Ds2 tested positive today I am furious

[HazelBite]

For the last 5 years Ds2 has been a Special Constable with the Met, Last weekend they went out in order to arrest a man who had broken his non molestation order (taken out by his ex-partner)
As they went to detain him he laughed and said "you shouldn't touch me I have covid"
Yes all three police who were in attendance have tested positive now, and he only gets a fine for breaking the non-mol order!
And

TY @Wigglegiggle0520 for the link to sign petition to UK Gov to make Covid vaccination a priority for first responders (fire, ambulance & police services)

50,000 signed up already.

If you want to support this petition - petition.parliament.uk/petitions/564155

Specifically who would you have these fit young people, who are extremely unlikely to die of covid, take their vaccine off. Would it be 80+-year-olds in care homes, or cancer sufferers, for example?

Fortunately, there is no need "to take it off" those groups because they are being prioritised.

I would also like to protect people working in essential roles from dying or being very unwell. This will have the added benefit of reducing the spread to other people.

That's horrendous.

Are ambulance drivers not getting the vaccine? If that's so, then that's horrendous. They are literally dealing with covid patents.

Obviously I think the police should too, but even more so paramedics.

[quote diddydave]Good to see that they are considering putting those at most risk of being exposed next after those who are most vulnerable to its effects: www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/uk-55730549[/quote]
Exactly how it should be
We need to firstly reduce the pressure on hospitals so if anyone has a medical need, not "just" covid, and regardless of age or profession, they have a hope of being treated

Then move onto those most exposed. But in the meanwhile give them as much protection as possible

Frontline Ambulance Personel are correctly being prioritised. Unfortunately, the patient transport service and paramedics are the NHS staff groups who have had the highest rate of deaths.

Although the data here is for NHS staff groups, in the context of this discussion, the frontline / non-front line divide is relevant.

@PurpleWh1teGreen

Specifically who would you have these fit young people, who are extremely unlikely to die of covid, take their vaccine off. Would it be 80+-year-olds in care homes, or cancer sufferers, for example?

Fortunately, there is no need "to take it off" those groups because they are being prioritised.

I would also like to protect people working in essential roles from dying or being very unwell. This will have the added benefit of reducing the spread to other people.

There is a finite supply of vaccine. If someone gets it, someone else doesn't. I'll ask again, who will you take it off?

Police officers - young and fit (unless they've let themselves go to shit, in which case they shouldn't be in the job) are unlikely to become very ill. The risk to others is far greater.

Even if a significant number of police are off sick for whatever reason, crime is currently running at around 75-80% of 'usual' levels, so that appears to balance itself out. If there's any workers in the essential category, we don't need at the moment, it's the police.

It would be a fucking abomination if the police were vaccinated before ambulance workers, as you seem to be suggesting.

@thedancingbear You don’t have a clue what you are talking about in relation to policing.

They don’t deal only with crime, for a start.

And once again as you don’t seem to understand, not all officers are “young and fit” and that has nothing to do with their physical fitness. Many have health conditions, just like everyone else.

And once again as you don’t seem to understand, not all officers are “young and fit” and that has nothing to do with their physical fitness. Many have health conditions, just like everyone else.

The job requires a certain degree of physical fitness and physical exertion. If they are not up to that, they really should go and do something different rather than sitting behind a desk, hoovering up taxes.

To the extent that they are not dealing with crime, there's really no need for them to be in close physical proximity to anyone. This part of their job would carry the same level of risk as working in tesco's.

Many will have health conditions but they are hardly likely to be in the CEV categories. To the extent that they are, they will be suitably prioritised for vaccination anyway. Or they can go on the sick - it sounds like very many of them have already done this.

Police officers are expected to work until they are sixty, so there is no way they are all young and fit.

@Avenueofcherryblossom

Police officers are expected to work until they are sixty, so there is no way they are all young and fit.

The average copper retires at 50: www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2234647/Revealed-The-3-600-police-retire-50--jobs-old-force.html (apologies for mail link)

If they're unfit, they are unfit to police. Other forms of employment are available.

@thedancingbear Thankfully the police don’t require you to resign if you develop a condition that makes you vulnerable to covid. Or even if you have a physical condition.

Here is a small selection of non crime incidents they deal with which will still involve contact, some of which will be close contacts....

