Do people really think Covid is a problem caused by Boris and his government?

[whatintheheck]

I am astounded by some of the comments on here and in the wider press and social media that seem to imply that the situation in the UK is somehow the government's fault. Are people really silly/naive enough to think that? Perhaps a glance at pretty much every other country in the world might give a hint that there are no easy answers. I would love to hear what people think our government could do or have done differently....surely the answer lies in the population adjusting its behaviour until the vaccine is rolled out???? There is always the NZ option of literally shutting the doors, but this has killed their economy. Difficult choices.

Dither delay lack of clarity and leadership. There is so much info out there op on what the government has done wrong. No the pandemic is not his fault but looking at our death numbers I can't believe you are actually posting this. It really is like the Emperor's new clothes. Stop letting your eyes decieve you.

I agree with you. Nowhere in the world was anyone ready for a pandemic. Lots of things had to be put in place at incredibly short notice. The Government can't do right for doing wrong.
It is easy to blame the Government for everything, especially if people are tory voters. They are the ones to blame for the whole thing if you believe everything you read.

@rigabalsam you have neatly emphasised my point! I note you haven't suggested what they could have done differently....

I don't like this attitude either.

Pandemics are part and parcel of life on Earth, whether it escaped from a lab, bat or whatever- we were due one.

It's mother nature. I don't go blaming the government, I don't know what I would've done if I had the top job.

No, but I do think it’s a problem that has been exacerbated by the government, and particularly Boris’s last minute u-turns. The last few weeks in particular have shown that.

It was not caused by the government, but they have greatly exacerbated issues by lack of planning, incredibly poor messaging and when they do make a decision, it is reactive rather than proactive.

There have been many threads discussing what could have been done differently. Feel free to search for them.

[quote whatintheheck]@rigabalsam you have neatly emphasised my point! I note you haven't suggested what they could have done differently....[/quote]
It would take too long to say thats why I implore you to do some of the most basic research.

One example schools all in Monday, oh hang on Tuesday they aren't. The lateral flow testing in schools instead of isolating not even approved by the MHRA.

The care home scandal was disgusting and many more.

@Londonnight Look up the Cygnus Report. In 2016 the government were told that we were not prepared for a pandemic, and were warned of the catastrophic effect if they failed to do anything about it. What did they do? Nothing.

I think it's a population problem rather than a government one, and tbf they do have vaccines and they are getting them into arms, which is better than lots of Europe.

We all want our old lives back. The only way to stop the virus is to stop contacts. That means restrictions. People are either screaming for more, tighter, longer, earlier restrictions or to have their old lives back. Both natural positions to take.

The reality is a balancing act. I don't think that anyone could get it perfectly right, but as it stands the NHS is still, just standing. The economy is still just standing.

No one can chose whose life is worth more. Letting it rip would be deaths. Lockdown causes deaths. There is no right answer.

The virus/pandemic - of course not. How it has been handled? Of course the Government is responsible for that (and that applies if you think current government has been a car crash, or handled it well)

It’s because covid is shamefully being used as a political tactic.

I'm not exactly bowled over with the government's response, but really, it's a virus. Why we think we can control it and remain unscathed is beyond me. Other than dictatorships, no other government has had any profound or organised reaction to the pandemic.

Australia got lucky but remain teetering on the brink of things going horribly wrong. New Zealand is a success story but its size, population and location lead it to be able to manage its borders in a way that isn't feasible here.

I can't say that had Labour been in power that there would have been some kind of coherent and organised approach to this crisis.

I don't think any rational person would think that covid is something caused by Boris and his government. But I have family and friends all over the world, and it does feel like the UK is quite unique in that it is using covid as a political weapon. Not only by the government - by the opposition too, and other players like unions and local governing bodies.

Boris didnt make covid no but his government has faffed around so much that all the excess deaths ARE down to him and his government.

The worst responses have been by the authoritarian/populist style leaders: Trump, Bolsonaro, Johnson. Instead of leading they ride the razor-thin popularity of their voter base, and the rest of us are just the noisy masses who are of no consequence.

So no, Covid wasn't caused by the current government. But they have effectively killed tens of thousands of people with their lack of decisiveness, their cronyism and making friends rich while not delivering essential services such as track and trace. I'd like to see them in court; we should be in for years of investigations but they'll make sure it doesn't come to that. It's utterly negligent and criminal.

@Rosehip10

The virus/pandemic - of course not. How it has been handled? Of course the Government is responsible for that (and that applies if you think current government has been a car crash, or handled it well)

Yes this sums it up nicely

My dad has voted tory forever...and always will

Even he is pissed off with some of the government’s decisions

He is doing some sort of daily survey thing and the torys were getting 9s at the start, hes giving them less than 3 now

I think his main gripe is not closing the borders or testing

Mine is probably the closing down of the pandemic cygnus thing and the fact that we could see this coming as it swept across Europe...the schools fiasco

Also Dither delay lack of clarity and leadership is spot on as well

I virus has killed people not any other person. You’re dealing with 68 million people on a tiny island.

Oh and in response to to the mention of labour upthread

I dont think this is a party issue...i think its a government issue

Thanks include there's another how much money wasted on serco and giving the jobs to their mates. It's actually scandalous. How can you defend that?

It could've been handled a lot better from the start. Having a PM go on tv boasting about shaking hands with covid patients but it's fine cos he washed his hands was a dick move, followed by much dithering and lack of direction. So whilst they clearly aren't to blame for coronavirus, they have to shoulder a lot of blame for the crisis we have found ourselves in.

They didn't create the virus. However, the faffing and lack of proactive decision making has made the problem worse. The government didn't take advice from scientists soon enough.

precisely my thoughts. And whilst it is lovely to think the government could 'prepare for a pandemic' - this is such a nebulous idea...noone could predict what the virus would be and how it would behave.

The Government have made decisions which have exacerbated the spread of the virus.
The first lockdown should have been at least a week earlier. Cheltenham should have been cancelled.
Contracts should have gone to existing companies based on skill level and experience rather than to those with links to the Conservative party.
Students should have been given rent refunds and told to stay at home where possible in September.
Just a few things I would do differently- I could go on.

@RigaBalsam I'm not trying to defend anything. Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but the reality is, no government, anywhere, can prepare for every unknown. And sadly, in the face of an emerging pandemic, the behaviour of large numbers of people, in a hitherto libertarian society, is very difficult to predict and control. The journalists baying for the governments blood now are the same ones who said Covid was an irrelevance back in January. My point is, no can get it right, because no one has dealt with covid before. I would far rather have the recent u turns than let it rage unchecked.

People who want to bash Boris are using this as such.

There is woefully little press coverage of what other countries are doing, and his very similar it is.

I'm always interested in what people think the way ahead now should be. Not condemning the past, but perhaps looking back to learn.

Because the only alternative policy I've heard recently is Labour's 'close the nurseries'. What other steps are needed now?

Or should we be hanging on in there, trying once again to flatten the curve so NHS does not collapse (perilously close) but with at least prospect of major change once enough people are vaccinated?

Only one country in the world is vaccinating faster than we are. That's quite a success