Announcement tomorrow?

[Donatella]

Is there any definite plan for a formal announcement tomorrow of the plans for the next step? I haven't seen anything, just curious what time it will be (as that often indicates whether it will be major news or not!)

I’m done and I don’t care how someone on mumsnet perceives the phrase. Seeing the summit truly was the final straw for me.

A lot of people were done in 1941 but the Germans didn't care and neither does Covid.

Covid isn’t the same as the Germans in the war don’t be so ridiculous

Ultimately this is of the government's making. The Indian variant being allowed to run riot was self-inflicted, but the 'i'm done' mentality is all down to the government releasing this end date of June 21st, allowing the media to hype it as freedom day.

Now the data doesn't match the dates - due to their fuck up over the borders - and they have to deal with angry public ready to take their ball home because restrictions aren't being ended/further eased today.

@Witchesbelazy

Covid isn’t the same as the Germans in the war don’t be so ridiculous

It's taken 130,000 British lives. But for vaccines, restrictions and lockdowns, who knows what the total would be?

@sadperson16

It is much much more than not wanting to refer to him by his full name. After all, Mr Johnson is not so very hard to say or write is it?

It is all sheeples waiting for their mate to drip feed them the next piece of crap. But its OK because its Boris, he has funny hair and a little son with funny hair too.

Sheeple is plural, so no need to add that extra "s". Maybe have a read through this

www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/articles/z3dw4xs

@Witchesbelazy

Covid isn’t the same as the Germans in the war don’t be so ridiculous

😂 what's that got to do with anything?

I've said this on a few threads but I still think lots of people are unaware of how many jobs are supported or tied up in, the industries that either cant fully open, or havent opened at all since March 2020.
Take live sports, or the theatre. So theres the athletes/actors, then front of house staff, then catering or hospitality staff at the venue, then behind the scenes cleaners, external caterers or food/drink suppliers, printers doing programmes, nearby restaurants, cafes or mobile catering, merchandise design and selling. In the theatre, lighting and sound technicians, set builders and designers, costume makers, make up artists...the list goes on and on. The same will be the case for hospitality and travel - so many spin off industries behind the scenes. The National Theatre made, I think, 30% of its staff redundant. Many of whom would be incredibly experienced with very niche skills. Add in a lot of people in the industry who are freelance, that's a huge number of jobs affected.

Its really not as simple as saying "I can live without going to the theatre for another 4 weeks" (and I say this someone who rarely goes to the theatre...but I can see how many small businesses are reliant on bigger industries)

The much-maligned ‘conspiracy theorists’ who predicted that this thing was never meant to end and that every time restrictions are supposed to end, they’ll find new excuses to keep them (with the latest being ‘variants’), have been proven right

If this thing was never meant to end, why have a lot of restrictions already been lifted?

Sorry @Witchesbelazy I didn't mean to quote you there. I meant to quote the comment about 1941, which has absolutely jack shit to do with covid

@youshouldbeplotting

The much-maligned ‘conspiracy theorists’ who predicted that this thing was never meant to end and that every time restrictions are supposed to end, they’ll find new excuses to keep them (with the latest being ‘variants’), have been proven right

If this thing was never meant to end, why have a lot of restrictions already been lifted?

And are these the same theorists who assured us all 12 months ago the pandemic was over, heard immunity and there would be no second wave?

@Fizbosshoes

I've said this on a few threads but I still think lots of people are unaware of how many jobs are supported or tied up in, the industries that either cant fully open, or havent opened at all since March 2020. Take live sports, or the theatre. So theres the athletes/actors, then front of house staff, then catering or hospitality staff at the venue, then behind the scenes cleaners, external caterers or food/drink suppliers, printers doing programmes, nearby restaurants, cafes or mobile catering, merchandise design and selling. In the theatre, lighting and sound technicians, set builders and designers, costume makers, make up artists...the list goes on and on. The same will be the case for hospitality and travel - so many spin off industries behind the scenes. The National Theatre made, I think, 30% of its staff redundant. Many of whom would be incredibly experienced with very niche skills. Add in a lot of people in the industry who are freelance, that's a huge number of jobs affected.

Its really not as simple as saying "I can live without going to the theatre for another 4 weeks" (and I say this someone who rarely goes to the theatre...but I can see how many small businesses are reliant on bigger industries)

That's why they've had furlough and there's an acknowledgement that we can't open up just to have to lock down again in another month.

Eat out to help out didn't help hospitality in the long run.

