Is Nicola Sturgeon being too cautious now

[frasersmummy]

Listening to her briefing it sounds like there will be no easing of restrictions until the schools are back and settled

With infections at such a low rate should we not be getting back to something closer to normal?

People are losing their jobs every day and she doesnt seem bothered

What does everyone else think?

There has been localised restrictions in Scotland.

"It's a party political broadcast no matter how much she tries to deny it."

Perhaps some would prefer the SNP advertise for a speaker, pay them £100k per annum and make the announcements daily instead of thrice weekly? 🤔

Only in Scotland could someone call a bill to punish those committing hate crimes against the disabled and other marginalised groups as 'evil'.

We must keep numbers low so it's safe for schools to return with full classrooms in two weeks time.

I just think opening swimming pools would be really difficult to manage 2 weeks before schools are due back people would want to go taking their kids and I don't think the government want an outbreak before 11th of August as it would set everything back.

Also with swimming it's quite tricky to ensure people maintain social distancing in the water. I know how many times I've brushed past another by accident so maintaing a 2m space at all times isn't easy.

That is sensible.

The schools going back could cause spikes, you open everything (like we have in England) then there will be spikes and you won't know the cause so everything including schools may have to shut again (take Leicester). This way if there is no spike then you move to the next step - reopen and there is a spike then you only have to close offending causes - kids get to stay at school, parents get to keep working. Once the spike has been quelled you try something else, no spike, move to the next stage. It really isn't rocket science. It methodical, logical, safe. Whether you like or dislike sturgeon she is definitely doing this properly (unlike the clowns in downing street).

I think her caution is sensible and how amazing would it feel to get the virus levels so low that when we finally can open everything properly, we can relax and enjoy it. Schools are absolutely more of a priority than entertainment, and having them be a normal experience for kids is so important where it is possible. I think she cares about the psychological well-being of people she serves and that comes across in policy priorities and briefings.

I think the slow cautious approach is sensible. The zero covid strategy is a good one, compared to what is going on in England. If nothing else it gives the NHS a reprieve to catch its breath in case the winter is awful.
The idea that she's not bothered about people losing their jobs is ludicrous. People are just so polarised politically they can't give credit where credit is due. Doesn't mean you have to become a raging nationalist.

She’s probably watched the shambolic lifting of restrictions in England and is determined to do better. Good on her. Caution is the best way.

Thank you for all the responses.

Hopefully when we get schools open avd settled we can start opening some entertainment fur the kids and I can get back to my work

But yes she is absolutely using that podium to campaign.

Yes credit where credit is due. It’s very hard to do though at times and swallow your pride.

However, Nicola Sturgeon has been repeatedly criticised for her comparison death rate data with England (U.K. national statistics, article in herald now but I can’t access it for detail).
I don’t think it’s sensible to continually peddle this about when it is questionable (is this fake news?) and it just turns me off her party.
I am open to change and want the best for my country Scotland, but I’m put off discussion with Yes supporters. Any criticism of SNP government policies is counteracted by, well we are doing so much better than England, this is not just with Covid-19. This stifles debate, growth and potential and makes me wonder that they just want independence no matter what. All our views should be regularly challenged and we should welcome debate and criticism.
Im worried about the hate crime bill and it should be challenged; secular society, law society and the Scottish Catholic Church have all voiced worries. Three very diverse and widely differing groups. Again it draws me to think that perhaps since they are a nationalist party, and with all the connotations that brings, they need something to stand apart from far right groups in Europe.

Carlaw just now.. pathetic. Can't be in any way happy that Scotland's has no deaths for 12 days. Disgusting actually.

@MumofHunter

Carlaw just now.. pathetic. Can't be in any way happy that Scotland's has no deaths for 12 days. Disgusting actually.

He has lost the plot

"they need something to stand apart from far right groups in Europe."

Now I've heard it all.

The subtle (and sometimes not at all subtle!) attacks on Boris or Westminster without any means of rebuttal by the opposition parties are a clear breach of political neutrality rules on the part of broadcasters and in the run up to an election are totally unjustifiable.

We’re not in purdah though, so no broadcasting rules have been broken.

