The only person that is allowed to vote Tory is @HYUFD.
He’s going to be shocked when learns I’ve voted Tory before
I am shamed to have to admit I have never voted Labour before after what you have said about my lack of ideological partisanship. That said I do perhaps redeem myself by once having been a member of Plaid Cymru back in the early 80s as the PC club in Cardiff was the only place you could get a drink on a Sunday evening. I have also voted both Green and LD in my dim and distant past at a local level.
I once voted Plaid in a straight PC vs Labour contest while I was at college. I had planned to vote Labour, despite being mates with one of the more prominent Plaid members there, but then the night before the poll, the Labour candidate drove his car into the quad around 11pm and blasted out calls to vote for him on his loudspeaker.
Of course, looking back, that could have been a dirty trick by Plaid, but it would have definitely been something the Labour candidate, who was known for his eccentricity, might have thought was a good idea at the time.
Believe it or not I once also voted Plaid. When I was at Aberystwyth there were not enough Tory candidates for all the town council posts and as I always use all my votes I voted for a Plaid candidate who had canvassed me
Then you must resign the Tory Party immediately, you are not a true Tory voter
That does rather destroy his persistent denial of the legitimacy of independence for Scotland, if he voted for Welsh independence. I mean, Henry VIII owned the bloody place.
I didn't vote for Welsh independence, all the other votes I cast were for Tories and the only candidates left were Plaid.
It was for town council, not even Senedd let alone Westminster (in which case I would not have voted for Plaid at all)
So when you voted Tory, that wasn't a vote for Brexit?
It was as it was for Westminster, a Tory vote for council however would not have been but more for low council tax and well run local services
BREAKING: People with Omicron are significantly less likely to develop severe symptoms, but the effects of the booster vaccine wane after 10 weeks, according to new analysis by the UK Health Security Agency.
That's a bit of an arse as it is nearly twelve weeks since I received my booster.
"wane" or "begin to wane"?
Also, we have been here time and time - what about the T-cells? Yes immunity wanes but the system has learnt and is ready to spring back to life when needed.
But based on past procedure, we are now looking at a Spring booster campaign. Starting again just as we finished the current boosters.
Will GPs ever get back to their day job?
Yes they will - if Covid ends up requiring a rolling cycle of inoculations for some years then the DHSC will eventually be obliged to create an immunisation directorate with its own dedicated staff to administer them. Fast forward a couple of years and there might well be a permanent chain of vaccination centres all over the country - dealing, perhaps, with flu jabs and childhood immunisation as well as Covid.
Whether or not this would please GPs is unclear. On the one hand, it would relieve them of all the burden of deal with jabs. On the other hand, it would also relieve them of the income.
The only person that is allowed to vote Tory is @HYUFD.
He’s going to be shocked when learns I’ve voted Tory before
I am shamed to have to admit I have never voted Labour before after what you have said about my lack of ideological partisanship. That said I do perhaps redeem myself by once having been a member of Plaid Cymru back in the early 80s as the PC club in Cardiff was the only place you could get a drink on a Sunday evening. I have also voted both Green and LD in my dim and distant past at a local level.
I once voted Plaid in a straight PC vs Labour contest while I was at college. I had planned to vote Labour, despite being mates with one of the more prominent Plaid members there, but then the night before the poll, the Labour candidate drove his car into the quad around 11pm and blasted out calls to vote for him on his loudspeaker.
Of course, looking back, that could have been a dirty trick by Plaid, but it would have definitely been something the Labour candidate, who was known for his eccentricity, might have thought was a good idea at the time.
Believe it or not I once also voted Plaid. When I was at Aberystwyth there were not enough Tory candidates for all the town council posts and as I always use all my votes I voted for a Plaid candidate who had canvassed me
Then you must resign the Tory Party immediately, you are not a true Tory voter
That does rather destroy his persistent denial of the legitimacy of independence for Scotland, if he voted for Welsh independence. I mean, Henry VIII owned the bloody place.
I didn't vote for Welsh independence, all the other votes I cast were for Tories and the only candidates left were Plaid.
It was for town council, not even Senedd let alone Westminster (in which case I would not have voted for Plaid at all)
So when you voted Tory, that wasn't a vote for Brexit?
you seem a nice guy but it aint pretty badgering others how they vote
The only person that is allowed to vote Tory is @HYUFD.
He’s going to be shocked when learns I’ve voted Tory before
I am shamed to have to admit I have never voted Labour before after what you have said about my lack of ideological partisanship. That said I do perhaps redeem myself by once having been a member of Plaid Cymru back in the early 80s as the PC club in Cardiff was the only place you could get a drink on a Sunday evening. I have also voted both Green and LD in my dim and distant past at a local level.
I once voted Plaid in a straight PC vs Labour contest while I was at college. I had planned to vote Labour, despite being mates with one of the more prominent Plaid members there, but then the night before the poll, the Labour candidate drove his car into the quad around 11pm and blasted out calls to vote for him on his loudspeaker.
Of course, looking back, that could have been a dirty trick by Plaid, but it would have definitely been something the Labour candidate, who was known for his eccentricity, might have thought was a good idea at the time.
Believe it or not I once also voted Plaid. When I was at Aberystwyth there were not enough Tory candidates for all the town council posts and as I always use all my votes I voted for a Plaid candidate who had canvassed me
Then you must resign the Tory Party immediately, you are not a true Tory voter
That does rather destroy his persistent denial of the legitimacy of independence for Scotland, if he voted for Welsh independence. I mean, Henry VIII owned the bloody place.
I didn't vote for Welsh independence, all the other votes I cast were for Tories and the only candidates left were Plaid.
It was for town council, not even Senedd let alone Westminster (in which case I would not have voted for Plaid at all)
So when you voted Tory, that wasn't a vote for Brexit?
It was as it was for Westminster, a Tory vote for council however would not have been but more for low council tax and well run local services
What a load of nonsense
No, Wandsworth for example voted strongly Remain and has 3 Labour MPs but it still has a Tory run council.
Hampstead too has Tory councillors despite being heavy Remain and with a Labour MP
The only person that is allowed to vote Tory is @HYUFD.
He’s going to be shocked when learns I’ve voted Tory before
I am shamed to have to admit I have never voted Labour before after what you have said about my lack of ideological partisanship. That said I do perhaps redeem myself by once having been a member of Plaid Cymru back in the early 80s as the PC club in Cardiff was the only place you could get a drink on a Sunday evening. I have also voted both Green and LD in my dim and distant past at a local level.
I once voted Plaid in a straight PC vs Labour contest while I was at college. I had planned to vote Labour, despite being mates with one of the more prominent Plaid members there, but then the night before the poll, the Labour candidate drove his car into the quad around 11pm and blasted out calls to vote for him on his loudspeaker.
