India double mutation and red list

[Clotsaway]

This is worrying. They have all the variants present and a new double mutation of covid.

When will they be red listed? Sure as hell don't want the double mutation coming into the country. What's taking the government so long to ted list them?!?!

Would every VOI then need a precautionary stance, because you’re watching them they could be an issue or not?

In what way is the VOI of use

I haven’t thought about it too much and usually go with people with much more knowledge than I have but it is interesting

Who actually declares a variant a VOC? Is it WHO?

FYI, India just announced vaccinations for all adults above 18.

We're going to have a lot of wild horses in the UK. We're good at shutting the door after they've bolted.

When it comes to something like Covid, prevention and precaution is the best approach.

Separately, why haven't we been told where in the UK it's been found? Why the secrecy?

India has been added on to the red list as of Friday.

@Frequentflier

FYI, India just announced vaccinations for all adults above 18.

I wonder how this works in principle. Do they not have much enthusiasm for it? India has not done too badly vaccinated but has the second largest population on earth!

India been added to the red list now.

Just saw a brief headline, India has been added to the red list.

...from Friday. Four days for people to come back without quarantine.

@PrincessNutNuts

I'm expecting Whitty and Vallance to appear on my television with a new graph of doom within the month to be honest.

This reminds me very much of last August when numbers started creeping up.

Only while B117 was doing it during a period of of lighter restrictions last summer/early autumn, B1617 is doubling while we're still in Lockdown and some of the population is vaccinated.

Well numbers aren't creeping up right now.
2963 cases today
3567 last Monday

That's 604 fewer cases this week.

"And B1617 isn't dominant yet. "

Who says it will be?

They should all be airport hotel quarantined. The fairest thing would be the government pays for it. Just this once. Then from now onwards, either:

A) (my preference): Quarantine across the board so that we're taking proactive preventative measures (instead of our usual way of after horse has bolted)

Or,

B) People travel at their own risk. Tell them there's a chance quarantine/red list could happen. They then choose to travel in full knowledge that this is something they might have to pay for.

We could have compassionate exemptions where government pays if someone (particularly those on low income) has to travel to see dying relative/for a funeral.

@tobee

"And B1617 isn't dominant yet. "

Who says it will be?

So we do nothing, wait, and then it's too late yet again? Prevention is so much better than panic after the event.

I'm not saying that @Tealightsandd at all. We are ramping up sequencing and keeping a very close eye on things. It is the responsible thing to do. Posters making statements as if certain things are a definite when they are not is irresponsible. It's pushing fear without any knowledge. Despite dressing it up as knowledge.

Do you propose panic before the event then? Rather than measured scientific reaction?

@murbblurb

...from Friday. Four days for people to come back without quarantine.

Something is better than nothing

It's depressing that people fall to one extreme of the argument or the other. Rather than are interested in the nuance of the argument. Understanding and caring that these things need to be weighed up.

@murbblurb

...from Friday. Four days for people to come back without quarantine.

they do have to quarantine. At home. And be tested.

How do they get home?
It's not a quarantine if they travel from the airport on busy public transport.

@tobee

Do you propose panic before the event then? Rather than measured scientific reaction?

No, I propose proactive precautionary measures. Like airport hotel quarantine.

Fine well India is on the red list now.

Where's the next variant of concern coming from?

From what Dr Jeffrey Barrett has said today the South African variant is of more concern than the Indian one. But that doesn't fit with today's agenda of fear does it? The South African variant is yesterday's news on here it would seem.

As Prof Devi Shridhar has said over and over and over again, in a pandemic you have to overreact and act as if you’re facing the worst case scenario like Singapore did and other East Asian countries that have handled the pandemic so much better than the U.K. We have to be proactive rather than reactive. Once the government discovers this then we may start to get things under control. As it stands we’ll be heading into another national lockdown by late summer/early autumn.

@tobee

Fine well India is on the red list now.

Where's the next variant of concern coming from?

It could be from anywhere. Prof Devi Shridhar on BBC news this morning said that this year will be the year of the variant. Variants will determine the future course of this pandemic I’m afraid.

Yay! An "I'm afraid" haven't seen one of those for a bit!

Plenty of other scientists say that they don't expect any variants to render the vaccines useless; it doesn't work like that. It is known variants will happen. Variants are being sequenced and monitored. We've ramped up sequencing.