WTF was that all about?

[Bearbehind]

So if you can’t work from home you should go to work.

Does that apply to the beauty industry or hospitality industry or what?

How can cleaners go to work? To make their workplace safe, you’d need to clean it thoroughly before letting them in - which defeats the point. If you don’t clean it, they are massively at risk.

What, same as supermarket staff, and care home staff and bus drivers and... everyone else who has carried on working? Do they need to thoroughly clean their workplaces as well?

You need to ensure that SOCIAL DISTANCING measures are adhered to for your cleaner, and that they have somewhere to WASH THEIR HANDS.

God, I am beginning to understand why the Gov't uses slogans. Far too many people can't understand more than a short slogan.

Ok so... can my cleaner come and clean my house now? And can I drive to the beach and sit there?
Your cleaner could always have come- as it was her job and place of work. It needed to be safe, though. Yes, you can now drive to the beach and sit there.

Will a worker with a Y1 child have to go in (even though they may have a y3 or nursery child still at home?)

The furlough system is still in place until the end of June and employers can place an employee on furlough due to childcare reasons (if they cannot wfh) because there are literally no settings currently operating to take them.

What will happen to the furlough system come the end of June is anyones guess.

He used those as examples only. He was very clear. If you can’t work from home, then everyone should go to work

Oh really? the work place is one of the very best places to spread an infectious disease, work space, access via lifts of stairwells, toilets all need careful consideration.
People also need to get to work too, enabling more spread, in trains buses plus we don't have the car parking in city centres for everyone to drive (u can't car share)

Judging by the confusion on this thread, Johnson was once again as clear as mud and as clueless as ever.
You can go to a busy work place but cannot visit a family member also keeping 2/3m apart - people are just going to ignore all of this.

Be Vague = Control the Media = Save Johnson

I am self employed as a private tutor. Lots of my students can't really do online teaching because of information processing issues. Am I allowed to go back to face to face tutoring? That's assuming that parents will want me to before children are back at school.

Thank you @Cusano34 I really appreciate it.

All things considered, up until this point, we've coped amazingly considering we can't even go out for a walk and I have a nine year old and twins of 8.

Just a little acknowledgement tonight would have been nice.

I have filled out the online form to have a question put to him tomorrow, no doubt I won't be the only one to ask the question.

I hope you're keeping well (and sane) and thank you for thinking of others during this time 😘

@WoahBodyforrrm gosh that must be hard. I admire you! You must get so annoyed at people moaning about staying at home when you have no choice and no answers as to when it will end

Do you have friends and family near by to help?

I have a 2 year old boy but luckily I can take him out for walks. It's such a shame grandparents are missing out on them growing and changing but thank goodness for facetime! x

Given car dealerships are opening tomorrow (I know parts and servicing is essential and on the stay open list).
I’m not quite sure what to make of it all

Car dealerships should still be closed, no changes there

If he's going to explain more tomorrow, why couldn't he do that tonight? They're making it up as they go along.

"And can I drive to the beach and sit there?"
From Wednesday you can as long as you maintain social distancing.

"Avoid public transport", well my DH is a bus driver, so if he goes to work he can't avoid it... "
Don't be so pedantic. What do you want - a 12 hour speech covering every eventuality?

@allyjay

"I don't really get the confusion, surely that was a back to work and lifting the lockdowm message . I'm surprised by any other conclusion"

No

Did you listen to the same briefing, the one on BBC at 7pm?

The one where he specifically said:

"And though we have made progress in satisfying at least some of the conditions I have given.
We have by no means fulfilled all of them.
And so no, this is not the time simply to end the lockdown this week."

There are a number of business types that were closed by law due to Covid 19 , that law has not changed. For every other business type the guidance has always been that if you can't do it from home you should go to work. This briefing has just reinforced that. The law has not been changed to re-open the closed businesses.

www.gov.uk/government/publications/full-guidance-on-staying-at-home-and-away-from-others/full-guidance-on-staying-at-home-and-away-from-others

This is like the picture where half of the people see a blue dress and the other half see a gold dress.

