Tighter restrictions? What else can be "tighter"??

[R2221]

Schools closed, work places closed, nailbars, hairdressers, clothes shops, closed. My high street is dead and a couple of big shops are permanently closing down. We've been totally indoors, going out only to get grocery and exercise.

Oh, gyms are closed, no play dates, birthdays, dinners or even coffee with friends. WHAT ELSE CAN BE DONE TO STOP THE SPREAD??? What would "tighter" restrictions mean? To me, next tighter level means no grocery and exercise :(

My local hospital is totally full. I don't understand why.

I love in an urban area with numerous beauty spots within 5 miles. We can't even go to those now as the police are patrolling the river/park/hills.
I literally traipsed my kids around the streets here yesterday for exercise it's so miserable.

I agree some restrictions on retail do seem light however in my job I look at footfall data and it's only really supermarkets or places next to supermarkets that are remotely busy so I don't think it would make much difference if that were tightened.

Should say "I live in an urban area"

(Just in case it came across as extra curricular activities 😂)

@jakeyboy1

I love in an urban area with numerous beauty spots within 5 miles. We can't even go to those now as the police are patrolling the river/park/hills. I literally traipsed my kids around the streets here yesterday for exercise it's so miserable.

I agree some restrictions on retail do seem light however in my job I look at footfall data and it's only really supermarkets or places next to supermarkets that are remotely busy so I don't think it would make much difference if that were tightened.

That really is ridiculous.

I'd be tempted to still go, as long as I wasn't breaking the law, and be prepared to challenge the police/any fine.

For every person I saw using the free sanitiser as they went in, 3 dozy buggers were walking straight past it. One supermarket here even has sanitiser suspended by foot pump, still doesn’t work.

To be fair, you don’t know who has just used their own sanitiser, i often see people using it on their way in and out of supermarkets and skipping the one provided at the door.

Martial law.

Anyone caught outside in out of bounds post curfew gets tear gassed/ tasered/ rubber bullets.

Second offence:- jail.

That’ll stop the spread right there, In its tracks.

If You can’t move, you can’t transmit the virus.
Establish your bubbles and stay in them.

Furlough everyone and triple everyone’s benefits.

Tank the economy into an abyss then hand over the reigns to starter who’s got ALL the answers and watch him save us and dig us all out of this mess.

I never use the sanitiser provided as it's a lottery as to which one will affect my skin. I use my own immediately prior to going in. I walk straight past the one by the door but I'm not dozy.

Schools aren’t closed! I work across four primary schools and they have keyworkers children as well as vulnerable children. The guidance for a keyworker is so broad virtually anyone would qualify. Nursery settings can be completely open to all. I had to go to Boots at a local retail park on Saturday for a prescription. The car park was full - Boots, Iceland, Home Bargains, Pets at Home, Hobby Craft (click and collect but a massive queue) as well as KFC and Pizza Hut doing take away. It was like a normal weekend afternoon - it shouldn’t be like that!

The government need to provide families or employers with money so that people can afford to stay home.

For every person I saw using the free sanitiser as they went in, 3 dozy buggers were walking straight past it. One supermarket here even has sanitiser suspended by foot pump, still doesn’t work.

I'm not dozy but you'd see me walking past as I don't use the stuff provided in the shops, I use my own.

Close churches etc
Reduced number of shops open.
Curfew
If children have one parent at home, the child should stay at home.
Children that have a place at school need not come into school every day if on some days they have a parent at home.
Reduce key worker list down. both parents should be key workers to gain a place at school.
No using the car etc to travel for exercise.
Specify how far you can go from your home for exercise.
Make masks mandatory, even outside.
Make the rules for bubbles clearer. I know some people have two bubbles for child care.

@DenisetheMenace

FromEden

Cold sandwiches every day? You've lost me there

I would have thought the point was that not everyone has access to proper cooking facilities to make hot meals. Jesus, has all empathy gone out the window now?“

Our food bank is asking for food that can be eaten from the tin or made with a kettle because people can’t afford to pay for energy.

Well paying for a takeaway isn’t going to help that situation is it!

