We need to be given an end date

[Billie18]

Vaccinations being rolled out and there will be a date when the elderly and/or vulnerable will have been vaccinated. It should be possible to announce a date now when this will have happened. On this date all restrictions should be lifted. Why has no date been given?

By the way, does anyone have a date for when cancer is over? That's a right shitter.

December 2022.

wish they'd give an end date on Boris Johnson though

We have elections.

We need an end date.

Maybe we do, that doesn't make it possible though.
Manufacturing the vaccine, getting it to the right places at the right time and then administering it relies on humans, and humans are fallible unfortunately, even those doing this. It also relies on technology and transport, both of which aren't infallible either.
If everything goes exactly to plan, no one involved gets covid, or any other illness, is required to self isolate or gets sick or injured, if all the technology is seemless and all the transport options work without fault or hinderance, if nothing unexpected arises like weather conditions, then pinpointing an end date would be possible. Unfortunately you can't guarantee any of those things, no one can, so giving an end date isn't possible.

@Franklyte

Agree OP. I think many restrictions are here to stay in some form.

No they're not. Such as ?

Lots of people are not so fine though and if restrictions continue past the date when the elderly and/or vulnerable are protected it will cause devastating damage to us all.

I do not see that restrictions will be kept any longer than necessary. Government is aware of economic and other damage.

No one can put a date on it but they will lift as soon as hospitalisation falls

Wow. You should ask to speak to the manager.

Are you listening to any of the responses saying an end date isn’t possible?

At the moment a end date is impossible.
As well as the vaccine stuff already mentioned, the virus has already mutated and it’s unknown if the vaccine will be as effective.
Plus of course, haven’t second doses been suspended?

Once NHS is under control again an end date is impossible. Although if this helps, last week I was told that nhs clinics have been suspended to March. Didn’t help me, nor the NHS as when I flare up I will be back in a&e.

It makes sense to loosen restrictions gradually, so they can monitor infection rates. The great majority of deaths will be prevented by the end of Feb if the gov meets their initial target ( 15th Feb plus 11/12 days to achieve an effect.) However, many hospitalisations are in the under 70s, these will be vaccinated over end Feb/March/April.

Barring mutations resistant to the vaccine, we should see restrictions gradually lifted over March/April. The speed will depend on the number of people in hospital with COVID.

I don’t understand your post at all OP. Do you think that a virus is something we can just switch on and off?! Of course they can’t give an end date.

@canigooutyet

At the moment a end date is impossible. As well as the vaccine stuff already mentioned, the virus has already mutated and it’s unknown if the vaccine will be as effective. Plus of course, haven’t second doses been suspended?

Once NHS is under control again an end date is impossible. Although if this helps, last week I was told that nhs clinics have been suspended to March. Didn’t help me, nor the NHS as when I flare up I will be back in a&e.

Second doses haven't been suspended, they've been moved to 8-12 weeks later. People are being given appts for their second injection when they attend for their first.

You can’t put an end date to a naturally occurring event OP. All you can do is manage the circumstances around it. And a disease isn’t eradicated in a year.
Spanish flu - 2 years
Smallpox - 200 years

Vaccination doesn't equate to lifting all restrictions . Relaxation of restrictions will likely begin when infections/hospital admissions begin to drop .

@3rdNamechange

Wow. You should ask to speak to the manager.

This. 😂

I don't understand why they can't give us a set of conditions that will mean various things. Eg lockdown over when x% of vaccination done and the infection rate is below X for X time. Social distancing over when a similar set of numbers.

Actually I do know why and is because they are not making decisions in this way, they're just doing a series of referenda via Twitter etc as to what people will accept.

Billie18

It is a big problem that some people don't want an end date. They may have many personal reasons for wanting restrictions to continue but it would be helpful for them to know that they can't go on past a particular date so they can prepare.
It isn't that people don't want an end date or want restrictions to continue. That is a totally stupid assumption. You really think that people don't want their lives back?

It is that a lot of people have common sense and understand it is pointless to promise something that isn't within your absolute control.

It is like you promising your boss a completion date for your work which relies on input from a lot of other departments in your company. You could give a best estimate based on current knowledge and experience, but you couldn't guarantee that date.

I'm sure most people would love to know the answer but it is not possible to give a date, given that there are so many factors that could go wrong in the production and distribution chain.

There is a current pledge to have sent out invitations in/by April for those over 50 to have their vaccines in May. However, I don't know whether this refers to 1st vaccines. (I presume it must if 2nd vaccines aren't being given until 12 weeks later).

If restrictions persist past the date when the the elderly and/or vulnerable it will be responsible for killing more healthy non vulnerable people than coronavirus.
Restrictions are not killing healthy people.

How can they have an end date without knowing what the vaccinations are going to do to the death rate. They have said all vulnerable people will be offered the vaccination by April/May. IF that happens, IF enough people take it up and IF there is no new vaccine resistant strain and IF the vaccine offers the protection it promises then surely some sort of normality can start to resume. But there are too many ifs to make promises.

How can there be an end date?

Some in my age group, late 40s, are not eligible for vaccine, yet we go out to work and have kids at Covid infested schools, and will join the long Covid sufferers.
My one son already brought it home from school. Expecting my other son to bring it back from his secondary next, such were the number of cases prior to lockdown.

We are not babies, who must be reassured, but we are entitled if we think we can demand an answer to the unknown.

@ThePlantsitter

I don't understand why they can't give us a set of conditions that will mean various things. Eg lockdown over when x% of vaccination done and the infection rate is below X for X time. Social distancing over when a similar set of numbers.

Actually I do know why and is because they are not making decisions in this way, they're just doing a series of referenda via Twitter etc as to what people will accept.

Have you read the vaccination literature that was released yesterday? There's possibly something in that about what they will be monitoring in order to make decisions about lifting restrictions

Sorry, but you are an idiot.

@mollypuss1when is the date? I work in weddings so would love to know!

@Crowsaregreat an end date to Boris Johnson 🤣🤣🤣🤣
IN MY OPINION
It’s impossible to give an end date to this imagine if they did and it didn’t happen.
Plus this will be a yearly thing like the flu vaccine things will need to be put in place lessons learnt and changes made. There’s still a lot of work to do.
I’m sure everyone would love an end date but right now we just keep riding the storm and keep doing what we can.

DumplingsAndStew no, I haven't. I'll have a look though.

It's not as easy as that. While deaths have mostly been in the most vulnerable/over 75 groups, there are plenty of people in their 60s, 50s and even younger in hospital. This is all about protecting the NHS - if you suddenly drop all restrictions, infection rates will go up massively and more people will get ill and need hospital treatment.

Some posters seem to have confused
A) understanding there are too many variables to reliably set an end date
With
B) not wanting the situation to end
I strongly suspect the majority if not all posters saying an end date can't be set, are not saying so because they enjoy living under restrictions.