) would just stop speculating and wait

@peak2021

This government's response to the pandemic has been a mixture of bad communication, very late responses, alleged corrupt practices and in my opinion the Prime Minister is a criminal and should be held to account as such.

However, on this point as long as the announcement is on the 22nd I agree with them and the reasons why. From the outset of the current restrictions in England in January it was stated that the review would be on the 22nd February, and then (although forced on them) that schools would be given two weeks notice of re-opening. The number of people so far vaccinated and the reduction in Covid 19 positive cases are both in the right direction, though still a long way to go as over 5,000 people have died in the past week.

What I do object to is the use of anonymous briefings to the media to try to set expectations, and then things such as the refusal to answer simple questions such as about whether it is wise to book a holiday or it is at your own risk. I also think that there should be some things ruled out for a period of time when the announcements are made on 22nd February, for example if there are no large gatherings until at least May, say so.

Well said

The point is they don’t know yet do they, they may have some ideas on what to do

Let's hope so eh

My guess is that they have sat down with the public health team and asked for parameters of what the stats need to be before xyz happen. They have then looked at a range of different options depending on factors such as the R number, NHS capacity, spread of known variants and related issues such as the surge testing results for SA mutation (the current Lambeth ones won't be in for a couple of weeks anyway etc etc and then they will decide on what restrictions they might be able to lift and when and announce those. It must be an incredibly difficult circle to square with the likes of Whitty no doubt wanting to keep schools closed until at least September ( if his performance last year is anything to go by) and the Chancellor wanting the economy open soonest to pay for everything.

I’d be inclined to think it’s fine that they’re taking their time to be cautious right now considering first time round we were told to expect lockdown to last 12 weeks for it to work, and there are still so many uncertainties. But the way they’ve bigged up the effects of the vaccine and have made such a big deal out of its success leads me to feel that if they want us to be happy with the vaccine program, then we need to be told what benefit it will have.

It’s pointless for people to be wishing for a vaccine or feeling thankful that they’ve had one if it’s not the thing that’s going to get us out of lockdown.