Of course, looking back, that could have been a dirty trick by Plaid, but it would have definitely been something the Labour candidate, who was known for his eccentricity, might have thought was a good idea at the time.
Believe it or not I once also voted Plaid. When I was at Aberystwyth there were not enough Tory candidates for all the town council posts and as I always use all my votes I voted for a Plaid candidate who had canvassed me
Then you must resign the Tory Party immediately, you are not a true Tory voter
That does rather destroy his persistent denial of the legitimacy of independence for Scotland, if he voted for Welsh independence. I mean, Henry VIII owned the bloody place.
I didn't vote for Welsh independence, all the other votes I cast were for Tories and the only candidates left were Plaid.
It was for town council, not even Senedd let alone Westminster (in which case I would not have voted for Plaid at all)
So when you voted Tory, that wasn't a vote for Brexit?
The only person that is allowed to vote Tory is @HYUFD.
He’s going to be shocked when learns I’ve voted Tory before
I am shamed to have to admit I have never voted Labour before after what you have said about my lack of ideological partisanship. That said I do perhaps redeem myself by once having been a member of Plaid Cymru back in the early 80s as the PC club in Cardiff was the only place you could get a drink on a Sunday evening. I have also voted both Green and LD in my dim and distant past at a local level.
I once voted Plaid in a straight PC vs Labour contest while I was at college. I had planned to vote Labour, despite being mates with one of the more prominent Plaid members there, but then the night before the poll, the Labour candidate drove his car into the quad around 11pm and blasted out calls to vote for him on his loudspeaker.
Of course, looking back, that could have been a dirty trick by Plaid, but it would have definitely been something the Labour candidate, who was known for his eccentricity, might have thought was a good idea at the time.
Believe it or not I once also voted Plaid. When I was at Aberystwyth there were not enough Tory candidates for all the town council posts and as I always use all my votes I voted for a Plaid candidate who had canvassed me
Then you must resign the Tory Party immediately, you are not a true Tory voter
That does rather destroy his persistent denial of the legitimacy of independence for Scotland, if he voted for Welsh independence. I mean, Henry VIII owned the bloody place.
I didn't vote for Welsh independence, all the other votes I cast were for Tories and the only candidates left were Plaid.
It was for town council, not even Senedd let alone Westminster (in which case I would not have voted for Plaid at all)
So when you voted Tory, that wasn't a vote for Brexit?
you seem a nice guy but it aint pretty badgering others how they vote
I was pointing out his hypocrisy, I wasn't badgering him about why he votes
Loved this in The Guardian’s list of the year’s 50 best tv shows:
37. Blair and Brown: The New Labour Revolution (BBC Two)
… It is an inside job, with Labour veterans as unreliable narrators. Brown’s speechwriter Douglas Alexander even says: “They were literally the Lennon and McCartney of British politics.” Rubbish. They were more like Wham!, with no George Michael and two Andrew Ridgeleys.
The best political programme of the last decade IMHO
That surely has to be Cumberbatch's Brexit. Took the piss out of everybody quite brilliantly.
For me the best political history programme of the last decade (it was made in 1998 but I only saw it for the first time a couple of years ago) was the Secret History on the Winter of Discontent. Sheds a lot of light on the episode which determined the fate of British politics, economics and society for at least a decade to come, and still influences it to this day.
I had not seen the documentary, and I was quite young at the time of the event.
But it reminds me how correct Mrs Thatcher was to reset the culture of Trades Unions, and especially pickets.
The Workers' Committee in the blockaded city of Hull deciding who was going to be allowed to have their deliveries, when the Government backed down from sending the army in to keep things moving, was striking. As was the loss of control by Trade Union leaders.
Can anyone identify this (I think) London Square? I say London because there would be no need for journos to go further.
The only person that is allowed to vote Tory is @HYUFD.
He’s going to be shocked when learns I’ve voted Tory before
I am shamed to have to admit I have never voted Labour before after what you have said about my lack of ideological partisanship. That said I do perhaps redeem myself by once having been a member of Plaid Cymru back in the early 80s as the PC club in Cardiff was the only place you could get a drink on a Sunday evening. I have also voted both Green and LD in my dim and distant past at a local level.
I once voted Plaid in a straight PC vs Labour contest while I was at college. I had planned to vote Labour, despite being mates with one of the more prominent Plaid members there, but then the night before the poll, the Labour candidate drove his car into the quad around 11pm and blasted out calls to vote for him on his loudspeaker.
Of course, looking back, that could have been a dirty trick by Plaid, but it would have definitely been something the Labour candidate, who was known for his eccentricity, might have thought was a good idea at the time.
Believe it or not I once also voted Plaid. When I was at Aberystwyth there were not enough Tory candidates for all the town council posts and as I always use all my votes I voted for a Plaid candidate who had canvassed me
Then you must resign the Tory Party immediately, you are not a true Tory voter
That does rather destroy his persistent denial of the legitimacy of independence for Scotland, if he voted for Welsh independence. I mean, Henry VIII owned the bloody place.
I didn't vote for Welsh independence, all the other votes I cast were for Tories and the only candidates left were Plaid.
It was for town council, not even Senedd let alone Westminster (in which case I would not have voted for Plaid at all)
So when you voted Tory, that wasn't a vote for Brexit?
What am I missing here? HYUFD is a MUDBLOOD? 😮
He's voted Plaid yet calls people all the time "not Tories" if they've ever voted any other way
"50% to 70% less likely to be admitted to hospital"
Lots of caveats about large numbers of cases still putting pressure on hospitals, not much data on what it does in the elderly, and so on - but nonetheless very encouraging. OTOH...
Frontline doctors have issued desperate pleas for more people to get vaccinated after reporting that in some hospitals all new intensive care Covid patients have not had jabs.
An estimated 5 million people, or 10% of the eligible population, have not had been inoculated, and it is this group who are seemingly draining the most resources from overstretched hospitals, experts say.
The problem is worst in parts of London, but Cambridge’s Royal Papworth hospital said more than 80% of its Covid patients requiring the most care were unjabbed.
Will Ricketts, a consultant chest physician at the Royal London hospital, tweeted on Wednesday: “Every new respiratory admission with Covid since Friday has been unvaccinated.”
The Government is watching the situation in London like a hawk, using it (according to several reports) to gauge the likely impact on the remainder of the country, and virtually all the seriously ill Covid patients in London are unvaccinated. Make no mistake, if more restrictions are coming after Boxing Day, it'll be entirely down to the refusers. All their fault.
There is evidence that wall to wall vaccination is no guarantee of freedom, sadly. Would it were so.
