World Health Organisation criticises UK reopening and says it's 'too early to talk about freedom'

[UndercoverToad]

The WHO has taken a strong stance against England's plans for reopening over the last few days, and a spokesperson has used perhaps some of the strongest words yet.

Dr David Nabarro, the WHO's special envoy on COVID-19, said the "pandemic is advancing ferociously around the world" and "I don't think we've anywhere near got through the worst of it".

Asked about the government's switch to personal responsibility, he told Radio 4's Today programme: "All this doesn't quite fit with the position that was taken by Britain, along with other nations, some months ago when there was a real effort to try to prevent large numbers of people getting the disease, partly because of the risk of death and partly because of the recognition of the risk of long COVID.

"It's necessary to be unequivocal on this particular challenge. What does urging caution mean? It's important that everybody knows the best possible advice on how to prevent themselves being infected.

"I accept that vaccination has changed the nature of the equation in the UK but quite honestly from any point of view it's too early to be talking about massive relaxation or freedom when the outbreak curve is on such a sharp ascent.

"Yes, relax, but don't have these mixed messages about what's going on. This dangerous virus hasn't gone away, it's variants are coming back and are threatening those who have already been vaccinated - we have to take it seriously."

@FourTeaFallOut

Me? I only wear homespun linen and eat only wholesome artisan fair trade lentils, as well as the organic vegetables I grow in my garden.

Man, you're living it large. I only live on left overs and when I self flagilate for the sins of the West, I drink my own tears.

No cheapo soy fed chicken for you I'll wager!

@IcedPurple well this is me:

m.youtube.com/watch?v=TzaG0VGwCT0

And scoff/ridicule away - but you won’t see our friend here stuffing her face with soy fed chicken, getting her morning coffee in a disposable cup - and then dropping off her Nutribullet at the dump because it doesn’t work anymore.

[quote UndercoverToad]@IcedPurple well this is me:

m.youtube.com/watch?v=TzaG0VGwCT0[/quote]
"Includes paid promotion..."

@IcedPurple because it’s all bollocks!! But at least it’s an attempt! Anyway I’ve packed my hammock and I’m off to live off the land. I just need to find an island - Canvey??

@UndercoverToad Speak for yourself. Ive never shopped at Amazon or even online (though quite how you would have expected these lockdowns to happen without online shopping i would love to know) i went out and physically got my shopping during the lockdowns as ive always done.
And im really surprised that someone so into socialism doesnt seem to understand the cycle of poverty. eg. someone on UC wont be able to shop organic.

Every time there is a programme about this sort of thing on TV working class women get criticised. When Dispatches did it the comments on the Twitter hashtag were full of vitriol for women who shop at New Look/ Peacocks /Primark etc Its called the cycle of poverty but people who are incapable of critical thinking cant see that. People on UC arent going to be buying blouses at People Tree. And if they did and then couldnt pay their rent the vitriol they would get from the benefit haters on here would be off the charts.

Then they start on about how you can often find all the gear you need in charity shops. Well yeah if you live in a bigger richer area to start with so a wider range of stuff gets donated to these shops to start with.

Not if you live in a poorer area where donations arent a wide range of stuff and do bear in mind that poorer people are being told to make do and MEND what they have already got.

Its lovely to have principles ....................IF you can afford them.

@savvy7

They are prioritising the economy / people's livelihoods over lives.

Well no they're not. The economies doing well are in countries that took action to suppress and contain Covid. It's no coincidence.

You can't have a healthy functioning economy with uncontained Covid 'ripping through'. Particularly not with the more transmissible Delta strain.

It really is true that wealth is health and health is wealth.

The experts at the WHO are right. The English government choices (that will kill many, and disable even more) immoral, unethical, and anti science.

[quote Blessex]@UndercoverToad at 17.22 BST you said the following countries had done a wondrous job with Covid.

Many African countries. Vietnam. New Zealand. Singapore. Japan. China. Korea.

So my question back is ok. What will they do now? What’s their next step?[/quote]
Continue the good work that they've started.

Keep travellers from high risk countries like the UK out.

@TheKeatingFive

we are BY FAR the worst culprits of waste and exploitation. To the extent that we ship all our plastic waste out to Asian countries to deal with!!

You still haven’t answered why the practices of Chinese wet markets (the direct cause of this pandemic) are the west’s fault.

Actually we don't know that. It's more possible that it was a leak from the Wuhan Institute of Virology (perhaps linked to the institute's research on bat coronaviruses).

It's more possible that it was a leak from the Wuhan Institute of Virology (perhaps linked to the institute's research on bat coronaviruses).

