Westministenders: Can you tell your Rs from Elbows?

[RedToothBrush]

This week Mark Sedwill has resigned (or was he pushed?) and David Frost (chief brexit lead) was appointed National Security Adviser in a move that enraged Theresa May. The former prime minister felt that his appointment was unprofessional and that was a political appointment not an independent one and that he lacked experience. Of course in terms of national security we still haven't had that report on Russia and I don't believe The Intelligence and Security Committee has yet been named (not sat since Johnson was appointed as PM).

We have passed the deadline for extending transition and we have now apparently said that negotiations on the end of transition will finish at the end of September.

The bill ending Free movement of people has been signed, amongst much fanfare by the Conservatives saying they have delivered on the Referendum promise. However we might have up to 3million Hong Kongers who we are willing to allow into the country which might not go down too well with those who were unhappy with 'unrestricted EU immigration'.

We also have the demonstration of utter incompetence, outsourcing and lack of coordination and communication from central government and local government in the covid-19 crisis. A national scandal that isn't being properly reported by the press and leave you with the very large question of who is this government serving? If its contract with Deloittes over testing didn't require them to report positive tests to Public Health England, what was the point in the testing? How can this be consistent with 'The Government’s new approach to biosecurity will bring together the UK’s world-leading epidemiological expertise and fuse it with the best analytical capability from across Government in an integrated approach.' and will provide real time analysis and assessment of infection outbreaks at a community level, to enable rapid intervention before outbreaks grow.?

The growing feeling that Brexit is being exploited by this government for personal interests and those of big business at the expense of the general public is one which was feared and grows harder to argue against by the day.

Same sort of fake soundbite promise as all those thousands of extra -imaginary nurses and police officers promised

As the good people of Hong Kong will find out too ...

Starkey is an ignorant fucking racist and slaver apologist
who deserves to be sacked from every post he holds

"genocide" = "the deliberate killing of a large group of people, especially those of a particular nation or ethnic group."

It does NOT mean the extermination of that entire nation or ethnic group

The Holocaust was genocide:
the Nazis killed 6 million Jews, but there are about 17 million Jews in the world now

As for "so many damn blacks" .... I wonder if he would also say "so many damn Jews" in the world ?

I hope his fellow conservative Brexiters condemn him too, to show they aren't also racist slaver apoligists

Honeysuckle
The testing centre near me has been a TOTAL waste of money.
You can only get to it by car.
The high risk people round here do not have cars.
I have NEVER seen more than two cars there
It has been built across the whole park and ride for the hospital - meaning greater congestion and pollution elsewhere

and then Matt wazzock Hancock wants to spaff more money up their wall
because of his ideological loathing of the competence of NHS and University and other Publicly funded labs

^Starkey is an ignorant fucking racist and slaver apologist angry
who deserves to be sacked from every post he holds^

I knew he was a paid up card carrying Tory which always made me have to take his "history" with a dose of salt. But it's incroyable to think he got this far without having some media chops - especially as it rings a bell he's got form for this.

tbf, The vast majority of Tories think slavery wrong and would never try to excuse it.

However, too much of the scum has floated to the top in that party over the past several years
and too many traditional decent Conservative politicians have been thrown out

Yes, last election I had to point out to people that the "Conservatives" standing were not the same party they were 10 or 20 years ago.

DGR - in 2011, the BBC received 700 complaints about Starkey's claim that whites have become black during a Newsnight discussion about the riots.

Goes to the essence of the man : his core belief would seem to be that "whites" are more civilised than "blacks"

I tunes into the independent sage today for their panel - I have to say it was really good. More listened to it like a podcast as I did stuff.
Anyway I think they do it every Friday - it was really interesting. Made me feel abit calmer about things. But also highlighted how information is really important, and having sensible informed voices answering questions unfiltered is really important- there was no hysteria just practical advice. Quite the opposite from what we see from the government.

On another note I am getting really pissed if with the government going on about NZ being one of the holiday options- mostly because it's not, it fails to recognise NZ's sovereign rights to shut its boarders to all but NZ citizens.(which I believe is what it has done)
2/ it's not just one flight to get there (and back) so you will have to get off the plane and mingle in an airport at some stage. How is that fine.

The irony being that truly civilized nations don't treat people like cattle.

Does anyone have an actual definition to the end of lockdown? As in, "Lockdown is over ergo..." ? For some it seems to mean the disease has gone away, others that all they need to do now is wash hands or that everyone should be back at work. Postman hadn't even heard that the private tests weren't known to Local Authorities meaning councils don't know prevalence but admitted that because he has been so busy he has been going about as normal and often forgets some people haven't left their home in months. He is doing a pub meet with friends this weekend, insisting they are "in his bubble".

I agree MrsL; Boris advocating travel is surely to distract from his father? V. irresponsible to the rest of the world. I hope some examples are made in those countries but if I were NZ or Greece I'd be sending the UK govt the bill for tests and accommodation for isolation of UK nationals.