As I posted the other day, Gibraltar, one of the most vaccinated place on earth, cancelled Christmas a few days ago. The restrictions are pretty tight.
The only person that is allowed to vote Tory is @HYUFD.
He’s going to be shocked when learns I’ve voted Tory before
I am shamed to have to admit I have never voted Labour before after what you have said about my lack of ideological partisanship. That said I do perhaps redeem myself by once having been a member of Plaid Cymru back in the early 80s as the PC club in Cardiff was the only place you could get a drink on a Sunday evening. I have also voted both Green and LD in my dim and distant past at a local level.
I once voted Plaid in a straight PC vs Labour contest while I was at college. I had planned to vote Labour, despite being mates with one of the more prominent Plaid members there, but then the night before the poll, the Labour candidate drove his car into the quad around 11pm and blasted out calls to vote for him on his loudspeaker.
Of course, looking back, that could have been a dirty trick by Plaid, but it would have definitely been something the Labour candidate, who was known for his eccentricity, might have thought was a good idea at the time.
Believe it or not I once also voted Plaid. When I was at Aberystwyth there were not enough Tory candidates for all the town council posts and as I always use all my votes I voted for a Plaid candidate who had canvassed me
Then you must resign the Tory Party immediately, you are not a true Tory voter
That does rather destroy his persistent denial of the legitimacy of independence for Scotland, if he voted for Welsh independence. I mean, Henry VIII owned the bloody place.
I didn't vote for Welsh independence, all the other votes I cast were for Tories and the only candidates left were Plaid.
It was for town council, not even Senedd let alone Westminster (in which case I would not have voted for Plaid at all)
So when you voted Tory, that wasn't a vote for Brexit?
What am I missing here? HYUFD is a MUDBLOOD? 😮
He's voted Plaid yet calls people all the time "not Tories" if they've ever voted any other way
One rule for me and another for absolutely everyone else.
He's simply following the example of his beloved leader, Boris.
But I'm shocked HYUFD has voted for any party other than the Tories. He is to me the prime example of the type of voter who will vote for anyone with a Blue (or Red) Rosette.
Certainly gives fire to the idea of tactical voting
I'm surprised by this as I would have expected the Greens to lead. But I suppsoe there is a difference between Labour voters and Labour members.
Tactical voting does look to be on. Let's make sure this time it leads to an actual electoral system where tactical voting is no longer needed because everyone's vote has equal relevance. I find it thoroughly boring living in a constituency with a 30k+ Labour majority where my sweet little Lib Dem vote will never count for anything.
Loved this in The Guardian’s list of the year’s 50 best tv shows:
37. Blair and Brown: The New Labour Revolution (BBC Two)
… It is an inside job, with Labour veterans as unreliable narrators. Brown’s speechwriter Douglas Alexander even says: “They were literally the Lennon and McCartney of British politics.” Rubbish. They were more like Wham!, with no George Michael and two Andrew Ridgeleys.
The best political programme of the last decade IMHO
That surely has to be Cumberbatch's Brexit. Took the piss out of everybody quite brilliantly.
For me the best political history programme of the last decade (it was made in 1998 but I only saw it for the first time a couple of years ago) was the Secret History on the Winter of Discontent. Sheds a lot of light on the episode which determined the fate of British politics, economics and society for at least a decade to come, and still influences it to this day.
I had not seen the documentary, and I was quite young at the time of the event.
But it reminds me how correct Mrs Thatcher was to reset the culture of Trades Unions, and especially pickets.
The Workers' Committee in the blockaded city of Hull deciding who was going to be allowed to have their deliveries, when the Government backed down from sending the army in to keep things moving, was striking. As was the loss of control by Trade Union leaders.
Can anyone identify this (I think) London Square? I say London because there would be no need for journos to go further.
That's Leicester Square looking north towards where Euan Blair was found pissed.
"50% to 70% less likely to be admitted to hospital"
Lots of caveats about large numbers of cases still putting pressure on hospitals, not much data on what it does in the elderly, and so on - but nonetheless very encouraging. OTOH...
Frontline doctors have issued desperate pleas for more people to get vaccinated after reporting that in some hospitals all new intensive care Covid patients have not had jabs.
An estimated 5 million people, or 10% of the eligible population, have not had been inoculated, and it is this group who are seemingly draining the most resources from overstretched hospitals, experts say.
The problem is worst in parts of London, but Cambridge’s Royal Papworth hospital said more than 80% of its Covid patients requiring the most care were unjabbed.
Will Ricketts, a consultant chest physician at the Royal London hospital, tweeted on Wednesday: “Every new respiratory admission with Covid since Friday has been unvaccinated.”
The Government is watching the situation in London like a hawk, using it (according to several reports) to gauge the likely impact on the remainder of the country, and virtually all the seriously ill Covid patients in London are unvaccinated. Make no mistake, if more restrictions are coming after Boxing Day, it'll be entirely down to the refusers. All their fault.
There is evidence that wall to wall vaccination is no guarantee of freedom, sadly. Would it were so.
As I posted the other day, Gibraltar, one of the most vaccinated place on earth, cancelled Christmas a few days ago. The restrictions are pretty tight.
There is only one way out of this. Acceptance of endemicity.
We need to remove restrictions and live with it. Another mate today has tested positive. A slight sniffle. No more.
Seems to me that UK Gov should just announce quarterly boosters for the next however long and that should be enough going forward
The only problem with that is there will be bugger all GP services etc. In order to keep constantly running a booster program we are going to have to keep loads of people from their day to day jobs.
Do the opposite. Ban GPs from getting involved so they can get back to GP-ing, and pay the supermarkets and chemists enough to have capacity for 3 jabs per year. It is a waste of GP skill to be doing the jabbing.
The only person that is allowed to vote Tory is @HYUFD.
He’s going to be shocked when learns I’ve voted Tory before
I am shamed to have to admit I have never voted Labour before after what you have said about my lack of ideological partisanship. That said I do perhaps redeem myself by once having been a member of Plaid Cymru back in the early 80s as the PC club in Cardiff was the only place you could get a drink on a Sunday evening. I have also voted both Green and LD in my dim and distant past at a local level.
I once voted Plaid in a straight PC vs Labour contest while I was at college. I had planned to vote Labour, despite being mates with one of the more prominent Plaid members there, but then the night before the poll, the Labour candidate drove his car into the quad around 11pm and blasted out calls to vote for him on his loudspeaker.
Of course, looking back, that could have been a dirty trick by Plaid, but it would have definitely been something the Labour candidate, who was known for his eccentricity, might have thought was a good idea at the time.
