Prime minister announcement at 12

[Hugglespuffed]

Is it going to be drastic changes? Or just 'work at home if you can'?

Well i tell you what , my grandma dying the year of gcses didn't do much good for ds. Luckily he was predicted really good grades but he was devastated and his concentration went to shit

I wouldnt want him to have to go through it again with his grandad and A levels.

Some people are heartless bastards

Probably already been mentioned but if you close the schools aren't you just foisting a whole load of mucky little super spreaders on to potentially elderly grandparents?

I can't imagine many working parents will be able to simply take a month off to look after the kids. I think they should keep the schools open and keep the kids there for a month. 24/7

What happened to 12pm? Has BoZo been off getting tested?

If the government does nothing then we'll just have to make up our own minds. DD and I are asthmatic, and not mildly. She's in her GCSE year and it's more important that she's healthy for the exams...assuming they happen. She can work at home - not ideal for sure but a damn site better than waiting to be sick and hoping that prednisone and puffers let us breath. The fucking common cold gives me a chest infection...God knows what Coronavirus would do to me.

DH was supposed to be travelling to London on the train and tube to a large conference tomorrow- 500+ people. He has cancelled going.

Also it is bullshit that we can’t change the course of this disease - that was the main learning from the joint WHO-China joint mission. We are literally the only country I have seen crap on about letting the virus run its course to gain herd immunity as an approach.

See Singapore, Vietnam and even South Korea as examples of countries that have rapidly brought the amount of daily new infections down / stopped the infection spreading further and ACTUALLY flattened the curve.

Taiwan has done well too with good measures, quickly.

Personally I'd close secondary schools as that doesn't impact parents working.

Primary...I'd be tempted to leave open so they are all contained, rather than running around spreading infection esp as children get it mildly. I can't imagine all primary kids being kept indoors if there's a shut down.

What happened to 12pm? Has BoZo been off getting tested?

They're trying to coax him out of the fridge.

I saw on twitter that meeting wasn’t until 1.15 🤷🏻‍♀️ I’m not sure if that’s correct, didn’t look into further than reading a comment.

I don’t know how likely it is that schools will close. It’s perhaps the most sensible as kids are just super spreaders, but there are massive implications for parents who can’t get/afford the childcare. We are approaching Easter holidays, I reckon they will just say break up two weeks earlier and have a month off.

Exactly Marsha, you only have to look at the figures to see that different approaches have differing results with regards to both spread and fatality rates.

@opticalillusion there was a great viral video of an Italian comedian saying "when you say they're closing schools...will the children be inside the or outside the school? Because if it's outside, this is very very grave indeed!"

I think people were still arriving for the meeting ten minutes ago.

I think people need to calm down.

My 90 year old gran isn't worried, she's been through a lot and thinks this is the media hyping it up.

@PreseaCombatir Norway is shutting down, all schools, nurseries : the lot is closed from tomorrow.

My 90 year old gran isn't worried, she's been through a lot and thinks this is the media hyping it up

My 90 year old gran has also been through a lot. She thinks it's the giver name that playing it down.

The head of the WHO urged on 1st/2nd March "urged everyone over the age of 60 to avoid crowded areas including trains, buses and even supermarkets to prevent catching coronavirus." Also "If you are 60+, or have an underlying condition like cardiovascular disease, a respiratory condition or diabetes, you have a higher risk of developing severe #COVID19. Try to avoid crowded areas, or places where you might interact with people who are sick."
l'm over 60 and l work in a supermarket. l also have asthma and a long standing history of lung problems. Ten years ago l was off work (different job) for 10 weeks when l had a serious lung disorder which took multiple courses of antibiotics and steroids to clear up, and l've had pneumonia in the past.

l can't imagine my bosses being impressed if l announce that the head of the WHO says l really shouldn't go to work.

Yeh all the countries and WHO need to calm down like the song

Is your gran a world renowned epidemiologist by any chance Borne?

Welsh first minister speaking later this afternoon, perhaps the Welsh and English are going to announce things simultaneously.

*government

@amusedbush A lot of offices are just making sure everything's in place for that eventuality should it occur, rather than planning to enact it per se. They don't want to grind to a halt if there's a sudden flurry of self-isolators, or (unlikely) an enforced shutdown. Depending on where you are in the country, they're possibly also planning on changing peoples' working hours so workers can avoid using public transport at rush hour, to minimise the risk, which might involve some remote access requirements.

@Wheresthebeach of my Autistic 14yo is off school there are no other childcare options - I'd rather the 7yo was off school otherwise it defeats the purpose really as all those parents would still be gathering each day.

I'm going to have to just deal with work as it comes but my family comes first.

90 year old gran kinda made me laugh. Maybe she should give the Italian Drs, patients, WHO and world governments a good talking too.

Oh well if your 90 year old gran isn't worried