What do posters outside Scotland think of our handling of the pandemic?

[ssd]

Genuine question, not bigging up ir putting down Scotland or anywhere else.
The news us just getting confusing and various threads on here add to it.
I'd just like to hear what non Scottish posters think about what's happening up here. The numbers are really low but we're still locked down more and of course have fewer citizens than England, and less congestion.
Thanks for any answers.

[PimblesRevenge]

Unintelligent and xenophobic.
Like many around the world, Scotland made the insane choice to put COVID positive elderly people into residential care settings, sometimes without having been tested. There were no tests offered to care home staff, and so the infections were spread.
Nicola Sturgeon is guilty as hell.

[Bionical89]

Why is everyone 'so surprised' that it took the UK and everyone else 'so long' to lockdown?




We thought we were dealing with a virus that killed 3,000 out of a population of 1.4 billion. We would have been expecting less than 100 deaths here if we were to believe what happened in China to be true. China never locked down until 7 weeks after their first case. The UK locked down around 7 weeks after it's first case too, as did many other countries. We followed a very unreliable lead but what else can you do with a novel virus that has never infected humans before? You know nothing about it and can literally only do what other countries have done first and follow their lead.




Lots of mistakes have been made but we can't say that lock down should have happened sooner. There was basically nothing to go on at the time and large gatherings in Scotland were cancelled before lock down was put in place. The schools closed 3 days before lockdown was announced, as did the bars and literally in the space of those 3 days, the country ground to a hault and we were only allowed out once a day for a walk.



I think shes done the best she can

[ByGaslight]

I’m not outside Scotland, I’m in it and I don’t think our ‘handling’ of the virus has been any different from the rest of the UK, except that Scot Govt has decided to extend the main ‘lockdown’ measures longer. Scotland has had a lot fewer infections most probably because because of its position on the lines of travel from more distant hotspots and population / distribution so I’m relieved about that.

I guess the very self-conscious ‘four nations’ way of conducting the Covid-19 messaging is because health is devolved, but realistically there couldn’t be substantial differences, or only those which made sense at a more local level, and that isn’t necessarily just ‘four national’. People who dislike Johnson and like Sturgeon saying ‘Nicola has handled this so much better,’ are just telling themselves a story they prefer. The virus has been in charge.

Where I live, in a backwater suburb, everyone has been seriously ignoring the ‘guidelines’ for weeks now, all the trades have been working fully throughout the lockdown and I have yet to see a pensioner of this Parish wearing a mask in a shop, or worrying overmuch about social distancing in a queue. Local businesses are howling now at the extended restrictions, they’ve been badly hit, lots won’t recover.

Within a couple of miles radius of me, although the community infection rate has remained low, four care homes have been in the news headlines for the number of residents they have lost to Covid-19.

[Redolent]

@ssd

Interesting all the opinions here, many of you don't think much of NS, even though our numbers are way down here.
It's a hard one, we are watching Leicester have to lock down again and that'll damage business there, whilst our numbers are low here and many feel that's damaging business.

It's a bloody minefield really.

Yes, reopening early to ‘get the economy going’ is foolish if businesses have to keep closing again. That’s not financially viable.

The real problem will be how/if you get tourism going again. No easy answers here. If countries who open up for tourism are second spikes in the autumn, and more painful lockdowns for their populations, that may swing it.

[worzelsnurzel123]

The job England and Scotland have had in getting numbers down just aren’t comparable. Much higher population and density of population down south.

[ssd]

Interesting all the opinions here, many of you don't think much of NS, even though our numbers are way down here.
It's a hard one, we are watching Leicester have to lock down again and that'll damage business there, whilst our numbers are low here and many feel that's damaging business.

It's a bloody minefield really.

[BusyDreaming]

Scot living in England.
Delighted that Covid numbers in Scotland are so low.

Not a fan of the SNP but I have a certain amount of respect for NS.
Clear communicator ( even if I don’t like the message most of the time)
Surrounded by incompetent and inadequate colleagues eg John Swinney.

Lots of political point scoring and posturing during this crisis but if Scotland manages to be Covid free by Sept, then well done.

Will she and the SNP be off the hook for the mismanagement of Scottish care homes, Scottish education and the Scottish economy ?
Not to mention the Alex Salmond saga.
The Scottish media rarely seem to scrutinise the SNP effectively.
Time will tell.

I want to visit my elderly Scottish relatives who are really struggling.
Too old to be getting on public transport and they don’t drive so their world has been tiny for 4 months now.

I’ll not be going into quarantine when I visit them which again seems to be one of those stories circulating in the press ( a bit like schools and blended learning) designed to cause maximum angst for regular people just trying to do their best in the circumstances.

I fear for the Scottish economy.