Believe it or not I once also voted Plaid. When I was at Aberystwyth there were not enough Tory candidates for all the town council posts and as I always use all my votes I voted for a Plaid candidate who had canvassed me
Then you must resign the Tory Party immediately, you are not a true Tory voter
That does rather destroy his persistent denial of the legitimacy of independence for Scotland, if he voted for Welsh independence. I mean, Henry VIII owned the bloody place.
I didn't vote for Welsh independence, all the other votes I cast were for Tories and the only candidates left were Plaid.
It was for town council, not even Senedd let alone Westminster (in which case I would not have voted for Plaid at all)
So when you voted Tory, that wasn't a vote for Brexit?
What am I missing here? HYUFD is a MUDBLOOD? 😮
He's voted Plaid yet calls people all the time "not Tories" if they've ever voted any other way
🙄 it’s like Big John knowler Getting rushed into hospital with stomach cramps, and they discover he’s wearing Keir Starmer underpants.
The only person that is allowed to vote Tory is @HYUFD.
He’s going to be shocked when learns I’ve voted Tory before
I am shamed to have to admit I have never voted Labour before after what you have said about my lack of ideological partisanship. That said I do perhaps redeem myself by once having been a member of Plaid Cymru back in the early 80s as the PC club in Cardiff was the only place you could get a drink on a Sunday evening. I have also voted both Green and LD in my dim and distant past at a local level.
I once voted Plaid in a straight PC vs Labour contest while I was at college. I had planned to vote Labour, despite being mates with one of the more prominent Plaid members there, but then the night before the poll, the Labour candidate drove his car into the quad around 11pm and blasted out calls to vote for him on his loudspeaker.
Of course, looking back, that could have been a dirty trick by Plaid, but it would have definitely been something the Labour candidate, who was known for his eccentricity, might have thought was a good idea at the time.
Believe it or not I once also voted Plaid. When I was at Aberystwyth there were not enough Tory candidates for all the town council posts and as I always use all my votes I voted for a Plaid candidate who had canvassed me
Then you must resign the Tory Party immediately, you are not a true Tory voter
That does rather destroy his persistent denial of the legitimacy of independence for Scotland, if he voted for Welsh independence. I mean, Henry VIII owned the bloody place.
I didn't vote for Welsh independence, all the other votes I cast were for Tories and the only candidates left were Plaid.
It was for town council, not even Senedd let alone Westminster (in which case I would not have voted for Plaid at all)
So when you voted Tory, that wasn't a vote for Brexit?
What am I missing here? HYUFD is a MUDBLOOD? 😮
He's voted Plaid yet calls people all the time "not Tories" if they've ever voted any other way
One rule for me and another for absolutely everyone else.
He's simply following the example of his beloved leader, Boris.
But I'm shocked HYUFD has voted for any party other than the Tories. He is to me the prime example of the type of voter who will vote for anyone with a Blue (or Red) Rosette.
I've voted for all the main parties at one time or another, including the Greens at one of the Euro elections.
This would be catastrophic for city centre businesses. Is it that people want the option of working from home, or that they actually want to work from home most/all of the time?
Seems to me that UK Gov should just announce quarterly boosters for the next however long and that should be enough going forward
The only problem with that is there will be bugger all GP services etc. In order to keep constantly running a booster program we are going to have to keep loads of people from their day to day jobs.
Do the opposite. Ban GPs from getting involved so they can get back to GP-ing, and pay the supermarkets and chemists enough to have capacity for 3 jabs per year. It is a waste of GP skill to be doing the jabbing.
Do away with the expensive nonsense of 6-monthly dental check-ups and have 6-monthly jabs instead.
Went for my first run back today and goodness me you lose a lot of fitness in 10 days.
Alas I've been getting slower anyway as I am also bulking so I am slightly at odds anyway
Keep at it you'll be back in the swing before you know it.
I am sure I will - although I will be worse off whilst I am bulking. Luckily bulking should be finished in a month or two then running can have my full focus again
Seems to me that UK Gov should just announce quarterly boosters for the next however long and that should be enough going forward
The only problem with that is there will be bugger all GP services etc. In order to keep constantly running a booster program we are going to have to keep loads of people from their day to day jobs.
Do the opposite. Ban GPs from getting involved so they can get back to GP-ing, and pay the supermarkets and chemists enough to have capacity for 3 jabs per year. It is a waste of GP skill to be doing the jabbing.
Do away with the expensive nonsense of 6-monthly dental check-ups and have 6-monthly jabs instead.
I didn't have a dentist checkup for almost two years because of COVID and guess what...my teeth are fine
Seems to me that UK Gov should just announce quarterly boosters for the next however long and that should be enough going forward
The only problem with that is there will be bugger all GP services etc. In order to keep constantly running a booster program we are going to have to keep loads of people from their day to day jobs.
Do the opposite. Ban GPs from getting involved so they can get back to GP-ing, and pay the supermarkets and chemists enough to have capacity for 3 jabs per year. It is a waste of GP skill to be doing the jabbing.
Do away with the expensive nonsense of 6-monthly dental check-ups and have 6-monthly jabs instead.
I didn't have a dentist checkup for almost two years because of COVID and guess what...my teeth are fine
I’ve been on two year interval for 15 years now. I have no fillings, and the dentist thought it more appropriate. Slightly alarming as you can only book appointments 18 months ahead, but the systems worked so far...
Seems to me that UK Gov should just announce quarterly boosters for the next however long and that should be enough going forward
The only problem with that is there will be bugger all GP services etc. In order to keep constantly running a booster program we are going to have to keep loads of people from their day to day jobs.
Do the opposite. Ban GPs from getting involved so they can get back to GP-ing, and pay the supermarkets and chemists enough to have capacity for 3 jabs per year. It is a waste of GP skill to be doing the jabbing.
Do away with the expensive nonsense of 6-monthly dental check-ups and have 6-monthly jabs instead.
I didn't have a dentist checkup for almost two years because of COVID and guess what...my teeth are fine
I’ve been on two year interval for 15 years now. I have no fillings, and the dentist thought it more appropriate. Slightly alarming as you can only book appointments 18 months ahead, but the systems worked so far...
What a good dentist, mine is insistent on 6 monthly dentist + hygienist!
BUPA have been utterly useless on the covering of my counselling, they refused to cover it as they don't recognise the person I get it from. I went because my GP recommended it, which is what people will do.
Expect more of this. There have been whispers about a big party outside Bute House, too.
Communications Act? It's rare for that to be used for an event organiser on FB. Though I think I can recall a couple before.
A MAN has been arrested and charged for allegedly organising a Hogmanay party on Nicola Sturgeon’s street.
The 33-year-old was nicked yesterday under the Communications Act 2003 after allegedly creating a Facebook event titled “NYE street party @ sturgeons house”.
