What do you think should happen?

[Jourdain11]

Rather than, "we're going to lockdown again, aren't we?" I'm interested to know what people think should happen.

I think we should avoid lockdown at all costs. I'm also not in favour of restrictions being brought in, unless they are ones where it is clear that the benefits broadly outweigh the negatives.

If we need to have mandatory mask-wearing in public settings, proper masks should be provided at a set rate or free of charge. This would be expensive, but IMO would be a better use of funds than endless asymptomatic testing.

I do think that ultimately, asymptomatic testing needs to stop at some point. I'm not sure cases are such a useful way of measuring the impact of Covid any more and it creates a lot of public anxiety.

I also think that Covid has exposed a lot of health inequalities and these need to be addressed, so that the population can generally be in better health. Social prescribing is a good idea, but it isn't used widely or effectively enough.

I am against lockdown, closing school and work from home orders.

I am also against weird, pointless and ill-thought-out measures, like substantial meals, etc.!

I would be on board with localised restrictions if they were necessary.

How do you justify that on human rights grounds @vickyc90? Some of those vulnerable will be doctors, nurses, teachers, and other key workers so how does the country keep running in the face of them being home for 3-6 months?

But for the moment, I think we should hold our nerve and ride out this exit wave.

Locking down to deal with the fallout from lockdowns is so absurd it's farcical

I think that those who can, and want to, should wfh, masks should be worn in public spaces and people should assume strangers around them are vulnerable and be respectful about keeping a distance.

Those who want to work in their office or elsewhere should be able to, people can make their own decisions on whether they wish to attend large gatherings, schools stay open, pregnant women can be accompanied at all times in hospitals, more than one parent can accompany a minor in hospital, those dying can be visited in hospitals/hospices/care homes etc, care homes continue to allow visitors, we use the money we are spending on testing elsewhere, and we improve the availability of vaccinations so that those who want them can access them easily.

We hold our nerve. If we lockdown and cases go down, guess what will happen when re reopen....

Nothing should happen. We need to hold firm.

I think mandatory mask wearing should be an obvious no brainier, it's just an easy win.
I'd hate to see schools closed again too, but I do think that mitigating measures such as bubbles are needed desperately. It's unnerving right now watching schools struggle .
The other thing I'd like to see is do is revert to previous isolation guidelines, it's just such illogical nonsense for households containing positive cases to be attending school,work, using public transport etc . Frequent testing and isolations help but they're not a vote winner which is proving problematic.
I'd like to see all of the above first and then if needed another wfh order as that seems effective.
Travel restrictions are also I think an obvious thing to return.
I dread the idea (& unsettling feelings it brings) of another lockdown , though I would comply and support it, but only if the time was fixed and of course we were truly "all in it together". I think this is very much the very last resort, and if only we had followed the science from day 1 we would not need threads like this

I think schools and work should be more relaxed if people have cold symptoms. Meaning, letting them have time off etc.
My ds has recently been unwell with that awful cold. It wasn't covid, but I thought it was best to not send him in. His attendance dropped to 70 something % for 1 week off and I got a letter reminding me of attendance and how important it is that they go.

I think that should have been in place before covid anyway since those who are cev were at just as much risk from colds and flus before covid, but that's another rant.

Other than that, nothing.

@bellamountain

The elderly to shield (as much as possible) and their family members to carry out twice weekly LFTs.

And if they don't want to shield? I really can't see my 86 year uncle and his 92 year old partner being too keen on being shut away again.

@Jourdain11, I pretty much agree with everything in your first post.

@GingerAndTheBiscuits

How do you justify that on human rights grounds *@vickyc90*? Some of those vulnerable will be doctors, nurses, teachers, and other key workers so how does the country keep running in the face of them being home for 3-6 months?

The numbers we are talking about aren't massive, I would say schools could manage by drawing on student teachers or supply. Even if every teacher in a school caught Covid tomorrow the vast majority would be back at work in 10 days time but if the cases were that high the majority of the kids would be positive so in effect those 10 days would be it over a done with for most classes in the school before Christmas. The emergency services coped all the way through lockdown with people shielding so it would be exactly the same.

