Christmas with the tier system

[rainystorm]

I heard on the news that currently their 2 and 3 (who can't socialise indoors) make up over 50% of the population. Presumably more areas will join them (mine included) - I can't see anything that would suggest areas are going to come down tiers very easily.

Jeremy Farrar has just been saying that Christmas will be very different for almost everyone and won't be a family celebration like usual.

Do you think they are trying to ward everyone that we should be largely expecting to have Christmas in our own homes without visitors? (Bar bubbling obviously)

Yes, I think the restrictions over Christmas will be very strict as people will just ignore and do what they want and January cases and the workload on the nhs will be awful if lots of mixing goes on over Christmas.

Yeah, I'm assuming we won't be seeing anyone over the festive season, I have bought each household in my family the same game for Christmas so we can play on video chat on boxing Day just in case we can't get together as usual.

I chose The Cat Game after getting it cheap and playing it with my 16 YO DD, we had such a laugh (drawing type game) I figured why not.

I think that’s been obvious for months. Hardly a shock.

Blame those that haven’t respected the rules and have carried on regardless

@BluebellsGreenbells what a load of sh*t. Blame those who haven’t followed the rules... not the fact that workplaces, schools and universities went back. And you know... that thing called winter.

I'm preparing for it to just be myself, DH and DS's for Christmas.

I'm also preparing for the onslaught from my in-laws for refusing to break this and go to them. But DH is one of four brothers, who all have wives, work in central London and would be 5 separate households at the house. I'm just not doing it.

I'm preparing to be on my own completely for Christmas. I'm single and DS is going to his dad's this year.

I disagree.

We are Covid free because we followed the rules for 3 months. We had it under control before the schools went back and people returned to work.
Covid free since June.

You work it out

I'm planning a quiet Christmas so I'm not disappointed

I will but the idea that the majority of people will stick to the rules on meeting up at Christmas is laughable. It's going to be the most widespread breaking of the law in history.

@Waxonwaxoff0 sorry to hear that. It’s fallen on ‘my’ year this year. So feel lucky that children will be with me. Have you got your DS on Boxing Day?

@PetitFours

I will but the idea that the majority of people will stick to the rules on meeting up at Christmas is laughable. It's going to be the most widespread breaking of the law in history.

That's what I was thinking. Even if xmas was tomorrow, over half the country would be breaking the law if they spent it with family and it's only going to get worse surely....I hadn't realised the volume of people in tier 2 and 3. I can't call how the government will handle it (apart from badly obvs).

I think they are basically working to a sort of uni essay 10% grace concept. If they say no one, they expect small family gatherings. If they say 15 then it will be 20.

No one seems to think the government actually expect anyone to abide by it at Christmas.

I don’t see how the government would manage compliance in stopping people seeing relatives over Christmas.

Maybe they will allow some relaxing of restrictions but that could just open the floodgates.

Difficult.

Cummins will obviously follow all the rules
Hmm thinks PM is in London living at number 10 he presumably has servants or visitors or people coming re government or his security staff
Hey - hang on a minute! He's having meetings indoors & more than 6
tut!

Won't make any difference to us. Adult dd will come up to stay. Good excuse not to see the SILs. We shall go for very long walks, drink a lot and eat well.
Hopefully the restaurant we've booked for 25th will still be open.

We're in Tier 2 and I expect we'll be Tier 3 before long (london). We'll be having our normal family christmas. There'll be 8 of us.

I suspect two scenarios

• covid numbers very bad we are in full lockdown and people very compliant
• we have prevented that level of surge they ease rules slightly basically all areas of the country to level one for the week...prevents the mass civil disobedience which would happen otherwise and makes boris look a bit like sant😂! They are highly unlikely to nit seek to do some easing around Christmas because wide scale non compliance damages the strategy long term and there simply are not enough police or army personal to police it so without public backing it will not happen.

My personal view is the govt will relax restrictions for christmas, rightly or wrongly, because they know people will ignore them anyway.

No one is going to take any notice of the rules/laws.

Dictating who people can and can't see in their own homes is ridiculous.

The NHS is failing not because of Covid, but because of underfunding and mismanagement.

Covid will also be blamed for the fiasco which will arise due to Brexit.

I've worked with the public all the way though, have children in 'bubbles' of hundreds, I will be seeing anyone and everyone I like, whenever I like. I only know of two people who've actually had Covid, and they were fine.

People will die with Covid, but not many. The shocking state of the NHS will kill plenty all by itself.

All of my family and friends, in fact anyone I've spoken to about it, feel the same.

@flissity yes, I'll have DS on boxing day. Normally I'd go to my mum's but she is having my grandad over as he's widowed and in their bubble. I'll probably get some nice food in and spend the day drinking Baileys!

No one is going to take any notice of the rules/laws

Tell that to my dh who has already said we won't be going to see my family 3 hours drive up north

I think many many people will want to stick within the restrictions. Many people do not want to risk getting ill.
The people who will find it hardest to follow are those who have to risk exposure at work anyway (why should they stay in at Christmas when they have to go out the rest of the time).

I'm hoping my DM will be able to come up and stay with us for a fortnight. She's 81, and it's the best chance she has of having a reasonable time.

I'm expecting in laws will want to see us and DC - and we are in an area where that would be ok in terms of six (2 of them and us a family of 4) which is fine apart from one of them is ill and vulnerable..so might be in a way easier if it was tier 2 instead in a way in terms of less worry about school DC passing it to them.

There is as much chance of people not having relatives over at Christmas as there is of everyone on this thread winning the lottery.

It’s not going to happen.

Oh good. No need to PIL this year!