And that would absolutely fly in the face of the PP’s point, which is that it’s all the west’s fault.

Once again we are an international embarrassment.

Oh fgs. As if.

Feel free to quote all the international scientists and politicians who say great things about our glorious country.

Well, here's the who on our role in funding covax

"United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland" www.who.int/about/funding/contributors/gbr

Here's some work on our role in genomic sequencing of covid

www.wsj.com/articles/how-the-u-k-became-world-leader-in-sequencing-the-coronavirusgenome-11612011601

There's the small matter of producing a vaccine which can be stored in regular cold storage facilities developed and produced at reasonable cost and without profit.

[quote FourTeaFallOut]Well, here's the who on our role in funding covax

"United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland" www.who.int/about/funding/contributors/gbr[/quote]
Gestures of grandiose are all well and good, but don't look so great whilst actively pursuing policies that will kill and disable significant numbers of your own population.

The UK is like the wifebeater who has a public face as a good guy. Gives to charity, helps a good cause. Lovely fellow. Except in his own home.

I have no idea where people have been for the last 18 months. Whilst the first lockdown most people adhered to it and stayed home but anyone who has worked and been out through all the others would have noticed that as time went on fewer and fewer people were taking notice. It was just business as usual without shops and hospitality.

What would be the point of locking down if only a few people (probably those who haven’t left their homes since it began) are going to adhere to it.

I think the only way is to open up and get on with life otherwise we are going to have more problems than Covid.

Whilst infection rates are rising, probably because this particular variant is more transmissible and there are more people in hospital we are not seeing the massive deaths. Possibly because people have had the vaccine or people have had Covid

I do think that there is a certain genetics that make certain family lines more vulnerable to how Covid affects you.

Hi Boris. It's past your bedtime.

I should go to bed soon too.

@TheKeatingFive

It's more possible that it was a leak from the Wuhan Institute of Virology (perhaps linked to the institute's research on bat coronaviruses).

And that would absolutely fly in the face of the PP’s point, which is that it’s all the west’s fault.

That is not what the OP said. The bullying on this thread has been disgusting.

the reason why the west are to blame is our demand for cheap commodities. Our demand for cheap soy fed chicken. The need to destroy biodiversity in order to cater for our greed? I thought this was well known!

The op said this. I’m not sure how else you think that should be spun.

@TheKeatingFive. It’s not MY point, it’s the point of scientists worldwide! From WHO:

We depend on biodiversity and healthy ecosystems for our health and survival. Biodiversity, and the complexity of our landscapes and seascapes, is integral to social and ecological resilience, including the resilience of ecosystem functions and the services that they sustain. As genetic and species diversity is lost and ecosystems are degraded, the complexity of the overall system can be compromised making it more vulnerable, and potentially creating new opportunities for disease emergence and poor health outcomes both in humans and species.
Biodiversity is declining globally at an unprecedented scale.

Even if it was a lab leak - the fact is that we are creating more opportunities for disease emergence.

I think undercover and the Keating are both right! Cutting down the Amazon for example and reducing natural habitats generally does decrease biodiversity and increases human / wild animal contact and so do wet markets with bats and pangolins and other wild animals but for this particular pandemic, carrying out gain of function research on bat coronavirus’s and then not having the highest level of bio security to stop them escaping and then covering it up when it comes to light might also be the problem imo.

I believe the WHO. They have always been spot on about everything during this pandemic. Especially about the virus not being able to transmit from person to person….

There is a third option, of exploring a naturally-caused virus in a lab and then having it escape by accident.

Wet markets are a big problem in China for the risk of pathogens, but also in other countries. Solutions involve more cheap cooling solutions (solar powered etc) and changes in the laws in those countries. Reductions in biodiverse environments are also a massive problem for climate and pathogens. Regardless of where the virus came from, it would be helpful for there to be world focus on both these issues.

If it can be proved that China lied I'm not informing the world sooner and in having ineffective lab policies, there should be proportionate fines to the harm they have caused. (Or an option to replace their government with multiple smaller democratic systems.)

@bluetongue

I’m not in the UK so not fully up to speed as to where vaccination is at.

Has everyone 18 and over had a chance to be double jabbed? If not, then I think the reopening is too early. Ideally I think everyone 12 and over should have the chance to be vaccinated. I’d be pretty pissed if I was I my 20’s and wasn’t eligible yet before the summer wave started.

Completely agree with this. After everything we have done the last 18 months it is ridiculous to open up before everyone has had a chance to be vaccinated even younger people.

Makes no sense. Beyond that I say crack on as there's not much else that can be done but we need to wait for this.