If you were the Government, what would you do .....

[MagicSummer]

To bring the virus under control and ultimately give us back our 'old' life as far as possible?

The whole country into tier 3 for a month

I would not be closing secondary schools for a month. There is enough mental health issues amongst teenagers from last time without making it ten times worse by a lockdown in winter.

Shield the vulnerable and elderly and let everyone else get on with so that we have some sort of economy which in turn pays for luxuries like the NHS.

The thing is the whole of Europe is in dire straits - no matter what their government or healthcare spending etc.

I can think of a few plans if there is a vaccine. IF there is a vaccine. But the way governments are acting seems to indicate that they are all panicking and that there is no way out.

Meanwhile China is doing fine and will be first in line in the inevitable economic fire sale.

Give everyone going for a flu vaccination a bolus dose of vitamin D3 at the same time, and a tub of a maintaining dose of tablets to take away... a high-ish dose of around 4000 iu, rather than the standard RDA of 400, which is merely enough to prevent people dropping dead from rickets/osteomalacia... the bones get first dibs on vitamin D, so you need to take higher amounts for the immunological benefits to kick in. Obviously people with conditions where vit D is contraindicated would get a much lower dose/none as appropriate.

Strongly encourage the rest of the population to take around 3000 - 4000 iu of vit D3 daily. The government would have to facilitate large-scale manufacture/import and distribution, as a sudden surge in demand would cause shortages and unavailability of the product.

Make available vitamin D testing at all larger pharmacies for a modest cost, say £5 - 10, and make available a guidance chart with advice on how much to take.

The only way out of this is through, and the main limiting factor IMHO is widespread vitamin D deficiency/insufficiency. Many studies are showing a close correlation between vit D levels and risk of dying/hospitalisation from covid. If we could get the average levels up to > 100 nmol/l across the population (ideal level is c. 135 nmol/l according to a recent Israeli study), almost all of us would get out of this alive, and with very little impact on the economy, barring the few days that people need to take off work with a + test. It would also have huge positive benefits for many other diseases, and has the potential to save thousands of pounds per capita across the healthcare system and the huge impact on the wider economy caused by lockdowns.

Sack Dido Harding.
Get someone in from Germany/Taiwan to sort out track test trace and change it to a local system.
Change contract system in government so mates can't get PPE contracts.
Extra funding for NHS.
Set up cross party committee to tackle Covid.
Remove vat from PPE
Recommend blended learning for all secondary schools, colleges and universities.

@QueenStromba

If I was the government we wouldn't be in this situation because I'd have closed the borsees, bought loads of PPE and ramped up testing capacity in January.

Failing that, I wouldn't have sent everyone back to school with essentially no safety measures and I would gone for a circuit breaker in mid September.

Given the situation we're in now though:

1. 3 week circuit breaker with everything non essential shut. No going out for any reason but essential work that absolutely cannot be done from home (with spot checks at employers to see if the reason someone is on site is good enough), food, medical care and exercise.

2. let anyone who wants to take their child out of school. If this doesn't reduce numbers sufficiently then bring in part time learning (exceptions for young children of essential workers with no other childcare option).

3. masks everywhere indoors and in busy outdoor areas. No exemptions as the covid minimisers have ruined it for everyone. Spot fines for not wearing a mask or not wearing it properly.

4. sack Dido Harding, sort out test and trace, enforce compliance

Building on @QueenStromba list:

Agree a circuit breaker should have happened to incorporate half term - hopefully that would allow schools to run until Christmas

Disagree - would want vulnerable children (in the non-Covid sense) to continue in school but would allow choice for families with a previously shielding household member to complete school work from home.
3)Agree masks in indoor / urban spaces

Agree Dido's feet wouldn't touch the ground if I was in Government. She would be nowhere near the PHE replacement body either. More rapid turnaround of test results. Work with public health teams in local areas where there are low %'s of contacts reached. Testing to be more localised perhaps like Germany use GP surgeries or similar community setting

Mandatory testing at airport and possibly a number of days later

At least weekly Covid response updates from the Government after work hrs, scheduled in advance e.g. 7pm. Obviously emergency briefings sometimes will occur but I find it frustrating that it's hard to find out when Johnson or the CMO/ CSO will make announcements. We are in a crisis we need to hear from the Government directly (not all the media speculation and dribs and drabs of information).