Does anyone have an actual definition to the end of lockdown?

Isn't it self identified ? You know - it feels like the end of lockdown, so it must be ?

You know how when there's bad fog, that delays or cancels aircraft movements, and there's a period of subsequent delays as planes that are all in the wrong place need to be flown back to where they are expected for the timetables to work again ?

I think lockdown is like that, with reference to the pandemics. If you don't come out of it properly for this one, then things will be in the wrong place for the next one.

I were NZ or Greece I'd be sending the UK govt the bill for tests and accommodation for isolation of UK nationals.

The Greek people might make their views known themselves. These guys are tough. They saw the Nazis off, so a geriatric wannabee right wing father of the man wouldn't be too much trouble.

I don't think you would be allowed on a plane to NZ without a NZ passport..... of course people may try to do a Stanley Johnson and fly to LA or Singapore.... and then onto a connected flight separately

In my travelling days that was the cheapest way to fly rather than direct. Those poor connecting airports

Friend from Norway has just asked if they are on the list of "who can come here". I suggested she check what Norway's requirement for her would be on her return instead, as IMO sensible countries would be quarantining there too.

I wonder if the Greeks remember Stanley Johnsons Turkish roots ?

My local radio reported the quarantine regulation as if hey are reciprocal. I really don't think that'll be the case at all. I wouldn't let Brits in if I were Greece.

I wonder how it will play out ? Will it be country of origin ? Or citizenship ?

Presumably Greece can't turn away Greek citizens ? But it could turn away UK citizens ?

Last I heard was that EU countries won't let in people from a country with higher than the EU infection average of 16/100,000 cases in 7 days

I was talking this morning to a neighbour whose late wife was English and wanted to spend a few weeks revisiting the places they'd been,
but was concerned that he would be quarantined when he returned to Germany

Citizens can always return to their home country, but would probably be isolated - properly, with checks.

Ipsos Mori Poll: Coronavirus

A sustantial % of people still cautious

https://www.ipsos.com/ipsos-mori/en-uk/how-comfortable-are-britons-returning-normal-coronavirus-concern-rises-again

Nearly half (49%) of parents would be comfortable sending their children to school, which is up from 38%.
Two in five though would still be uncomfortable doing so (42%, down 8%).

Just over half of workers now say they would be comfortable returning to their place of work (52%, up 5%),
whilst one in three are still reticent (34%, down 4%).
.......
Gideon Skinner, Head of Political Research at Ipsos MORI, commented:

"After a period of declining concern,
events of the last few weeks seem to have shifted public worries about the coronavirus back up again

– although concern for the country remains much higher than perceptions of its risk to people personally"

www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/jul/03/priti-patel-accused-of-shameful-bid-to-deport-girl-at-risk-of-fgm

Another demonstration of the inhumanity of the Home Office under the Tories. We used to joke about 'Theresa's gonna kick you out' every time we went through various immigration applications, but this is another level entirely. Utterly shameful.

Last I heard was that EU countries won't let in people from a country with higher than the EU infection average of 16/100,000 cases in 7 days

I've JUST this second checked the travel advice for Croatia, as DH is supposed to be going in Sept.

As of tomorrow, the FCO have lifted their all but essential advice for the country and have said no need to quarantine on return.

I've also checked entry requirements. The FCO states the following:

"On 11 May Croatia reopened its borders to visitors from the EU/EEA, and the Uk, provided they held an accommodation reservation in the country. There is no requirement to self isolate for a 14 day period"

Now I know that parts of the UK have a higher rate of covid than 16 per 100,000. I don't know what the national average currently is though.

Just checking the advice for Germany.

We can go to and from Germany freely, but the quaratine restrictions appear to be very localised.

Quarantine requirements
The German Interior Ministry has encouraged federal states to revise their quarantine regulations for arriving and returning travellers. People entering from other EU countries, the Schengen area and the UK will only have to go into quarantine if they are entering from an area where there is a high rate of infection. Travellers should consult local federal state and health authority guidance for specific arrangements

This would suggest that if your home address was Leicester or Anglesea, you might find you end up in quaratine if you were to go to Germany. Or if you visited those places.

It sounds like people could get caught out.

I know my local authority rate is ok, although I don't know what the rate is around Manchester Airport and which they would use.

Well as the pubs are opening from 6am tomorrow
I'm not planning on going anywhere just yet

Did anyone see that the Johnson govt are going to start do a weekly Downing St press briefing for tv? Because it’s what they do in the US.
I find it bloody scary. First bringing back all the MPs to Westminster before it’s probably safe to do so because the PM can’t answer the questions without all the cheerleaders behind him to make him sound good, now a one-way tv broadcast trying to further undermine the status of PMQs. Democratic political debate should happen in Parliament, on the record.

Only upside I can see is there won’t be Parliamentary privilege on anything said. Presumably. But still, it feels anti democratic.