Should Boris Johnson be fined for not staying local to exercise?

[MyBossIsATwat]

www.standard.co.uk/news/politics/boris-johnson-cycle-7-miles-downing-street-olympic-park-b827961.html

Looks like exercise as per the rules to me, why would he get fined, ridiculous thread

@saraclara @PurpleDaisies

I don't particularly like him, don't wish anything horrible would happen to him either, certainly didn't vote for his party, but I do think as PM he does need to see what is happening in other areas - I am not sure this does constitute as defending him or is just plain common sense!

The Olympic Park, Victoria Park and Epping Forest have been really awful this weekend - I suspect East London will have restrictions tightened (I hope it is just East London as we seem to have the highest numbers and the worst NHS crisis happening here); I feel localising restrictions may also make more of an impact on people in those areas.

@eddiemairswife his security detail would have travelled in cars. Another reason why he won't have visited multiple parks en route.

No he shouldn't be fined, and neither should anyone else (and I fucking hate Boris)

adjandimum I wasn't criticising Boris, I was asking about his security detail. And there isn't much else to think about at the moment when every news bulletin is Covid, Covid and more Covid, interspersed with snippets of the latest Trump tantrums.

Are people seriously staying within the confines of a village to exercise?

You'd have to run round most several times and be constantly passing other people doing the same to do even a 5k run.

I have miles of woodland and field paths surrounding the village I live in, but if I go 200 metres from my house in any direction I'm leaving the village, as defined by the road signs at the edge, so its apparently off limits according to some.

He was cycling. He was not driving somewhere and then getting out of his car with a cup of starbucks. The primary purpose of his exercise was to well exercise. There isn't any sugar saturated coffee and a natter with someone else involved. Being 7 miles from your home if you are cycling is pretty mediocre in terms of distance tbh. DH could do it comfortably in 15 mins.

If you want a 'gotcha' try harder.

@badpuma
For the majority of people 5 miles is local, especially when it isn't defined.

Gov UK:
"Stay local means stay in the village, town or part of the city where you live."

@Em777

Just read that his father has already had both doses of the vaccine too.

So have loads of people. His dad isn't special. Anyone who has had an appointment for the 2nd dose is having the second dose on that date. We're doing second doses this week, we did our first lot of second doses at the beginning of last week.

I loathe him, but this is ridiculous!

Boris once nearly ran me over on his bike. He was on his phone at the time and not concentrating. Can I retrospectively fine him for that?

[quote TibetanTerrier]@badpuma
For the majority of people 5 miles is local, especially when it isn't defined.

Gov UK:
"Stay local means stay in the village, town or part of the city where you live."[/quote]
Firstly that is not the law.

Secondly, many people have to travel more than 5 miles to get to a supermarket or even to a shop.

Finally, I can travel 5 miles on foot in an hour without leaving my village so there is no reason why something which is local on foot or on a bike suddenly becomes not local if you're driving.

I think the man is a buffoon and can't stand the way he is running this country and would take every opportunity to criticise him but you've got to be realistic..

If I can go for a 10 mile run from my front door then I don't see why he can't go for a 7 mile cycle ride. Obviously choosing a quiet place to exercise is ideal but I live in the middle of fields and the PM lives in the centre of London so it's not exactly going to be possible for him to do it is it?

My nearest big supermarket is more than 5 miles.

I'm not going to the bloody rip off shop where I can buy less for more money and its rammed.

Sod that.

Anyone who has had an appointment for the 2nd dose is having the second dose on that date.

@Almostslimjim No, that's not right. My mother had her appointment cancelled the day before her 2nd dose was due. The GP phoned to cancel it and she still hasn't been given a date for it, she's just been told "it will be sometime in February or March I think".

No, he shouldn't be fined, but the opportunity should be taken to underline to over-zealous police that being 7 miles away from home for exercise purposes is perfectly acceptable.

I don’t agree that “people don’t need to drive 5 miles to go for a walk”, it’s not safe for me to walk with kids near my house, we live in a main road in the middle of nowhere, there are no pavements so I drive 2 miles to the local woods to go for a walk. Not everyone has accessible places to walk on their doorstep.

I think the whole ‘stay local’ needs to be explained better because to me ‘local’ means stay in your area or county, it doesn’t indicate wether you can drive 5 miles to go for a walk, wether you can cycle 10 miles into the next county but common sense tells me (and hopefully everyone) that you can’t drive 50 miles to visit a castle of beach. People are confused because no ones being told exactly what they can and can’t do.

Last lockdown I drove to go for a walk, sometimes 2 miles up the road and other times a bit further.

No because currently there are not actually any limits on travelling for exercise.

Are people seriously staying within the confines of a village to exercise I won’t be, mainly because there are no pavements and it’s not safe. If I have to drive 8 miles to the nearest supermarket then I don’t see why I can’t stop somewhere on the way to do my exercise. I don’t agree with people not being able to drive to exercise, if you need to drive somewhere that’s safer to exercise, that’s safe for your kids to run around and that is accessible for a pushchair or wheelchair then i think you should be allowed too.

@Em777

Just read that his father has already had both doses of the vaccine too.

Even the Queen has only had one

I don't care. There are so many things to care about that whether someone's bike ride or walk takes them 5 or 7 or 10 miles from home is not even a blip on my caring horizon. Derbyshire police have been dicks, no need for that dickishness to spread.

What does local even mean? Does it mean I have to exercise purely in my village which is pretty small with main roads? Can I not travel 3 miles to the beach or a few miles to the countryside?!

During the first lockdown it was said we couldn’t drive to exercise. Yet people where I live were walking miles to the nearest beach which took them hours walking along main roads. If you get it in the car it’s less time and safer than walking on the main road. I know this is off topic to your post, sorry op.

But no I don’t think he should be fined. He was exercising. 7 miles isn’t far.

Assuming he left his front door on his bicycle he is staying local. A lot of places have exercise from your front door as the criteria - ie cannot drive to get there.

He should not be fined.

However he should stand up and say loudly that what he did was appropriate and anyone else doing the same would have his full support.

Then the police could stop bullying women on walks and spend a bit of time sorting out the parties and the burglary’s...

He shouldn't be fined.

But it's ridiculous for him to go there and then complain that it's busy!!

No way! Nobody should be fined for travelling a few miles to get some exercise. What's he supposed to do? Go round and round in a half a mile loop around his house? It's enough to give people mental health problems if they don't already have them due to the lockdown. The police are abusing their power with this.