Whitty and Vallance being grilled live

[Lis4Laughter]

www.dailymail.co.uk/home/index.html

COMMENTARIANS??? Is that a real word???

I prefer "commentard" myself - from Vulture Central - El Reg ..

www.theregister.com/2012/03/12/seven_kinds_of_commentard/

Whitty is so good at putting boundaries around what he will answer and is responsible for

MPs sound a bit clueless on it though

Are you qualified to give advice on stuff? (I parapharsed that)

No, he says. No bugger is! No bugger was back in January, no bugger is now (again I paraphrase).

T+T again, crap communication, can't get detailed info by Trust - let me guess their response - Yes, quite agree, but not us mate! Go ask them!

Yay!

Now international comparisons, I shouted at the PC when the female MP asked this so don't know what they said last time!

No sir, your question is the wrong one! You decide how the NHS is funded, not us!

Dawn Butler.... getting a factual answer to a question that can have a factual answer. But still they repeat themselves.

Oh god... another version of the crystal ball question. FUCKING STOP IT!!!

Again, a doffed hat @DGRossetti

I bet that really Jeremy Hunt is pleased he can sit there all smug and not have all the huge worry of this. He can say ' I wouldn't do this or that' and let Matt Hancock take all the flak for it! He looks the sort to lord it over people.

Great Barrington, now.

This should be an interesting answer.

Wales?!?!?!?! Cornwall?!?!?!?!

They've answered the bloody regional thing so very many times. Those of us in low incidence areas will benefit the most, in terms of R! They still don't undertsand what R actually is!

And the rest is politics, the constitution!

Devon?!?! Incidence is level... so can it come out and play?!?!

No! Confounding factors, man! THINK!!!!

Very finally - the Great Barrington Declaration. I think I can guess what is coming...

... I'm taking first crack at that says CW.... Respectfully, that's dangerously flawed, operationally impractical and ethically poor (or some other word, he was very quiet). They are wrong!

@the80sweregreat

I bet that really Jeremy Hunt is pleased he can sit there all smug and not have all the huge worry of this. He can say ' I wouldn't do this or that' and let Matt Hancock take all the flak for it! He looks the sort to lord it over people.

Not just that - he's completely insulated from the changes he made to the NHS which are part of the reason we're in this shit soup. After all, Hancock can hardly turn around and say "My predecessor was more cock that I am, despite my name" can he ?

Has anyone blamed Corbyn yet ? Bit early I guess.

@luckylavender

'Grilled live....?' They are medics not politicians

Their advice is steering the politicians.

This is a very polite way of saying it is total bollocks.

Other than that, it no doubt has some merits. 😂

It's Rhyl.
Unless you mean Rhyll in Australia?
At least spell it right.

@CuriousaboutSamphire

I think you have misunderstood their position. They are the senior officers in their respective organisations. They represent the work of hundreds, thousands, of scientists.

Who else would you want to speak for PHE etc? A junior doctor, and epidemiologist in Rhyll?

He's giving that a LOT of detail. All put simply and dismissed!

Everyone has looked at this, EVERYONE... and EVERYONE thinks it's a great idea until you get to the practicalities... and the death toll before you reached the magic number.

Oh! "Other than that I am sure it has some merits"

PV... in total agreement. Fatally flawed and ... people under 70 do die of this! Long covid exists! Mulri generational households exist in some communities... he didn't say the words (racism, eugenics etc) but it was quite clear where he thngs Barrington will lead in the absence of a good vaccine!

Going completely off on the “Dub Be Good to Me” tangent , it only dawned on me the other week that “Beats International” is early Fat Boy Slim. I was watching an old TOTP and up pops Norman talking about when they made the single 😁

@matchingsocks

It's Rhyl. Unless you mean Rhyll in Australia? At least spell it right.

I have already made my apology for that misper! About an hour ago!

All gone now!

That wasn't quite how I expected to spend my afternoon. Must walk the poor dog!

I like Rhyl. I'm glad it's finally getting its deserved recognition on MN. (Though that waterslide in the old Sun Centre looks terrifying.)

I like Rhyl too. So does the dog, the beach is brilliant, out of season!

Working mens club bus trips from Liverpool... memories for my family back about 3 or 4 generations now! We'd pick up Fodryb Mabli at Holywell on the way, the joke was we never promised to take her back

Did they actually admit 4000 deaths wasn’t going to happen with no measures?!

@AcornAutumn

Did they actually admit 4000 deaths wasn’t going to happen with no measures?!

No. They explained it was a worst case scenario based on some different longer term modelling, as explained a few times before. They both did say they didn't like the slide, had never themselves used it and wouldn't, if given the choice, have included it!

Which tells you something more about the constraints they work under when speaking to us from those lecturns!

Stayed in Rhyl a few weeks ago. Had a great time. Went to the sun centre, ninja quest and a little jaunt into Llandudno and up the orme.
Banned from visiting now though!

(OK paraphrasing....)
So, Chris, what do you think about The (arrogantly named) Great Barrington Declaration?

For most diseases herd immunity does not happen.
And if it were to work, you would have to have up to 70% of them population infected. We are a long way from that, he says.
Second, he says, the plan involves shielding the vulnerable. But that is impractical. You could not do it year after year, he says.
And, third, he says this plan assumes that very many people would die.

Other than that, it no doubt has merits

Mic Drop.

I've never been to Rhyl , but it sounds nice.
I used to live in South Wales but didn't venture up North at all. Should have done.
I wonder if our scientists have been there?