Just watch the Trump clip. He's going to run, and he's going to win.
He has far, far more energy than Biden.
Don't think US democracy would survive another Trump term.
Likewise.
He will run. He will beat a clearly past it but stubborn Biden.
And then it's over. 200-odd years of democracy. It's done.
Some states will leave the union when he refuses to stand down after end of second term is my guess. It will not be peaceful.
I don't understand this point of view. If Trump wins an election fairly under the rules, how does that pose a problem for democracy? Do you expect him to abolish elections.
Seems to me that UK Gov should just announce quarterly boosters for the next however long and that should be enough going forward
The only problem with that is there will be bugger all GP services etc. In order to keep constantly running a booster program we are going to have to keep loads of people from their day to day jobs.
Do the opposite. Ban GPs from getting involved so they can get back to GP-ing, and pay the supermarkets and chemists enough to have capacity for 3 jabs per year. It is a waste of GP skill to be doing the jabbing.
Do away with the expensive nonsense of 6-monthly dental check-ups and have 6-monthly jabs instead.
Dentists do eight years training. Vaxxing takes a days training then a bit of supervision afterwards. Let the dentists dent.
Expect more of this. There have been whispers about a big party outside Bute House, too.
Communications Act? It's rare for that to be used for an event.
A MAN has been arrested and charged for allegedly organising a Hogmanay party on Nicola Sturgeon’s street.
The 33-year-old was nicked yesterday under the Communications Act 2003 after allegedly creating a Facebook event titled “NYE street party @ sturgeons house”.
Yes, it is sharing her personal address, rather than say Bute House.
BREAKING: People with Omicron are significantly less likely to develop severe symptoms, but the effects of the booster vaccine wane after 10 weeks, according to new analysis by the UK Health Security Agency.
We are going to be injecting people forever at this rate.
I think so - but that's got to be better than restrictions
If its an alternative I would agree. We need to get to the point that you stay at home only if you are actually ill, not just because you are positive. Of course, such a world gets more problematic for the unvaxxed but, frankly, tough sh1t.
Philip would say we should go out and infect people but I agree, WFH if you are ill.
I for one agree completely with David.
If you're actually ill then stay home and recuperate if you need to do so. Though that should be at your own judgement no different to any other illnesses.
But if you're positive yet not ill, eg asymptomatic then yes you should live your life as normal.
Not sure where you link infecting others in with that. The asymptomatic positive, and those who don't know they're positive, and plenty of others can "infect" others. Getting infected with lurgies is something that happens to people every day.
The prize for best estimate of the highest daily Booster count will be a copy of The Prime Ministers by Iain Dale, signed by the author with a dedication to the competition winner.
The stewards have looked at the issue of entrants changing their identity mid-competition and have decided that, so long as the intention is not to defraud the competition, entries will roll over from old ID to new.
Boosters reported today: 840,038 Highest Boosters to date: 968,665 (22/12) Nearest estimate: @Northern_Al 963,451 Next nearest: @MattW (986,000)
I've just returned home to see this. Looking good for me provided the downward path continues. If I win, it may be the first book by a Tory to enter my house (apart from Blair's autobiography, of course . I shall enjoy it. (Actually, scratch that - I've got Alan Clark's diaries somewhere).
However, I await the judgement of the plethora of expert modellers on here to confirm that the boosters may not get a further boost between now and the New Year. Or I guess I could just wait and see what happens.
Just watch the Trump clip. He's going to run, and he's going to win.
He has far, far more energy than Biden.
Don't think US democracy would survive another Trump term.
Likewise.
He will run. He will beat a clearly past it but stubborn Biden.
And then it's over. 200-odd years of democracy. It's done.
Some states will leave the union when he refuses to stand down after end of second term is my guess. It will not be peaceful.
I don't understand this point of view. If Trump wins an election fairly under the rules, how does that pose a problem for democracy? Do you expect him to abolish elections.
Not abolish but Putinise them. And he probably won't win 24 fairly under the rules, although contrary to the market I do expect he will probably win.
BUPA have been utterly useless on the covering of my counselling, they refused to cover it as they don't recognise the person I get it from. I went because my GP recommended it, which is what people will do.
Seems to me that UK Gov should just announce quarterly boosters for the next however long and that should be enough going forward
The only problem with that is there will be bugger all GP services etc. In order to keep constantly running a booster program we are going to have to keep loads of people from their day to day jobs.
Do the opposite. Ban GPs from getting involved so they can get back to GP-ing, and pay the supermarkets and chemists enough to have capacity for 3 jabs per year. It is a waste of GP skill to be doing the jabbing.
Do away with the expensive nonsense of 6-monthly dental check-ups and have 6-monthly jabs instead.
I didn't have a dentist checkup for almost two years because of COVID and guess what...my teeth are fine
Some unlucky people suffered terribly when dentists were completely out of commission, I think. Seems a long time ago now.
“A crowd of young supporters at Hibernian v Aberdeen chanted 'Sturgeon, get tae f***' while others held a banner saying 'open your homes for COP26, closed doors for fans, f*** SNP' - a reference to the climate change conference which some have blamed for fuelling cases.”
I don't hold Liz Truss' previous support for Remain against her. I have other issues with her, but not that.
Broadly, anyone sensible and paying attention supported Remain. I would prefer my politicians to be the sort that are sensible and paying attention, and not to restrict ourselves entirely to the other kind.
This would be catastrophic for city centre businesses. Is it that people want the option of working from home, or that they actually want to work from home most/all of the time?
I think it varies. My fiancee has been WFH for most of the time since March 2020. She's very keen to WFH full time as it saves her two hours a day and a small fortune in travel costs. At one point she was made to go back in the office three days a week - she'd often sit at a desk in the office and work all day with a single work interaction in person, which seemed very pointless.
She's just been given the OK to WFH permanently when we marry, which is pretty much a win all round (especially as she's on a Bristol wage but will be moving up to somewhere far cheaper) - but it took the intervention of someone very senior in her firm for this to happen - I teHR weren't keen to set a precedent.
Some of her colleagues hate full time WFH as they find the social isolation too big a deal, and have been in the office most days when it's allowed.
It's all very academic to me - I make real stuff, so have to be there to do stuff with it.
On topic, this is why I don't think Sunak or Truss will become the next leader - they won't cut it in the RW seats and the newly elected MPs know that. Same goes for the likes of Hunt etc. In fact, I think, given the change in the Conservative MP base from the last election from leader, there will be a strong demand for a leader whose background is more aligned to RW voters.