Suicides
Drug related death
Unexpected death (the list can go on in relation to deaths)
Attempted suicide
Concern for welfare calls (of which there are many, many calls)
Missing people
Road accidents
Fatal fires
General assistance calls.
Assisting other agencies.
Etc

So crime whilst statically being lower doesn’t mean police are any less busy, and it’s naive at the least to think that a drop in numbers will be equal to a drop in the workload.

But policing seems to be one of these occupations that some people seem to think they have a good understanding of what goes on.

It’s not all going around in a car with blue lights one. That’s a tiny part of it.

Oh and I’m due to work until I’m sixty with 36 years service due to the changes to our pension.

(Unless that change is reverted back to our original terms and conditions.

It would be a fucking abomination if the police were vaccinated before ambulance workers, as you seem to be suggesting.

Except that I'm not arguing that at all. There is no change to the clinical priority groups, who have received/are receiving their vaccines.

There is however, a growing recognition that there are priority groups outside of health and social care who are at greater risk than back-office staff in these organisations.

It's probably worth mentioning, that the problem with supply currently is inconsistency and late information rather than actual shortages. I work for a community trust, that is struggling to plan home visits because the deliveries are too erratic.

Unfortunately that's the nature of scrotes. Neighbours near to me have been breaking the law all the way from last March. People in and out of their houses. Out and about delivering drugs. Putting everyone else at risk. Sadly, the police do nothing

thedancingbear
You have linked to an article from 2012. Police pensions have been reformed and police officers are now expected to work until they are sixty. If they don’t complete their full service they suffer a significant drop in their pension so there are likely to be reasons for officers retiring early such as poor mental health (PTSD occurs much more among police officers than the general public for example), injury and illness.

It's been derailed by the ongoing nuttiness that seems to have seeped into society, where everyone is turning on everyone else, scrabbling and fighting for what they perceive as advantages, snarling at other people in some kind of 'negative solidarity' (an idea that they are suffering - and are filled with rage for anyone they perceive as suffering less), and just being generally angry and mean.

And whilst people suffering are stirred up to fight each other, those responsible for managing and improving the situation are not effectively held to account.

@ThePluckOfTheCoward

And that's why the police should be one of the priority groups for the vaccine.

Definitely. I’m surprised they aren’t being vaccinated alongside care home and nhs staff

Furious on his and your behalf.

I'm not surprised that you're angry. Unfortunately some of the general public have very selfish attitudes & don't think of others. I work in an essential service & have worked throughout Covid. It really angers me that I'm still having to ask people to put masks on, or pull them up. I'm getting to the point where I've stopped being polite about it. They may be content with putting their lives at risk, but don't put mine at risk too!

A 40 year old officer caught coronavirus after policing an anti-lockdown protest and is now in hospital.
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9169085/Union-wants-police-vaccinated-officer-hospitalised-Covid-anti-lockdown-rally.html

[quote Avenueofcherryblossom]A 40 year old officer caught coronavirus after policing an anti-lockdown protest and is now in hospital.
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9169085/Union-wants-police-vaccinated-officer-hospitalised-Covid-anti-lockdown-rally.html[/quote]
Lots of people have caught covid doing their jobs. Postmen, supermarket workers, teachers, you name it. What makes the police's lives worth so much more than theirs, in your eyes?

In this example that officer was directed to deal with a large(?) gathering of people who were deliberately breaking lockdown rules. Would a supermarket worker walk towards a large group of rule breakers and deal with them or would they avoid the group? How many postmen are being sent into lockdown parties with attendees not following the rules? And how many teachers are dealing with rule breakers one day then entering homes of vulnerable people to report a burglary the next day? If you want a functioning police service you need to ensure that there are not excess abstractions due to coronavirus and if you don't want police officers to be super spreaders you need them to be vaccinated.

I hope your son recovers quickly. The man who was infected should be fined for breaking isolation but that doesn’t really help your son now.

I think once the over 70s are vaccinated, those who are expected to work out of the home, but particularly those doing a job seen as ‘key’ should be vaccinated. For me, that would be police, teachers, shop workers and food delivery people and prison officers, for example. I’m a teacher and I am happy to wait for a vaccine if I can continue to work from home but if society really needs us to do these jobs and face the dangers of Covid - and long Covid affects many younger people who may not be seen as at risk - we should be kept safe. The vulnerable who aren’t key workers can shield at home.