Victoria, in Australia, virtually shut everything down. With the second wave starting in July, they were locked down for 103 days. The only exemptions were to purchase food, medical emergencies and essential workers. There was a curfew (8 pm to 5 am) for about a month, and then they were allowed one hour's exercise a day. Wearing masks were mandatory. When they were getting on top of the infection they were allowed to travel within 5 km of their homes.
Strict quarantine arrangements were in force for those Australians returning from abroad.

Victoria has recorded one new case of coronavirus (COVID-19) since yesterday, in a returned traveller in hotel quarantine. Victoria has recorded no new locally acquired cases of coronavirus (COVID-19).
The total number of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases reported in Victoria is now 20,411 including those in hotel quarantine.
There were no new deaths and the state’s death toll stands at 820.
There are 40 active cases in Victoria, this includes 24 local cases and 16 in hotel quarantine, 19,551 people have recovered. (Today's figures)
To help stop the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19), all residents and travellers wishing to enter Victoria must now apply for a permit.
The ‘traffic light’ permit system applies to travellers from anywhere across Australia.
Areas across Australia are to be designated as green, orange or red, according to their risk and will be updated based on the latest health advice. To help stop the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19), all residents and travellers wishing to enter Victoria must now apply for a permit. The ‘traffic light’ permit system applies to travellers from anywhere across Australia.
Victoria’s border remains closed to anyone who has been in Greater Brisbane on or after Saturday 2 January.

They seem to be much better at trace and contact than we have in England.

It is just my opinion that takeaways are not an essential service. I do not lack empathy at all.

The in store hand sanitizers are so watery I don’t even think they are effective. Would rather use my own. Is this another thing people are going to report people on? Not sanitising walking into Tesco?

@Retired65

Victoria, in Australia, virtually shut everything down. With the second wave starting in July, they were locked down for 103 days. The only exemptions were to purchase food, medical emergencies and essential workers. There was a curfew (8 pm to 5 am) for about a month, and then they were allowed one hour's exercise a day. Wearing masks were mandatory. When they were getting on top of the infection they were allowed to travel within 5 km of their homes. Strict quarantine arrangements were in force for those Australians returning from abroad.

Victoria has recorded one new case of coronavirus (COVID-19) since yesterday, in a returned traveller in hotel quarantine. Victoria has recorded no new locally acquired cases of coronavirus (COVID-19).
The total number of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases reported in Victoria is now 20,411 including those in hotel quarantine.
There were no new deaths and the state’s death toll stands at 820.
There are 40 active cases in Victoria, this includes 24 local cases and 16 in hotel quarantine, 19,551 people have recovered. (Today's figures)
To help stop the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19), all residents and travellers wishing to enter Victoria must now apply for a permit.
The ‘traffic light’ permit system applies to travellers from anywhere across Australia.
Areas across Australia are to be designated as green, orange or red, according to their risk and will be updated based on the latest health advice. To help stop the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19), all residents and travellers wishing to enter Victoria must now apply for a permit. The ‘traffic light’ permit system applies to travellers from anywhere across Australia.
Victoria’s border remains closed to anyone who has been in Greater Brisbane on or after Saturday 2 January.

They seem to be much better at trace and contact than we have in England.

While there were and still are good number of actions to repress Covid in Victoria, they can't be taken wholesale and transposed to the UK. A significant aspect of the lockdown was the isolating of Greater Melbourne to protect regional Victoria, with the police and army blocking the roads to prevent people leaving. This was one city, though a big one.

Track and Trace is better here, but that's because the infection numbers were brought down to manageable levels first.

The words stable door, bolted and horse springs to mind with respect to the English government. Too little, too late. A complete lack of leadership, an unwillingness to make unpopular decisions, lack of clarity, U-turns, all of which have undermined public trust and compliance. I have family and friends in the UK, and I'm aghast on their behalf.

@Womencanlift

The in store hand sanitizers are so watery I don’t even think they are effective. Would rather use my own. Is this another thing people are going to report people on? Not sanitising walking into Tesco?

It looks like it

I like to keep the skin on my hands so I'll use my own sanitiser!

@GreenlandTheMovie

Oh, some regions of one other country - France with a link to a "Not longer Available" page in French. Its Chinese whispers time again

I did follow up to mention the broken link (and yes, I wish there was an edit button), and yes it's been at commune/city level in France, but the underlying point is mandatory wearing of masks outdoors has occurred in many parts of the world, there's nothing "Chinese whispers" about it. ..for example, this time in English, a report about another part of France:

www.sortiraparis.com/news/in-paris/articles/238744-paris-how-much-longer-is-mask-wearing-mandatory-outdoors/lang/en

I'll hope this link works - if it doesn't I'm sure plenty of other options available via your favourite search engine.