Secondary schools - the Government need to have a policy on a rota system ready to roll out to avoid whole school closure

Disclosure of all contracts issued - they are spending a lot of money where is it being spent? I would also be chasing up where faulty tests / equipment have been procured whether the money has been reclaimed.

Begin emergency public inquiry into the first wave pandemic response & learn lessons from it!

Immediately stop the policy of releasing elderly patients that are Covid positive back into care homes (use Nightingales /other hospital wards) do not walk into a second potential disaster for this vulnerable population.

Replace Gavin Williamson he's inept and we need someone on the ball in charge of education

Pretty straightforward this one - extend the food voucher scheme to cover holidays for the rest of this academic year. No child in the country should be going hungry everwhen the country is in crisis.

Introduce really steep tax rates for all high earners (of those who have managed carry on working or who WFH) to provide better income support/furlough options for those in industries which have been hammered - eg arts, hospitality etc. Income redistribution in effect.

@QueenStromba

If I was the government we wouldn't be in this situation because I'd have closed the borsees, bought loads of PPE and ramped up testing capacity in January.

Failing that, I wouldn't have sent everyone back to school with essentially no safety measures and I would gone for a circuit breaker in mid September.

Given the situation we're in now though:

1. 3 week circuit breaker with everything non essential shut. No going out for any reason but essential work that absolutely cannot be done from home (with spot checks at employers to see if the reason someone is on site is good enough), food, medical care and exercise.
2. let anyone who wants to take their child out of school. If this doesn't reduce numbers sufficiently then bring in part time learning (exceptions for young children of essential workers with no other childcare option).
3. masks everywhere indoors and in busy outdoor areas. No exemptions as the covid minimisers have ruined it for everyone. Spot fines for not wearing a mask or not wearing it properly.
4. sack Dido Harding, sort out test and trace, enforce compliance

Then what? Continue ad infinitum?

Your lack of empathy for people who cant wear masks is horrible.

@Seriouslymole

I would not be closing secondary schools for a month. There is enough mental health issues amongst teenagers from last time without making it ten times worse by a lockdown in winter.

Shield the vulnerable and elderly and let everyone else get on with so that we have some sort of economy which in turn pays for luxuries like the NHS.

Absolutely. 100% agree.

The lockdown fanatics seem to think we can run the country on air.

Call a short lockdown , for four weeks . Let people still go to work however and let takeaways and pubs /cafes open for takeaways . Close unis, schools for a month lockdown and re open them partially . YR 10; YR 11 , YR 13 and vulnerable to still go in - the rest of the year groups switch to on line learning . Primary schools and nurseries have staggered learning - so one day have reception , yr 2, 4 and 6 and another day the other year groups ( or for two days ). Make mask wearing compulsory in schools . Limit hairdressers days / hours - wear I live we are seeing lots of outbreaks in hairdressers .

What is the point of another lockdown, the last one was a waste of time and money. What are they going to do about the virus during the lockdown to stop it spreading again when lockdown is over, We need more collective efforts from the public to obey the rules better as there is not enough police etc to properly enforce the rules.

OK @Thanx4theMmories are you in favour of the current Government policy or what would you do?

If I were in charge (and had lots of money), my fantasy fix would include:

• continuing with the emphasis on social distancing, hand washing and mask-wearing, but not lockdown
• twice-weekly covid testing (using a test similar to the Boots one that gives results within minutes, like a pregnancy test) for everyone. Testing would be available at supermarkets, schools, places of worship, train stations etc...everyone would get a test done, at a convenient location, on their allocated days (for example Tuesdays and Fridays for me, Wednesdays and Saturdays for my neighbour) and the result would be logged at the testing venue. Fourteen day self-isolating for everyone who tested positive, with financial support for those who do and penalties for those who don't.