It's the same human rights grounds as asking everyone else to stay at home, wear masks, not socialise etc it's not discriminatory because the risk isn't the same across the board. If you have two patients a 30 year old who is post transplant, has diabetes and is clinically obese vs a 40 year old who cycles 10 miles to work everyday, eats a plant based diet and has been double vaccinated. It doesn't take a genius to work out who going to end up in hospital vs who's wife is going to be saying man flu for the next 10 days.

We need to move away from the view that COVID can effect everyone the same way, the numbers don't say that at all they clearly show an at risk population with a few note worthy cases outside of that.

We need to target our measures to those most at risk or we will destroy our economy and our kids future with it. We can't save everyone the sooner we accept that the sooner this will be a yearly flu we only talk about because of the loss of taste/smell.

It cannot seriously be being suggested that we force a huge number of people to stay in their homes so that we can live a more normal life!

Why should they have to stay home?

So are you including the unvaccinated in those who you propose to force to stay at home? Or just old people?

Nothing

The public's appetite for restrictions has gone. People now need to take personal responsibility for their health if they are vulnerable or frightened. I'm sorry if that's harsh, but for almost 2 years we've put covid above everything else, and that everything has suffered. We cannot sustain restrictions any longer.

I wouldn’t force anyone to stay at home but I’d throw the risk at their door and not at the other millions and millions who have been restricted enough to protect them

Protect yourself should be the new motto

@GingerAndTheBiscuits

How do you justify that on human rights grounds *@vickyc90*? Some of those vulnerable will be doctors, nurses, teachers, and other key workers so how does the country keep running in the face of them being home for 3-6 months?

There's a difference between someone who's clinical vulnerable and at somewhat of a greater risk, and someone who is CEV and immune-suppressed. The former should be well enough protected by the vaccine and booster, the latter should be supported to shield - and there are far fewer of the latter. If that means there are some teaching or medical posts that need to be covered, so be it and the rest of their colleagues will have to help cover.

I think we either do one of the two extremes:

1. total lockdown and attempt to rid the country of the virus as asian countries - not what happened last year

or

1. we live with the virus - we just carry on and accept personal responsibility - no lockdowns and no closing of education institutions.

I favour the second option as I just feel even if the government decided upon number 1 it wouldn't work as they lost that chance after the earlier lockdowns were bungled.
Its time we lived life

Bringing back masks,working from home. Household isolation..

Other then that...social distancing won't work without places having to close. And if places close they need income support which doesn't look likely.

If we did that, and supported children with immuno-suppressed parents access education, then the rest of society should crack on.

Is that a bit shit for those asked to shield? Perhaps, but the rest of society and the economy would be able to operate as normal, and those shielding would be far safer. It would be the best of a bad situation.

@Watapalava

I wouldn’t force anyone to stay at home but I’d throw the risk at their door and not at the other millions and millions who have been restricted enough to protect them

Protect yourself should be the new motto

The worry would be if you let them take the risk then you have to treat them on the NHS. That pressure could be to much if we don't take measures to prevent them getting ill. Hence they were asked/told to shield previously

vickyc90 Our local school is actually on it's knees. There are no local supply teachers available right now as so many teaching staff are off locally. One teacher with 12 students off has moved over to teach another class, leaving two TAs to cover their reduced class. Twice this week, one teacher has had to take what's left of a whole year into the hall on her own and come up with tasks they can all do last minute. Not having a go at you, but saying it's certainly not going to be easy at time. Really hoping it'll turn itself out before xmas rather than get any worse, as a few small school locally have had to close for a few days.

I think mandatory mask wearing, make it a lot harder to be unvaccinated eg Covid pass like France , bring back isolation if someone in your household has it, work from home.
I think we should bring this in ASAP.
We can’t lock down again.

A lot of immunocompromised people are actually generally quite active and well, and keep themselves as healthy as they can. I would include myself in that number. I wouldn't want to shield now.

Are we not already in the era of personal responsibility? That’s why some make the judgment not to wear a mask or social distance in supermarkets for example.

If you are in favour of personal responsibility for yourself (ie you don’t want to social distance and want to live a normal life AND you also (quite reasonably) expect medical treatment if you caught covid) then you cannot reasonably in my view, seek to place limits on the activities of others.

@almaonao

I smell journalists or other marketing professionals trying to cook up appetite for a 'circuit breaker'

Go away.

OP has posted loads, they aren't a journo.

I think we should accept that the NHS should be a Covid/pandemic and urgent care service, and work out a way of paying for primary and routine care. (Insurance type.).