“Covid marshals to be introduced”

[Funkypolar]

To enforce social distancing.

No doubt they will find many volunteers on Mumsnet!

Please do not start blaming certain groups for the rise of infections, that really is the way to encourage scapegoating in an uncertain time.

A lot of young people have started back at sixth form and college this week and are coping with the anxiety of that after five months off.

Well, I hope there's some sort of get out clause for us dyspraxics.
Surely you can't be fined for having a disability.
I keep a distance and wear a mask, but I'm not sure of the distance measurement be that 1m or 2 metres.

True, but they’d take great pleasure in being able to call the police on a group of teenagers.

For sure, but then the police won't act either if it's not an easy target.

It's all well and good having Covid marshals and yes I'm supportive but as we've already experienced nobody seams to have any common sense and not everything is black and white .
So whatever with the Covid marshals they can do what they like .

@RainbowParadise

They should have the guts to call it what it actually is. The gestapo

I agree.

Please don't have a go at those taking the jobs, when you need to put food on the table, pay a rent and other bills, you'll do almost anything.
Lots of people have lost their jobs and may have to take this work, as no choice.
This could well be me, and I'm not a curtain twitcher, I mind my own.

cycling I have read the whole thing.
And whilst of course the Marshall’s will not have full police powers (that would be illegal) I still think it’s da ferrous to give a group of people the power to harass citizens.
We’ve enough problems with institutional bias and racism in the UK without adding extra layers by employing people to focus on certain groups.

What's wrong with using the police?

We already have plenty of laws where people aren't just allowed to do as they choose - stealing including at very low levels such as shoplifting chocolate bar, for example, is a crime. Speeding, murdering other people. We're not just allowed to do that and get away with it either.

Things that a person might want to do which have a negative impact on others (stealing, fraud, murder etc) are criminalised and the police are the ones who enforce these laws.

Can't see how this is really any different.

Move over traffic wardens, there’s a new ‘most hated’ in town.

Gypsy Funerals in Sheffield, raves in manchester, the police failed to act but went to a kid's birthday party as was easy target.

It's a paid position. Our uni have already advertised for Covid Marshall roles this afternoon.

£8-10.50 per hour and sent out to students. That's not exactly retired environmental health experts is it? 🤔

Yes! They followed orders without question.

Good. The sooner everybody follows the rules the sooner this will be over. If that means enforcing the rules so be it.

Still not quite clear on what powers they have though or what they would do about people refusing to social distance/ wear a mask? It's likely to just increase confrontation and clog places up. It's bad enough as it is

@Jaxhog

I don't want to live in a police state thank you and that's the way this is heading.

Easy. Just follow the rules then!

I do. I just don't want some jumped up little twat in a high viz vest telling me to follow their made up version of 'the rules' and, if MN is anything to go by, that's what will happen.

When I see people asking what they should do as they can hear their neighbours coughing I realise just how ridiculous the whole situation is and as far as I can see it's only going to get worse.

@Batshitbeautycosmeticsltd

Banning people from gathering in their homes with others not of their own family, marshals to separate people, a curfew. None of this is ever in the interest of public health, NONE of it; tyranny, no matter what pretext you use to try to justify it, is unacceptable and should always be so.

Once more for the people in the back!

This is terrifying.

Human beings have a tendency to be petty vindictive and spiteful. There’s a strong human instinct - regrettably- to tell tales & to try to get other people into trouble; to exploit a small amount of power over others and expand it. To revel in enforcing power over others.
These human tendencies are not something a responsible government should be encouraging. If a system of criminal penalties depends on using these tendencies then that’s a sign this system is irremediably flawed & lacks public support needed to legitimise it.
It’s worth reading about the GDR and the eager Stasi informants. Encouraging people to inform and to interfere with their neighbours is the hallmark of a state which is heading in the wrong direction.

@IloveJKRowling

What's wrong with using the police?

We already have plenty of laws where people aren't just allowed to do as they choose - stealing including at very low levels such as shoplifting chocolate bar, for example, is a crime. Speeding, murdering other people. We're not just allowed to do that and get away with it either.

Things that a person might want to do which have a negative impact on others (stealing, fraud, murder etc) are criminalised and the police are the ones who enforce these laws.

Can't see how this is really any different.

Because of it not being the police.

They are by no means perfect but they do at least undergo a rigorous selection process and extensive training (and even then some forces hardly covered themselves in glory during lockdown). They're sufficiently well rewarded to have some skin in the game when it comes to behaving. None of these things will be true of those recruited for these roles. And it's not like any of the issues that exist within the police will be addressed by using people with poorer training.

So tired of this “blame the young people” mentality going around at the moment. Weren’t complaining when the “mostly young” people were serving you in the local supermarket whilst we were in full lockdown for your 20 bags of pasta and bog rolls. Without a face mask nor a 2 metre distance.

Are you happy to give up your freedom so easily? I don’t think life will be going back to how it was before February for a very long time 😞 in fact I think this is just the start, more and more restrictive rules will come in over the next few months

I don't think we can be sure that there will be the same compliance, and given the stakes I am not against some kind of enforcement, so many people have taken flouted the rules for so long. I don't think it is okay to break the rules and someones granny dies in the second wave.

I am sure this will be like anything else, those that are doing the right thing have nothing to worry about, those selfish idiots that are willing to kill others for a party may wish to think twice.

We have marshalls in town centres already, it will be based on the same ideas I imagine, and the hysterical reactions of gestapo - get a grip!
The second wave is going to come in the middle of winter, and if nothing is done we are going to have the mother of all death rates (and no doubt you will whinge about that as well)

It's incredibly spoilt and offensive for people to compare this to the gestapo. Talk about clueless, 21st century first world whining....

I mean yeah, the gestapo were all about protecting health and saving lives right? Their absolutely fucking raison d'être that was.

I too agree that this is the thin end of the wedge and I'm baffled why some are celebrating the infringements on liberty? It's really not a good thing and a dystopian society is born from this kind of acceptance.

I wonder how Boris is getting on with his diet and improvement of personal fitness since that was what he was espousing as his 'thing' that everybody should be following?

He reminds me of child with a particularly short attention span, who can be easily distracted and diverted by the jangling of keys...

@loulouljh

Quarantine camps (or facilities) have been introduced in NZ. You cannot leave the facility until you have taken a test. These measures are from horror films but they are happening right here right now.

There are global disasters that have the potential to kill millions of people in horror films too.

We are living through one of those in the real world right now. Something has to be done, and if it means New Zealand sending people to quarantine so they don't infect others, then so be it.

@Inkpaperstars

It's incredibly spoilt and offensive for people to compare this to the gestapo. Talk about clueless, 21st century first world whining....

I mean yeah, the gestapo were all about protecting health and saving lives right? Their absolutely fucking raison d'être that was.

Yeah of course, that's exactly what I meant. That they are just like the actual gestapo