I'm loath to admit this as I realise PB will laugh at my stupidity but I've put a few quid on at 100/1 for both McVey and Dorries as next leader. McVey because, if she decides to stand again, can credibly point to be a major driver behind Red Wall Conservatism and also because she has consistently voted against lockdown measures, which will gain her a base amongst the MPs. Dorries because she is a pitbull when it comes to the cultural stuff and, if she gets the DCMS portfolio right, will be seen as someone who takes the fight to Labour.
Seems to me that UK Gov should just announce quarterly boosters for the next however long and that should be enough going forward
The only problem with that is there will be bugger all GP services etc. In order to keep constantly running a booster program we are going to have to keep loads of people from their day to day jobs.
Do the opposite. Ban GPs from getting involved so they can get back to GP-ing, and pay the supermarkets and chemists enough to have capacity for 3 jabs per year. It is a waste of GP skill to be doing the jabbing.
Do away with the expensive nonsense of 6-monthly dental check-ups and have 6-monthly jabs instead.
I didn't have a dentist checkup for almost two years because of COVID and guess what...my teeth are fine
Some unlucky people suffered terribly when dentists were completely out of commission, I think. Seems a long time ago now.
“A crowd of young supporters at Hibernian v Aberdeen chanted 'Sturgeon, get tae f***' while others held a banner saying 'open your homes for COP26, closed doors for fans, f*** SNP' - a reference to the climate change conference which some have blamed for fuelling cases.”
This, oddly, is not getting the publicity the darts fans havjng a pop at Boris got. Odd that.
Just watch the Trump clip. He's going to run, and he's going to win.
He has far, far more energy than Biden.
Don't think US democracy would survive another Trump term.
Likewise.
He will run. He will beat a clearly past it but stubborn Biden.
And then it's over. 200-odd years of democracy. It's done.
Some states will leave the union when he refuses to stand down after end of second term is my guess. It will not be peaceful.
More likely Biden does not run again and Buttigieg narrowly wins.
Trump may not even run again but if Biden or Harris are the candidates again he has a chance.
He could not run for a third term however even if he wins again as the constitution forbids it, he unlikely would have the 2/3 majority in Congress to overturn it and the SC would uphold the Constitution even if it interprets it in a conservative way.
Only way he could do it is if the army were on side, which they were not for him in January 2020
I admire your confidence that Trump, and more specifically the dark forces around him in GOP, will not have learnt how to get it 'right' next time to bypass constitution and rig a third term.
It takes not only 2/3 of each house of Congress but 3/4 of the states to pass a constitutional amendment though.
"50% to 70% less likely to be admitted to hospital"
50-70% being the confidence/credible interval.
But this figure in itself seems pretty meaningless. They excluded known reinfections, so it's presumably meant to be a stab at estimating the intrinsic severity of Omicron versus Delta, excluding the fact that a much larger percentage of those infected with Omicron have some kind of immunity. But they acknowledge that known reinfections will be a "a substantial underestimate".
The Imperial College study did attempt to allow for unidentified reinfections, and came up with only about a 25% reduction in hospital stays of at least one night.
Reportedly SAGE advises that the rate of hospitalisation would need to be 90% lower in order to avoid exceeding the previous peak - not 50-70% and not 25%.
Just watch the Trump clip. He's going to run, and he's going to win.
He has far, far more energy than Biden.
Don't think US democracy would survive another Trump term.
Likewise.
He will run. He will beat a clearly past it but stubborn Biden.
And then it's over. 200-odd years of democracy. It's done.
Some states will leave the union when he refuses to stand down after end of second term is my guess. It will not be peaceful.
I don't understand this point of view. If Trump wins an election fairly under the rules, how does that pose a problem for democracy? Do you expect him to abolish elections.
It is a problem for democracy because he, like other fascists before him, only believes in elections if they deliver victories to people like him. it is a weakness of the system which there is no easy answer
Do we not need a thread by @HYUFD on prospects for Welsh independence.
Snowdonia isn't really tank country, is it?
Long column of Challengers down the Llanberis pass? Close quarters shootout in the streets of Portmerion? Tank traffic jam at Capel Curig? I can see it.
BREAKING: People with Omicron are significantly less likely to develop severe symptoms, but the effects of the booster vaccine wane after 10 weeks, according to new analysis by the UK Health Security Agency.
We are going to be injecting people forever at this rate.
I think so - but that's got to be better than restrictions
If its an alternative I would agree. We need to get to the point that you stay at home only if you are actually ill, not just because you are positive. Of course, such a world gets more problematic for the unvaxxed but, frankly, tough sh1t.
Philip would say we should go out and infect people but I agree, WFH if you are ill.
I for one agree completely with David.
If you're actually ill then stay home and recuperate if you need to do so. Though that should be at your own judgement no different to any other illnesses.
But if you're positive yet not ill, eg asymptomatic then yes you should live your life as normal.
Not sure where you link infecting others in with that. The asymptomatic positive, and those who don't know they're positive, and plenty of others can "infect" others. Getting infected with lurgies is something that happens to people every day.
"infect" inj inverted commas - have you a new theory of disease? Miasma? Planetary alighments?
What's your position on Typhoid Mary? She was completely asymptomatic positive and wanted to be left to get on with her life as a cook.
Just watch the Trump clip. He's going to run, and he's going to win.
He has far, far more energy than Biden.
Don't think US democracy would survive another Trump term.
Likewise.
He will run. He will beat a clearly past it but stubborn Biden.
And then it's over. 200-odd years of democracy. It's done.
Some states will leave the union when he refuses to stand down after end of second term is my guess. It will not be peaceful.
I don't understand this point of view. If Trump wins an election fairly under the rules, how does that pose a problem for democracy? Do you expect him to abolish elections.
It is a problem for democracy because he, like other fascists before him, only believes in elections if they deliver victories to people like him. it is a weakness of the system which there is no easy answer
Then have the courage of your convictions and ban him (or the GOP) as a threat to democracy as the Germans did with the Nazi party post-1945. If you truly believe what you state, that is the logical next step - just be open about it.
On topic, this is why I don't think Sunak or Truss will become the next leader - they won't cut it in the RW seats and the newly elected MPs know that. Same goes for the likes of Hunt etc. In fact, I think, given the change in the Conservative MP base from the last election from leader, there will be a strong demand for a leader whose background is more aligned to RW voters.
I'm loath to admit this as I realise PB will laugh at my stupidity but I've put a few quid on at 100/1 for both McVey and Dorries as next leader. McVey because, if she decides to stand again, can credibly point to be a major driver behind Red Wall Conservatism and also because she has consistently voted against lockdown measures, which will gain her a base amongst the MPs. Dorries because she is a pitbull when it comes to the cultural stuff and, if she gets the DCMS portfolio right, will be seen as someone who takes the fight to Labour.