@Jodri I completely agree. Nicola Sturgeon was clearly politicking with the 5x lower claim that was widely shared and fuelled the ‘close the border’ nationalist extremists. That she’s been caught out manipulating the numbers and then tried to downplay it isn’t a good look. And then in the Scottish Parliament today she tried to deflect from this by quoting the death numbers in Scotland vs England after a positive test, when her own advisors accept that the only reliable measure is excess deaths (which are roughly the same per capita in Scotland vs England). It makes me question everything they say. And yes, the hate crime bill as written is pretty terrifying.

They were literally just saying on ITV news that England had the worst excess deaths in the world.

@Jellycatspyjamas the BBC’s own editorial guidelines state that they should be politically impartial though. This is clearly not happening when NS is (for example) giving a five minute monologue on how it’s Westminster’s fault that Scotland has no policy on air bridges, or commenting on how incompetent Westminster has been over suspected Russian interference. There’s is no chance for the UK to rebut at the time, and by the time they’re asked about it it’s been widely reported.

If a claim is on ITV news who cares about what the UK statistics authority thinks eh?

I don’t understand why SNP supporters accept the Scottish govt making claims are not based on the same data either.

Don't worry we'll soon have whoever answers the Tory job advert to do daily briefings and guide us through the pandemic. 🤔

"they need something to stand apart from far right groups in Europe."

Seriously? Please list what the SNP stands for which represents far right interests.

Have I missed something ?
The same BBC report that says England’s death rate is the worst, puts Scotland THIRD.

And yet, MumofHunter you’re still chunnering on about how fabulous Nicola Sturgeon and the SNP are.

These are real people with real families, north and south of the border and the crowing and delight that goes on amongst nationalists that the Scots have done ‘better’ is distasteful and shocking.

It doesn’t make your particular brand of nationalism look more palatable than others.

They were literally just saying on ITV news that England had the worst excess deaths in the world.

That ONS survey only looked until the end of May, and yes, Scotland also came out 3rd in that survey so not something to be bragging about. If we look at the most up to date figures though:

England's excess deaths in 2020 to date are 51,454, which with a population of around 56.29 million (in 2019) gives a per capita rate of 914/million people.

Scotland's excess deaths in 2020 to date are 4837, which with a population of around 5.46 million (in 2019) gives a per capita rate of 886/million, or roughly 3% lower than England. Wales is actually better than both of us in this respect with a per capita death rate of 649/million.

Of course, as many experts say, we'll only really know for sure at the end of the pandemic, but thus far the death rate really doesn't look that much better up here overall and we shouldn't really be crowing about it.

I am a real person who has half her family in England. Some of whom have to take public transport in London to get to work- my niece is a nurse in King's Cross A and E. I also have tonnes of family and friends in Liverpool. They agree how scarily incompetent the Tories are.
Ffs no one's taking any delight in the fact that deaths are still happening daily in England.

@MumofHunter and @AudicityofHope I didn’t mean that the SNP government was far right but with their name having the word nationalist in it and their priority to be a separate country from the rest of the U.K. it’s perhaps all too easy to align them with the other nationalist parties who are gaining ground in Europe and who often have far right agenda.
traditionally nationalism often suppresses minorities, placing the country above moral principles and the individual creating a dangerous attachment to the state. I would say that the SNP government have not suppressed minorities, but perhaps are going to the other extreme of overly representing a minority to the detriment of the majority with this hate crime bill, and I suggested was this perhaps to help distance themselves from other nationalist parties in Europe. Perhaps they should change their name.

There is an argument that they do want an attachment to the state with the named person, minimum alcohol pricing, sugar tax etc. Which I’m not saying are bad policies but it seems we could be on a slope here and we cannot afford to get carried away by it.

I would also add that even though it is denied by our leader (Nicola and SNP do this a lot; I say it’s not happening, so it’s not happening), Scotland has a lot of low level animosity towards people from other countries and yes especially England
(by low level I mean non violent, remember that Irn bru advert of the English boyfriend and disapproving dad which was so funny) often passed off as banter and often accepted due to perceived years of oppression and how we get such a bad deal from England.

The numbers at this stage don’t justify the ‘scarily incompetent compared to Scotland’ claim though, that’s the point.

@mumofhunter

There should be no need to social distance in swimming pools as the chlorine kills the virus.

Not that there will be many pools and gyms left by the time Sturgeon deigns to open them!