[pobparker]

I'm Scottish , living in Scotland
NS talks a good game compared to Boris , but the media up here are also less critical of her preformative
The handling of Nike conference stinks of a cover up , and there has been a fiasco in Care Homes,
Home carers took ages to be given suitable PPE, and many had not been tested ,
I think most people have been ignoring the 5 mile rule for weeks now , it makes very little sense.
Restaurants and pubs will most likely not be able to operate with the 2M rule
She did not rule out a potential quarantine for other visitors from rest of UK , when asked a question at at the press conference today , which would be a disaster for tourism
I fear for the economy

[thewisp]

I'm Welsh and think our governments have prioritised flexing their powers over what is good for the countries at times. I don't think it will pay off in the long term for us.

[worzelsnurzel123]

I think this is it for her. Game over.

[Whoknowswhocares]

NS has made a big deal of getting Scotland ‘free’ of the virus but at what cost? The longer she drags her feet on reopening, the more it looks like economic suicide. Which she presumably will expect the UK as a whole to finance.
Surely all that self congratulation will come to nothing once tourism is restarted and locals can travel more freely anyway? She doesn’t have control of the borders or air travel, so can’t see what she is achieving by prolonging lockdown.

[MoreW1ne]

She's a more composed public speaker than Boris and better at spinning lies. Other than that dont see any different.

Given the devolved power NS she hasn't really covered herself in glory. Missed opportunity in that sense as Scottish economy is going to be a lot slower to recover and little positives to offset from that.

[sashagabadon]

I don't mind NS. I don't have a string opinion either way but she does seem to just do things to be different from england. E.g the messaging stay safe rather than stay alert and calling the test and trace something v similar but slightlt different wording. Why bother?! That seems pointless to me but equally no big deal i guess.
I thought it was wuite cheeky to see the scottish finance minister expecting westminster to continue the furlough scheme for scotland when it will end for the rest of the uk. I think rishi pushed this back though.
Apart from that looks to me like same mistakes were made as england. Ppe, Carehomes spring to mind.
But i am sure there is plenty of good stuff too just that the media ignores the good stuff

[Dinosauratemydaffodils]

I'm in Scotland so not the target demographic but I'm slightly hopeful about the economy, certainly most of our local businesses are doing brilliantly and the company dh works for is recruiting because they have loads of work (IT).

I think the care homes in particular were handled badly, especially given what we know was happening in Spanish ones before we locked down here.

She totally fucked up the blended learning- pretending last minute that it had never been the plan .( once she actually took the time to realise she’d lose votes from swathes of working parents).

According to our council and school, it is absolutely the plan still. Ds will be going 2 days a week. No mention of full time in any information from the school.

[SwelteringInTheHeat]

Outside of what I think of NS otherwise, she has handled the press briefings better than England has. Her messages and instructions have been far more consistent and clear than those coming from Westminster.

Scotland does seem to be in a much better place at the moment with regards to deaths and cases than England, although of course England is much more densely populated.

[ThatDamnScientist]

English and think Scotland appears to have handled it well, you are now 3 consecutive days without any deaths? I'm not sure of your hospital admission numbers at present but definitely seem to be getting a handle on it.

[midgebabe]

I think the Scottish economy could recover much quicker than the uk if she achieves her aim of virtually no cases expect through import by the start of the next school year

[Bollss]

I think it's just one big fat political point. She's trying to create a gap between Scotland and England and she's doing just that. However when she asked for cash to enable her to do that, she's negated the whole point.

I think she's made a fool of herself to be honest. I would be incredibly frustrated living in Scotland right now.

The blended learning thing was a fucking joke.

[CremeEggThief]

As an Irish person living in England, my perspective is that Scotland has handled it immensely better than England. As has Wales. As has Ireland. As has every country apart from the USA and Brazil.

[worzelsnurzel123]

I’m in Scotland but English and lots of English relatives. Nicola spoke clearly and articulately at first telling us all to wash our hands and stay at home. She used smoke and mirrors tactics to make it appear she knew what she was doing and being proactive. Truth was she didn’t. English view is she’s a shambles and she’s fucked up the economy up here. Slow to lock down, too slow to release. She’s a one track minded politician who just wants independence. She creates division not unity. She totally fucked up the blended learning- pretending last minute that it had never been the plan .( once she actually took the time to realise she’d lose votes from swathes of working parents). Trust has gone now though. I know loads of people up here now who won’t vote for her anymore.

[SunbathingDragon]

Initially no different to the rest of the U.K. (so fairly badly dealt with) and now I think your economy will massively struggle to cope.

[Pootle40]

At the moment we do (I think....) think it's relaxed in a week

[RebeccaPearson]

Do we still have a five mile restriction? I’m genuinely confused as to where the hell we are.

[HoldMyLobster]

I was baffled that Scotland left it so late to lockdown - and that's speaking as someone whose family are healthcare workers in Scotland were very distressed by how slow the process was.

Seem to have done a good job since then. Be careful reopening.

[Rosehip10]

I fear for the Scottish economy - tourism being a major part. On top of the issues with the oil sector and (admittedly UK wide) retail sectors. I also think there will be less rest of UK and overseas students to Scottish universities, for several reasons, but made worse by Covid - scottish universities rely on such fees too.