I get your thought process but disagree with it based on nothing more than British class bollocks.
McVey and Dorries will put off a lot of southern Tories because they are scallies. A lot of southern Tories would rather vote Labour and have nice middle class boy they understand but look down on than a scouse PM.
Whereas red wall voters could accept Sunak - the proles like a wealthy public school leader. He’s also got a Northern seat so whilst it’s a wealthy seat it helps perception.
He also seems (whether true or not) to be in touch with people but I think too many people would see Dories and McV as a bit hectoring (and no it’s not because they are strong women but because they are a bit hectoring in style unlike Rishi Smoothy).
This is likely to be an absolute load of bollocks but I’m going with it.
BUPA have been utterly useless on the covering of my counselling, they refused to cover it as they don't recognise the person I get it from. I went because my GP recommended it, which is what people will do.
On topic, this is why I don't think Sunak or Truss will become the next leader - they won't cut it in the RW seats and the newly elected MPs know that. Same goes for the likes of Hunt etc. In fact, I think, given the change in the Conservative MP base from the last election from leader, there will be a strong demand for a leader whose background is more aligned to RW voters.
I'm loath to admit this as I realise PB will laugh at my stupidity but I've put a few quid on at 100/1 for both McVey and Dorries as next leader. McVey because, if she decides to stand again, can credibly point to be a major driver behind Red Wall Conservatism and also because she has consistently voted against lockdown measures, which will gain her a base amongst the MPs. Dorries because she is a pitbull when it comes to the cultural stuff and, if she gets the DCMS portfolio right, will be seen as someone who takes the fight to Labour.
I get your thought process but disagree with it based on nothing more than British class bollocks.
McVey and Dorries will put off a lot of southern Tories because they are scallies. A lot of southern Tories would rather vote Labour and have nice middle class boy they understand but look down on than a scouse PM.
Whereas red wall voters could accept Sunak - the proles like a wealthy public school leader. He’s also got a Northern seat so whilst it’s a wealthy seat it helps perception.
He also seems (whether true or not) to be in touch with people but I think too many people would see Dories and McV as a bit hectoring (and no it’s not because they are strong women but because they are a bit hectoring in style unlike Rishi Smoothy).
This is likely to be an absolute load of bollocks but I’m going with it.
It's not bollocks and I get that. I can see the argument that Dorries and McVey would put off nice middle class Tories and certainly it would switch a few more seats to the LDs in the South.
However, I think many of the MPs who just got elected will take that chance as it is not their seats. The issue with Rishi - as we are seeing with his handling of the latest restrictions - is that he is not instinctively in tune on the economic front with the RW voters. And he is also not fully in tune on the social conservatism front either. He is the sort of leader who would probably save the Tories some seats in the South East but would lose them a bunch in the North and Midlands.
Also, "the proles" don't necessarily like posh leaders. They took BJ because, like them, his attitude to life seemed tgo be to enjoy it and live and let live. Rishi is not like that. You wouldn't go down the pub with him and I doubt you would see many RW female voters swoon over 'Dishy Rishi' like the middle class housewives of the Home Counties.
Just watch the Trump clip. He's going to run, and he's going to win.
He has far, far more energy than Biden.
Don't think US democracy would survive another Trump term.
Likewise.
He will run. He will beat a clearly past it but stubborn Biden.
And then it's over. 200-odd years of democracy. It's done.
Some states will leave the union when he refuses to stand down after end of second term is my guess. It will not be peaceful.
I don't understand this point of view. If Trump wins an election fairly under the rules, how does that pose a problem for democracy? Do you expect him to abolish elections.
It is a problem for democracy because he, like other fascists before him, only believes in elections if they deliver victories to people like him. it is a weakness of the system which there is no easy answer
Then have the courage of your convictions and ban him (or the GOP) as a threat to democracy as the Germans did with the Nazi party post-1945. If you truly believe what you state, that is the logical next step - just be open about it.
You miss the important point that I am not American, nor on their Supreme Court. I was just stating a view.
"50% to 70% less likely to be admitted to hospital"
50-70% being the confidence/credible interval.
But this figure in itself seems pretty meaningless. They excluded known reinfections, so it's presumably meant to be a stab at estimating the intrinsic severity of Omicron versus Delta, excluding the fact that a much larger percentage of those infected with Omicron have some kind of immunity. But they acknowledge that known reinfections will be a "a substantial underestimate".
The Imperial College study did attempt to allow for unidentified reinfections, and came up with only about a 25% reduction in hospital stays of at least one night.
Reportedly SAGE advises that the rate of hospitalisation would need to be 90% lower in order to avoid exceeding the previous peak - not 50-70% and not 25%.
@Chris, if you're really that concerned, I can forward on a list of absolutely stunning but uninhabited Hebridean islands.
You could probably get one rent free as long as you keep an eye on the ewes during lambing and are happy to briefly interact with a local boatman to offload the lambs come the autumn.
"50% to 70% less likely to be admitted to hospital"
50-70% being the confidence/credible interval.
But this figure in itself seems pretty meaningless. They excluded known reinfections, so it's presumably meant to be a stab at estimating the intrinsic severity of Omicron versus Delta, excluding the fact that a much larger percentage of those infected with Omicron have some kind of immunity. But they acknowledge that known reinfections will be a "a substantial underestimate".
The Imperial College study did attempt to allow for unidentified reinfections, and came up with only about a 25% reduction in hospital stays of at least one night.
Reportedly SAGE advises that the rate of hospitalisation would need to be 90% lower in order to avoid exceeding the previous peak - not 50-70% and not 25%.
@Chris, if you're really that concerned, I can forward on a list of absolutely stunning but uninhabited Hebridean islands.
You could probably get one rent free as long as you keep an eye on the ewes during lambing and are happy to briefly interact with a local boatman to offload the lambs come the autumn.
Chris exists on a higher plane of existence to us anyway.
On topic, this is why I don't think Sunak or Truss will become the next leader - they won't cut it in the RW seats and the newly elected MPs know that. Same goes for the likes of Hunt etc. In fact, I think, given the change in the Conservative MP base from the last election from leader, there will be a strong demand for a leader whose background is more aligned to RW voters.
I'm loath to admit this as I realise PB will laugh at my stupidity but I've put a few quid on at 100/1 for both McVey and Dorries as next leader. McVey because, if she decides to stand again, can credibly point to be a major driver behind Red Wall Conservatism and also because she has consistently voted against lockdown measures, which will gain her a base amongst the MPs. Dorries because she is a pitbull when it comes to the cultural stuff and, if she gets the DCMS portfolio right, will be seen as someone who takes the fight to Labour.
I get your thought process but disagree with it based on nothing more than British class bollocks.