[quote notimagain]@GreenlandTheMovie

Oh, some regions of one other country - France with a link to a "Not longer Available" page in French. Its Chinese whispers time again

I did follow up to mention the broken link (and yes, I wish there was an edit button), and yes it's been at commune/city level in France, but the underlying point is mandatory wearing of masks outdoors has occurred in many parts of the world, there's nothing "Chinese whispers" about it. ..for example, this time in English, a report about another part of France:

www.sortiraparis.com/news/in-paris/articles/238744-paris-how-much-longer-is-mask-wearing-mandatory-outdoors/lang/en

I'll hope this link works - if it doesn't I'm sure plenty of other options available via your favourite search engine.[/quote]
But thats still just one part of one country. And still no mention of which other countries. Nearly all other countries don't in fact require masks to be worn outdoors, and most other countries don't have internal travel bans currently either.

I think its important to say that and not to normalise excessive restrictions, because what we really need are restrictions which are sustainable and which don't criminalise people unnecessarily. Because this has been going on for so long now. We have to protect our few remaining freedoms as well as against the virus.

Today 21:15 BuggerOffAndGoodDayToYou

DenisetheMenace
FromEden

Cold sandwiches every day? You've lost me there

I would have thought the point was that not everyone has access to proper cooking facilities to make hot meals. Jesus, has all empathy gone out the window now?“

Our food bank is asking for food that can be eaten from the tin or made with a kettle because people can’t afford to pay for energy.

Well paying for a takeaway isn’t going to help that situation is it!“

Not everyone’s idea of takeaway is a banquet.
There are shops in our area that sell chicken and chips for £1. Quite hard to prepare a hot, filling meal at home every day for £7 per week, especially if you’re on a meter.

Some people don’t have any idea how others live.

I think they've shut the door after the horse had bolted to be honest... I think schools were the main spreading grounds for COVID. I had no idea that my dc has caught it there as the symptoms weren't obvious. By the time we had realised she had already spread it to her grandparents (who had picked dc up from school on the last day before Xmas) and parents and younger dc and younger dc's dad... We didn't even know that anyone at school had it, but found out later that several from the same class had similarly spread it to their families.

Also, some people's idea of exercise seems different to others'... a friend messaged earlier and said he'd been on an 8 mile walk with a friend to get exercise. He mentioned seeing other friends regularly to walk, as well as seeing his new girlfriend who is his "support bubble", and seeing his child from a previous relationship so it's quite a bit of mixing. All "allowed", isn't it? I don't know the current rules on exercise as I don't do any (except yoga at home and occasional strolls to the park with the kids).

@TiersBeforeBedtime

Also.. why have so many people got an axe to grind about B&M? Is it because it's a "poor people's shop"?

That's exactly why. Same as with EOTHO it was all sneering about people getting their "half price big macs", no mention of half price fillet steak or lobster.

MN have a similar disdain for the range. Any debate on how strict a lockdown is always references B and M bargains and The range.

See also people queuing outside Primark.

Please make an educated guess of how many households don't have a kitchen... I'd bet it's a minuscule amount

So those in the "miniscule amount" figure you've just plucked out of thin air - what do they do, then if they rely on takeaways sometimes for some hot meals?
There'll be plenty of people who do have a kitchen but limited appliances - maybe only a microwave/kettle/toaster but not a full oven,
PP was right - empathy has indeed gone out the window, and some just can't see out of their own privileged bubble or understand that not everyone has the same.

@Justploddingon

It is just my opinion that takeaways are not an essential service. I do not lack empathy at all.

You kind of do if just because it's not an essential for you and your circumstances, you fail to see that for others it is indeed an essential service.

Well paying for a takeaway isn’t going to help that situation is it! Couple of chip specials from the chippy to split between four - £5. Cooker, £150. So you have cheap take out the first few days after money goes in so they get some hot food (not in school to have hot lunch) then work down towards cold sandwiches, cold spaghetti, instant noodles at the end of the week.