@theconstantinoplegardener wish that dream could come true as that level of testing would take us back to being close to our 'old life' and really would help stop community transmission in its tracks

I don’t think we should do a national lockdown ever again, local lockdowns are better. Tier 3 is like Germany. I certainly key would not close schools- it is the worst thing you can do to vulnerable and poor children. I think the main issue is the health service - how can we find a way to get people who aren’t Covid patients treated properly. I think more of a mobilisation of private health care may be required. I am much more scared of having heart issues or cancer than Covid right now. I also think the rapid Covid tests will be a game changer in health care settings. Finally teachers should be offered the Covid vaccine as a priority too.

• Sack Dido and put the money into local health authorities to run track and trace.
• Stop giving billions in contracts to your Tory mates with no experience in PPE or public health
• Sack Cummings because he thinks he's a genius and he's trying to manage a pandemic like an election campaign with slogans and focus groups.
• Form a Cross Party Covid Council to try and get consensus and national support for all measures. Also to oversee where contracts are going.
• Look at how other countries have managed and try to learn from what has worked and implement it here
• Scrap Rule of Six for Tier 1, no households mixing ( 6 people from 6 different households is just daft)

@NotAKaren absolutely Cummings should be out on his ear!

Agree with your other policies but I'd get rid of the rule of 6 and would allow 2 households to mix inTier 1.

I would also implement regular tier reviews.

Locked down earlier in march
Sacked Cummings fgs
Sacked Gav W
Sacked Dido - actually never hired her and serco
Had a two week circuit breaker over Oct half term

Well, I wouldn’t start from here ...

Actually the first thing would be to acknowledge/advertise/explain that any measures the government take are not intended to “bring the virus under control and ... give us back our 'old' life”. They’re intended to keep our healthcare system just about afloat until there’s a vaccine. Hence, rolling lockdowns. The last lockdown did work, to do that.

And then, after that, if I were the government, I’d throw my hands in the air and ask Starmer if he fancies a go.

Build a time machine go back to beginning of 2019 and persuade China to ban wet markets.

With retrospect (not mine - I would have done this at the start - but where we are now) I would have spent the summer organising part virtual part f2f schooling for secondary schools. To enable greater social distancing in school. I would have banned school/public transport . Kids ONLY busses between 7-8.30 and 3.30 to 5pm . (But with only half the amount as the others would be at home. The planning would have included appropriate Wi-fi/laptops to enable this.

I would NOT of allowed travelling to Uni. First years study at their Uni from home. Much less chance of groups of older teens with no interest of protecting public health gathering together.

I would have made it a LAW not to work in an office if it COULD be done from home. 'Presenteeism' has no part in a pandemic .

No pubs once too cold to be outside.

This should be enough to support the NHS through the flu season .

I would have made it a LAW not to work in an office if it COULD be done from home. 'Presenteeism' has no part in a pandemic

Amen to this 100%. Such an easy change to make.

@frozendaisy

If I was PM I would engage all political parties so any decisions made parliament stood as one. Think that would bring more respect from population. I would also call out any gutter press or online nonsense, fear-mongering and idiotic conspiracy theories.

Get the message right.

But to do that, you need the other political parties to agree and engage!

I would keep masks, hand sanitising etc.
Ban large gatherings.
Shielding programme in place.
Visits to elderly/vulnerable permitted but only 2m away and a mask.
No need to close shops, pubs etc.
People can have a 'contacts budget' e.g. Their family, partner and 2/3 friends.
Schools open but all children and staff to wear masks in lessons and at all times except when eating.

I would want to save Christmas. 6 week lockdown now except for work and school. Have a Christmas. Worry about 2021 when we get there.