Westminstenders: Political vacuums are very bad things

[RedToothBrush]

Johnson has been notible (once again) but his absence.

Whilst we appreciate he has been ill and has a new baby, we are in the midst of a national crisis and a sense of leadership and guidance from our prime minister has been lacking.

And its not gone unnoticed.

Not just by the press. And not just by opposition. Nor NHS and care managers. But on the ground where it matters.

The lack of the sense of seriousness has dissipated. The sense of duty to country to behave. The idea that it will some how be all over this week when it doesn't appear to be the government strategy. The total lack of policy for a week whilst it's become clear bit by bit that these things have been under discussion and decided upon prior to the supposed key meeting on Thursday from the announcements from the regional assemblies. All in favour of a TV stunt tomorrow night.

Let's see how that goes.

The grandstanding isn't a substitute for detail and substance in a crisis. And we still have the looming show down at the end of June over extension of transition. More optics. More lack of practicality at a time when things will really be on the brink.

The next month will be telling and we hit the wall of economic reality which will bring the whole world crashing in on the lives of so many people.

This is the calm before the storm. Enough the sunshine. Enjoy the time with families. Before this is over everything will have changed for so many.

This is just the start of things unravelling and it needs someone to take control and draw up solid blueprints for all our futures. Is a man who is so frequently awol from where he is supposed to be and doesn't take commitments and responsibilities seriously, really the man for that?

Churchill had a vision for the country that cited housing as our second social service, the NHS being our first.

Will Johnson manage to some how forge out so grand new venture which gives the resource and rewards it deserves to the NHS (beyond lipservice and empty platitudes and clapping, that recognises the importance of social care and can stop the almost inevitable coming wave of homelessness and unemployment

And can he do it without selling us off as a basement bargain to the us?

The emphasis from Starmer should be on ensuring we get a good deal, and pointing out all of the deficiencies that may arise in whatever Johnson comes up with.

It looks like the Brexies are playing road chicken with the EU in the apparent belief that Brussels will blink first.

If we crash out, the only sane and viable option is to move swiftly to EEA terms, an off the shelf deal that needs no negotiating, and use that as a base from which we can negotiate bilateral exceptions.

A little bit of history today - the first ever digital vote in the Commons.

On a general debate on Covid. Not sure why but the LibDems voted with the Govt. Must try and find out what it was about.

I quite like this digital Parliament. It seems much more civilised. No braying and booing. And MPs get to spend more time in their constituencies.

The farmyard noises were universally loathed by the voters and always favoured the Tories with their orchestrated barracking of Labour in govt and opposition.

Johnson is a creature of that whole breadroll-chucking twenty pound note burning culture. Without it, he might as well be stuck on a zipwire with no pants on, he is so exposed and unappealing.

I agree, Mockers. It's not good for the Tories, but it seems more like proper debate. I always particularly hated the way the Tories treated the SNP whenever they stood up to speak. They can't do that now.

The only thing is, I think only a limited number of MPs can take part digitally. But they must all be watching it live, so they're able to vote.

More United are campaigning for it to continue, and not go back to the old way.

moreunited.org.uk/campaigns/keep-digital-parliament/

A golden age of pictorial commentary ?

I think live parliament is turning against Tories however, having seen so many people posting the reaction to cutting Nurses pay...
True colours are indeed easier to "see" when they are witnessed in safety of their groupthink like that.

I think Starmer would do well to reiterate some of the more wild and impossible claims from Brexiteers, just to remind people what the point of it was meant to be...

I also thought today that the "return to work" is possibly partly so that the market recovers before the Brexit crash. Those betting on it going tits up presumably need it to start just a bit higher than it is now for maximum profit. Shame they don't really understand how long this virus might be about for and that a second wave now should (I say assuming the government actually be sensible enough to lock us down again, which could be debated at this point admittedly) see us locked down until past Christmas.

I also think we should be aware of changes in Employment Law being snuck in, or perhaps businesses thinking they might get away with not following EU regs/Law if the govt "hints" at them being able to do something less charitable...