As said above, so many things cannot just be delayed for a month - for example, all my daughter's end of term end of KS3 activities that were supposed to happen during the last week of term, just a little bit of joy for kids who have missed out on bloody everything this year.

That's why they've had furlough and there's an acknowledgement that we can't open up just to have to lock down again in another month. Eat out to help out didn't help hospitality in the long run.

If the worry now is that a rerun of the "eat out" campaign, or similar, will have the same effect this year as it did last year then it does bring into question the governments' confidence in the effectiveness of the vaccination campaign.

Perhaps I’m drastically oversimplifying things but surely once everybody has been double vaccinated we are effectively at the end, PROVIDING there hasn’t been another variant. This is why we’re delaying, to try and outrun the delta variant with vaccines.

Is it not the case that delaying will enable us to reach the end by, say, the end of summer? I can’t see why we’d need restrictions into the autumn, other than maybe masks on public transport for example.

Or am I just deluding myself?!

More to the point what is Andrew Lloyd Webber going to do now ?!

@User135644

A lot of people were done in 1941 but the Germans didn't care and neither does Covid.

Surely not 😭😂

Its really not as simple as saying "I can live without going to the theatre for another 4 weeks" (and I say this someone who rarely goes to the theatre...but I can see how many small businesses are reliant on bigger industries

I do appreciate this but if we end up in another lockdown, far more people will suffer.

I think they could ease up on outside events like festivals though. I guess we'll have to see what the small print says.

Also agree that the only restrictions we need once everyone has had their vaccines is masks in crowded indoor areas - not just for covid, but also to reduce flu and norovirus.

@Pootle40

More to the point what is Andrew Lloyd Webber going to do now ?!

Can't wait to see if he goes through with his threat!

He's such a lovely, principled man, flying in from the States especially to vote for benefit cuts etc.

I want to know what the actual end game is. What is the government trying to achieve here?

I don't trust this government. First, it was protecting the top 4 groups, then the top 6, then the top 9, then the over 50s, then the over 40s, then double jab the over 50s, then the over 30s. As previous posters said, soon it will be the teenagers, then the over 12s, then the under 12s.

At some point, a line has to be drawn - what is that line?

I don't 100% disagree with delaying a few weeks to confirm the data, and I see why we need to take a national approach, but certainly locally it's really difficult to agree. Our hospital has zero covid patients, and we are averaging 5 cases per week, in a population of 150,000. So I really feel for our local businesses who are going to be forced to close as a result because they can't cope with not making any profit for any longer...

As someone else said, it's not just about the pubs/theatres/wedding venues -it's the wider implications of all of those further industries who work alongside them.

March 19th 2020

PM Boris Johnson

"we can turn the tide in 12 weeks"

@Butterflyinglow

Perhaps I’m drastically oversimplifying things but surely once everybody has been double vaccinated we are effectively at the end, PROVIDING there hasn’t been another variant. This is why we’re delaying, to try and outrun the delta variant with vaccines.

Is it not the case that delaying will enable us to reach the end by, say, the end of summer? I can’t see why we’d need restrictions into the autumn, other than maybe masks on public transport for example.

Or am I just deluding myself?!

Trouble with that logic is you will never get everybody double vaccinated and given how good sequencing has become (especially in the UK) somebody somewhere at there are probably always going to be variants..

We are going to have to learn to live with some risks.

@Jourdain11

Restrictions till next spring, I don't think people will actually stick with.

I'm actually losing track of what we're allowed to do and what not

The fact that so many people are not sticking to the rules now is the reason that restrictions might be extended!

@Butterflyinglow

Perhaps I’m drastically oversimplifying things but surely once everybody has been double vaccinated we are effectively at the end, PROVIDING there hasn’t been another variant. This is why we’re delaying, to try and outrun the delta variant with vaccines.

Is it not the case that delaying will enable us to reach the end by, say, the end of summer? I can’t see why we’d need restrictions into the autumn, other than maybe masks on public transport for example.

Or am I just deluding myself?!

I'm sorry but I think you are deluding yourself a little.

Even with the flu vaccine we get plenty of deaths. Every year the NHS creaks alarmingly.

Covid kills x10 the numbers that flu does, but the vaccines currently appear more effective.

So even with vaccines, we may have issues over this winter.

I don’t know how many believed we would be done in 12 weeks. Hoped maybe but not believed.

Pandemics are funny things too, they don’t always follow the rules and timescales we want them to.