Indian variant in London

[Tealightsandd]

Huge number of cases in London - and it's spreading rapidly. London is higher risk already due to density of population and being frontline of international travel.

The other areas with high rates of the Indian variant are doing surge vaccination. They've been sent extra supply and vaccines are being offered to all over 18s.

Why aren't Londoners being offered the same protection?

Bearing in mind (for the many who don't care about Londoners) that people are much more likely to travel to and from London across the country - potentially spreading it out elsewhere. So it's in the interests of the whole country to give London the same protection offered to Bolton and Blackburn.

It's all a bit haphazard. Maybe overall vaccine rates are lower in Bolton and Blackburn.

London not as bad yet though

Just coming on to say. Yes Bromley is London's largest borough.

It's also the least ethnically diverse London borough (according to the 2011 census so possibly out of date). Other threads suggest people think the Indian variant is only in areas of very high levels of ethnic diversity.

Imagine the numbers if you put together all the London boroughs.

The rate is extremely high - and it's spreading fast.

Favouritism? It seems to be the complete opposite. Very simply, areas with high rates are getting surge vaccination...except in London.

Wonder what the rates are like in Kent? Bromley's on the border. I assume, particularly given the lack of surge vaccination, it will start to spread out of London.

A percentage of how many cases though? Afaik rates in Bolton are something like 150 per 100,000 again. A higher percentage of barely any positive results is a lot fewer cases than 50% of lots of positive cases. Frankly I’d be happy for more supplies to go to the North West. The poor sods never even got out of lockdown last summer, they deserve a break.

So the highest rate in a London borough is 40.5 in Hounslow. Not everything has to be about London.

I’ve just checked and Bolton is 192.3, worse than I thought. I know where I’d be focusing the attention and it’s not London.

I'd say the poor vulnerable sods in London deserve a break too. They didn't get the protection of lockdown when they needed it (each time, lockdown came too late for London and only happened once the rest of the UK was threatened).

Fucking hell. The whole rest of the world knows London was one of the very worst hit, and remains at incredibly high risk - but still it's not allowed the same protection as elsewhere. It's a place for other people to make money out of but fuck protecting the actual residents.

Yes Bolton, Blackburn need extra supplies. As well as not instead of London. London is the frontline. Heathrow airport - 1000s of international arrivals daily travelling through London on busy public transport....and then out across the rest of the UK....

Not everything has to be about London.

Agree. For once let's give protection to Londoners. They don't have to have one of the worst death rates third time round.

How does protecting London as well as the other areas with high rates of the Indian strain affect those other areas?

It's really very simple. Areas at much higher risk with very high rates should get surge vaccination. They are.... except for London. So it needs to be included. Why's that a problem with you?

London is completely interlinked. Reporting case rates split into individual boroughs gives an inaccurate picture and artificially lowers the rates.

Oh good grief, I’m out. If you can see figures like that and still make it all about London. Fuck London, honestly. Not the individuals who live there but the disproportionate focus on it at expense of the rest of the country.

London had much lower rates throughout the past year than Bolton etc.

Those Lancashire towns, plus areas like Liverpool etc had higher rates throughout and never made it out of tier 3 for that reason. London had nowhere near those levels for as long. Look at the cases now - the high areas are the same high areas as seen all the way through

I live in lancs and we have been in lockdown forever!

by your notion we should collate our rates across the north west?! im pretty sure ours would still be highest but this isnt a competition!

They aren't doing surge vaccinations yet though, it's still just talk. Blackburn have confirmed they aren't doing it at the moment.

"Very simply, areas with high rates are getting surge vaccination...except in London"

No they aren't

@Watapalava

by your notion we should collate our rates across the north west?! im pretty sure ours would still be highest but this isnt a competition!

I'm glad you've accepted you were wrong. It's absolutely not a competition. It's not, as you seemed to think, a case of protect only a few areas out of those at higher risk. It's about protecting all those areas.

If surge isn't a thing yet, it should be. In all the increased risk areas. So Bolton, Blackburn, London - and I believe it's also higher rates in parts of the Midlands too.

London had surge testing only last month for the african variant so hardly being 'left out' -i'm guessing they are prioritising by risk. Currently - may change - the highest cases of the Indian variant are not London

I’m more than happy for London to have a local lockdown just as long as they leave Manchester alone this time.

@JeanClaudeVanDammit

Oh good grief, I’m out. If you can see figures like that and still make it all about London. Fuck London, honestly. Not the individuals who live there but the disproportionate focus on it at expense of the rest of the country.

Good riddance.

Disproportionate focus? Yeah cos Londoners really want to be at higher risk.

I'll find one of the articles I linked a few days ago. London has had one of the highest death rates, not only of the UK, but the whole world.

Bloody hell. Not a focus anyone normal would covet.

It's very simple. ALL areas at increased risk - wherever they are - need protection.

Funny really. How does London ALSO getting protection impact Blackburn and Bolton?

Talk about being eaten up with misplaced hatred. You're so consumed with being jealous of the 'focus', you're missing that the focus is an unenviable and unwelcome one!

@Watapalava

London had surge testing only last month for the african variant so hardly being 'left out' -i'm guessing they are prioritising by risk. Currently - may change - the highest cases of the Indian variant are not London

Surge testing vs surge vaccination. Only one of these is helpful and provides protection.

Again, ALL areas at increased risk need surge vaccinations.

Like a PP said, this isn't a competition.

I agree with getting surge vaccination motoring in more areas. Bolton and Bedford look like priorities, possibly Hounslow though it need to be judged in actual numbers per 100,000 and depends how much is community spread in each area. The ability to get that moving will be affected by on how much vaccine there is, and I don't agree with slowing the pace on vaccinating those in their 30s who've all been waiting a long time. The general principle of giving everyone a bit of protection was worked for the UK so far and the only option I see is delaying some second vaccinations by a further few weeks to enable the surge vaccines. That would affect my second dose and I'm in London, but someone has to be affected and I'd likely be better protected by more neighbours and nursery/school parents being vaccinated than by having my second dose 2-3 weeks sooner.

Just something very quick for now before I make dinner.

www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/indian-variant-officials-in-bolton-blackburn-sefton-london-and-glasgow-concerned-over-covid-strain/ar-BB1gHIkB

Bolton, Blackburn, Section, London, and Glasgow. These are the areas officials are concerned about. ALL of them.

And this is just for January (2021) but it's been the same time and time again over the last year.

Bloody hell. It's not about being 'prioritised' (quite the opposite so far). It's about wherever is at increased risk should get increased protection. Even - just for once as a novelty - London.

news.sky.com/story/covid-19-overall-deaths-in-england-were-almost-30-higher-last-month-than-five-year-average-for-january-12228499

London was the English region with the largest rate, recording 900.6 deaths per 100,000 people in January.

It looks pretty bad in Bromley though doesn't it?

Huh? BBC shows Bromley as 13 cases per 100,000 people in the week 3 May-9 May. That's lower than the national average.

It's not only the biggest borough, it's possibly also the least densely populated.

Those figures for London are January

Since start of pandemic other areas have had more deaths

From ONS

1st photo is deaths per region within 28 days since start

2nd is deaths were covid is on cert

London isn’t the highest by any means