As predicted, on a thread where people are wondering whether to cancel their holiday to France, someone has said Hancock mentioned no lavish international holidays today and that probably doesn't mean rural France.

I'm sure the virus will be the excuse the Tories want to dismantle major employment rights.

Just catching up on a quick read of the last 5 pages and wondered Daniel Kawczynski would like to see his friends in Scotland given the chance to have their say in another referendum on independence? Bit noticeably entitled there isn't he?

Brits might not realise just how efficient ither countries are if they do jet off...from Guardian live feed:
"Two people who arrived on Greece’s outlying Lesbos island have tested positive, migration ministry sources have told the Reuters news agency, adding that the people have been isolated with no contact with local refugee camps.

The individuals arrived on Lesbos on 6 May. Since 1 March, anyone arriving on the island has been placed in quarantine at a separate facility with no contact with larger groups of asylum seekers at other facilities on the island, the sources said.

Despite years of austerity which placed strains on the nation’s healthcare system, Greece has contained the COVID-19 outbreak. By Tuesday, it had reported 2,744 cases since the outbreak and 152 deaths, a fraction of the infections seen in neighbouring countries.

On 4 May, Greece started easing the lockdowns introduced in mid-March."

If UK is to USA as Canada is to EU, this could be a peep into the future (also from Guardian Live)

"Leyland Cecco
Officials in Canada are growing increasingly concerned that new cases could emerge from the United States.

For nearly two months, their shared border has been closed to non-essential travel; a deal that expires next week. On Tuesday, the Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau warned his country needed “stronger measures” in place to counter a predicted rise in cross-border movement as economies on both sides begin to restart.

We’re going to be very, very careful about reopening any international travel, including in the United States, before we feel that it is time. Preventing transmission from outside of Canada into Canada, once we have controlled the spread within Canada, will be an essential part of ensuring that we don’t fall back into a second wave that could be as serious as this wave we’re going through, or even more so.

Provincial leaders have also expressed worry that an influx of Americans could put hard-won victories against the virus at risk.

“I do not want those borders open,” Ontario Premier Doug Ford said on Friday; a view he said was shared by many of his counterparts across the country. In British Columbia, the province’s health minister Adrian Dix said reopening the border would not be in the interest of the province.

It would make no sense to have visitors travelling either from Canada to the United States and returning, or to have visitors … coming from the US to Canada.

While Canada has struggled to rein in the spread of the virus, it has suffered far fewer cases than the United States and a lower proportional fatality rate. With a population of 37m, Canada has recorded nearly 5,000 deaths. Its southern neighbour has logged 1.4m cases, with 82,500 deaths.

On Tuesday, the country’s chief public health officer Theresa Tam warned extreme caution was needed before lifting border restrictions, including more information about the trajectory of viral infections in the United States."

On my way home I drive past a testing centre which is located at a car park designated for NHS workers.
There must be 600 cones laid out to make the queuing system work
but I've never seen more than five cars there.

THe whole testing thing is an utter utter shambles.
Local Councils and hospitals know who the people who NEED testing are
Local labs could work with local councils to ramp up the effort
but no
its all being done Top down by accountants FFS

So what's so clever about waiting for one, rather than doing everything he can to try to bring about an extension? It's not a game. I thought Starmer knew that.

And be painted as if hes trying to thwart the willy of the people because hes a Remoaner , that wouldnt be very wise of him now would it

That was exactly my thought JustAnother - Starmer has to make sure that the Tories own this Brexit.