‘That was crystal clear - lockdown’s lifting and we’re all back to work! I don’t see how you could possibly interpret it any other way!’

‘Why are people finding this so hard to understand? Nothing at all has changed except you can now sit on a bench.’

"For that idiot to stand and say “we protected the NHS” when 200+ staff have died is fuckin shameful."
The NHS is the service provided for our health and there's a heck of a lot more to the NHS than its staff as has been shown over the past 7 weeks. The Govt have protected the service from being overwhelmed.

It is not at all clear that some workplaces are still closed. I’m not surprised people are confused. He said the exact opposite to that. “Anyone who can’t work from home..should be actively encouraged to go to work.”

"The company is running a skeleton service, all office staff and nearly all the drivers have been furloughed. If they all have to go back, the company will go under, as they cannot run bus routes if no one is using them, as they've been told not to!"
People have not been told not to use public transport. They have been told to use their cars or, better still, to walk or cycle to work. This is to allow those who don't have alternative transport, to use trains and buses.

It was utter bollocks and I am furious at this useless government.

Does anyone know what fines they'll be increasing?

Why are you worrying about fines? What exactly did you expect Boris to say. Cover every scenario?

No, but if they are relaxing certain rules, e.g. unlimited exercise, picnics, sunbathing, then what areas will they be clamping down on, I wonder? Just curious to know if we will still have these social distancing officers hanging around the local park or if they can get pack to ofter more worthy pursuits, e.g, fighting crime, catching the dog foulers etc? Oh and he didn't cover ANY friggin scenario, did he? What did he actually tell us? Sweet FA.

Absolute bollocks. That was the biggest amount of bullshit I've ever watched in my life.

I don't think he has a clue. He just rambled.

So, as a teacher of one of the year groups that's going back I'm not sure how I'm going to do that as the nursery that my child goes to is closed... No keyworker place available as they're not bloody open.

Plus. Will I get PPE?
I'm not teaching kids in what will be one a COVID hot spot without protection.

I was expecting there to be a plan which would be released to the press and public and for BJ's speech to summarise that plan.

So now I am wondering if there is a plan or if they are winging it.

He’s an atrocious communicator. All bluster and no clarity.

It is a get back to work message of a sorts in that those are the words he used. Equally though, the workplaces have to be safe or adapted to become safe before people can be asked to return to work. Anything else should be considered too risky at this stage. Unlike (say) putting safeguards in place to ensure safe operating of machine etc. to prevent people losing limbs or trapping fingers, viral spread in the case of Covid is still something that needs fully understanding, especially with the various mutating strains. So the 2m arbitrary rule still stands. Yes it could be reduced to 1m but unless someone has instructed the virus to socially isolate that won't work. Therefore employers have to introduce measures into the workplace to ensure the safety of their workers. What about those places with air conditioning rather than open windows and fresh air? A bit like sitting in a plane... one person's breathed out air becomes another's air intake - can an employer guarantee that won't be an issue and would they take the risk...or will they have a choice if the government now turn around and remove the furlough scheme on the basis that employers should do more themselves? Can employees afford to stay at home if furlough is removed - unlikely in the extreme. So, irrespective of the words, it won't be long before no one has a choice but to go back to work and face the unquantifiable risks. It does feel a little like cross your heart and hope (not) to die. And what about those employees who are classed in the vulnerable category - maybe they suffer from respiratory infections or similar - who refuse to take the risk with their health but cannot easily work from home?

Tonight's briefing was clear in one sense but raises many scenarios in another which will need exploring and also regulating in some manner. I'd hate to be a policeman right now.

I don't really get the confusion, surely that was a back to work and lifting the lockdown message

WTAF?! No it wasn’t! If aren’t able to work from home you should get back to work... but if there’s work to be done and it’s not in an industry whose work has been curtailed (e.g entertainment, non-essential shops etc). there’s never been a reason why you shouldn’t have been in work! He was essentially clarifying the existing position and putting employers and employees on notice that furloughing unnecessarily would need to come to an end. Everything else has pretty much remained the same.