I think your right Just and Peregrine
It would also give Bozo a great distraction from his own failures ..... he would kick up such a stink about Starmer and Labour wanting to thwart the will of the people - the focus would move from what a clusterfuck they have made of tackling Covid19

Marina Hyde is on form:
www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/may/12/civic-duty-prime-minister-boris-johnson-coronavirus

"“Stay alert, control the virus, save lives.” Though the slogan reads like it was produced by an off-brand smartphone left running overnight in a Ukrainian bot farm, some of the detail feels even more random. Take the plan to require international arrivals to the UK to quarantine for 14 days, which will start not even now, but at some unspecified point, soonish. This feels not so much like closing the stable door after the horse has bolted, as allowing the horse to bolt, then turning to your wife a couple of months later and saying, “Tell you what might look nice: a stable. Let’s get some plans drawn up. I feel like a door might be an idea? We could put it over there – where that horse we used to have used to be.” Perhaps it’s something to do with Johnson’s heavily foregrounded insistence on not rushing things, which also means we keep having to hear the phrase “baby steps” from a man who tends not to stick around to see them."

John Crace - good political analysis underneath the humour:

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2020/may/12/hancock-cant-buy-himself-a-break-while-sunak-harvests-the-magic-money-tree

When your luck is out, your luck is out.
And right now Matt Hancock can’t seem to buy himself an even break.

Dominic Cummings and his cabinet colleagues are lining him up as the fall guy for when the coronavirus crisis eventually ends
– no point getting rid of him any sooner or someone else might have to also take the rap –
and there’s nothing he can do about it.
....
Rishi had just casually blown another £50bn
A 40th birthday present to himself.

Remember the fuss about the £13bn annual contribution to the EU?
No one else does.

That’s how deep we’re in the shit.

How are things going in Germany, BCF?

The bits I've seen reported all seem very Doom and gloom, but I understand that they are getting on top of the new outbreaks very quickly?

Yes all I'm hearing as a talking point is "oh, cases are going up in Germany". People aren't appreciating by how much and what the response is.

I received my covid test yesterday. It comes in a jiffy bag that comes through the letter box. Contains instructions and equipment. First you book a courier collection for your kit. Easy to do - register for one online and they email a date and suggest when you should take the test based on that. I got today from 10am so advised to do test about 7-8am to make sure it's done before courier arrives. (They are very clear that the courier is there to collect only and will not wait whilst you do it)

Instructions are clear. Bit confused at first that there is only one swab but that's intentional.

First you rub it on your tonsils (difficult, I have a very sensitive gag reflex and had to pause to deep breathe a few times) and then you insert the same swab up each nostril "until you feel resistance". (You are advised to wash hands and blow nose before starting).

You then put he swab in a vial, seal in a bag and then in another bag, in to box and seal again with a big sticker. And await your courier!

I was quite impressed with the guidance provided and the kit. I would still prefer a HCP take the samples. As I said, I have a very sensitive gag reflex (comes from hyperemesis with DD) and my nasal passages are also exceptionally narrow (could get them drilled but don't see the benefit based on my life choices) so I did struggle to take the sample. I expect it to be negative because we've not been anywhere and I'm not ill, but it would be hard to trust it if I was unsure.

There is a questionnaire afterwards but I doesn't ask too much detail about the test, more about me. Bizzarely it asks how many people I've spoken to including social media in the last week, and asks me to estimate their ages (>18, 18-69, 70+) so I think they are also looking at social isolation?

In other news, my flour is due today. They've had to sub my dried yeast for 1kg fresh, so I'm going to be spending this evening chopping, wrapping and freezing yeast!

Thanks to everyone for keeping the thread going. I don't have anything interesting to contribute other than sharing all the (bad) clichés associated to this time and that have happened to me. Apart from the virus itself and a now (hopefully not) chronic fatigue, a Covidivorce looming (H and I ripped each other apart), a depressed teenager really struggling with her MH, I was made redundant yesterday. Not furloughed. Redundant. And with less than 2 years employment, zero entitlement. H also threatened.
Trying to stay positive but it's tough. Feeling discouraged or beaten down not an option but I think we're headed for very stormy days.

So sorry Songs - what a lot to have to cope with at once.

are all I can offer virtually.

Thanks pretty! That's a lot of flowers 😀.
Might have to pitch up in your front garden after all 😁

DS has stayed in Scotland with his flatmates so I really miss him. I'd give anything to go up to see him now!

I am sorry too, @Songsofexperience.

At least now the worst has happened with work, you can focus on your teen and sleep.