McVey and Dorries will put off a lot of southern Tories because they are scallies. A lot of southern Tories would rather vote Labour and have nice middle class boy they understand but look down on than a scouse PM.
Whereas red wall voters could accept Sunak - the proles like a wealthy public school leader. He’s also got a Northern seat so whilst it’s a wealthy seat it helps perception.
He also seems (whether true or not) to be in touch with people but I think too many people would see Dories and McV as a bit hectoring (and no it’s not because they are strong women but because they are a bit hectoring in style unlike Rishi Smoothy).
This is likely to be an absolute load of bollocks but I’m going with it.
It's not bollocks and I get that. I can see the argument that Dorries and McVey would put off nice middle class Tories and certainly it would switch a few more seats to the LDs in the South.
However, I think many of the MPs who just got elected will take that chance as it is not their seats. The issue with Rishi - as we are seeing with his handling of the latest restrictions - is that he is not instinctively in tune on the economic front with the RW voters. And he is also not fully in tune on the social conservatism front either. He is the sort of leader who would probably save the Tories some seats in the South East but would lose them a bunch in the North and Midlands.
Also, "the proles" don't necessarily like posh leaders. They took BJ because, like them, his attitude to life seemed tgo be to enjoy it and live and let live. Rishi is not like that. You wouldn't go down the pub with him and I doubt you would see many RW female voters swoon over 'Dishy Rishi' like the middle class housewives of the Home Counties.
The real reason why McVey and Dorries put off southern Tories is not because they are scallies, but because they are crap. The fact that they are scallies is incidental.
"50% to 70% less likely to be admitted to hospital"
50-70% being the confidence/credible interval.
But this figure in itself seems pretty meaningless. They excluded known reinfections, so it's presumably meant to be a stab at estimating the intrinsic severity of Omicron versus Delta, excluding the fact that a much larger percentage of those infected with Omicron have some kind of immunity. But they acknowledge that known reinfections will be a "a substantial underestimate".
The Imperial College study did attempt to allow for unidentified reinfections, and came up with only about a 25% reduction in hospital stays of at least one night.
Reportedly SAGE advises that the rate of hospitalisation would need to be 90% lower in order to avoid exceeding the previous peak - not 50-70% and not 25%.
@Chris, if you're really that concerned, I can forward on a list of absolutely stunning but uninhabited Hebridean islands.
You could probably get one rent free as long as you keep an eye on the ewes during lambing and are happy to briefly interact with a local boatman to offload the lambs come the autumn.
Just watch the Trump clip. He's going to run, and he's going to win.
He has far, far more energy than Biden.
Don't think US democracy would survive another Trump term.
Likewise.
He will run. He will beat a clearly past it but stubborn Biden.
And then it's over. 200-odd years of democracy. It's done.
Some states will leave the union when he refuses to stand down after end of second term is my guess. It will not be peaceful.
I don't understand this point of view. If Trump wins an election fairly under the rules, how does that pose a problem for democracy? Do you expect him to abolish elections.
It is a problem for democracy because he, like other fascists before him, only believes in elections if they deliver victories to people like him. it is a weakness of the system which there is no easy answer
Then have the courage of your convictions and ban him (or the GOP) as a threat to democracy as the Germans did with the Nazi party post-1945. If you truly believe what you state, that is the logical next step - just be open about it.
Donald Trump should indeed be barred from running again. I have no problem whatsoever with saying that.
On topic, this is why I don't think Sunak or Truss will become the next leader - they won't cut it in the RW seats and the newly elected MPs know that. Same goes for the likes of Hunt etc. In fact, I think, given the change in the Conservative MP base from the last election from leader, there will be a strong demand for a leader whose background is more aligned to RW voters.
I'm loath to admit this as I realise PB will laugh at my stupidity but I've put a few quid on at 100/1 for both McVey and Dorries as next leader. McVey because, if she decides to stand again, can credibly point to be a major driver behind Red Wall Conservatism and also because she has consistently voted against lockdown measures, which will gain her a base amongst the MPs. Dorries because she is a pitbull when it comes to the cultural stuff and, if she gets the DCMS portfolio right, will be seen as someone who takes the fight to Labour.
I get your thought process but disagree with it based on nothing more than British class bollocks.
McVey and Dorries will put off a lot of southern Tories because they are scallies. A lot of southern Tories would rather vote Labour and have nice middle class boy they understand but look down on than a scouse PM.
Whereas red wall voters could accept Sunak - the proles like a wealthy public school leader. He’s also got a Northern seat so whilst it’s a wealthy seat it helps perception.
He also seems (whether true or not) to be in touch with people but I think too many people would see Dories and McV as a bit hectoring (and no it’s not because they are strong women but because they are a bit hectoring in style unlike Rishi Smoothy).
This is likely to be an absolute load of bollocks but I’m going with it.
It's not bollocks and I get that. I can see the argument that Dorries and McVey would put off nice middle class Tories and certainly it would switch a few more seats to the LDs in the South.
However, I think many of the MPs who just got elected will take that chance as it is not their seats. The issue with Rishi - as we are seeing with his handling of the latest restrictions - is that he is not instinctively in tune on the economic front with the RW voters. And he is also not fully in tune on the social conservatism front either. He is the sort of leader who would probably save the Tories some seats in the South East but would lose them a bunch in the North and Midlands.
Also, "the proles" don't necessarily like posh leaders. They took BJ because, like them, his attitude to life seemed tgo be to enjoy it and live and let live. Rishi is not like that. You wouldn't go down the pub with him and I doubt you would see many RW female voters swoon over 'Dishy Rishi' like the middle class housewives of the Home Counties.
The real reason why McVey and Dorries put off southern Tories is not because they are scallies, but because they are crap. The fact that they are scallies is incidental.
Either of them would lead the Tories to a terrible defeat. Even without Scotland, I'd expect Labour to get a big, big majority against a Dorries led Conservative Party. She'd be absolutely useless.... the Tories answer to Jeremy Corbyn.
The prize for best estimate of the highest daily Booster count will be a copy of The Prime Ministers by Iain Dale, signed by the author with a dedication to the competition winner.
The stewards have looked at the issue of entrants changing their identity mid-competition and have decided that, so long as the intention is not to defraud the competition, entries will roll over from old ID to new.
Boosters reported today: 840,038 Highest Boosters to date: 968,665 (22/12) Nearest estimate: @Northern_Al 963,451 Next nearest: @MattW (986,000)
I've just returned home to see this. Looking good for me provided the downward path continues. If I win, it may be the first book by a Tory to enter my house (apart from Blair's autobiography, of course . I shall enjoy it. (Actually, scratch that - I've got Alan Clark's diaries somewhere).
However, I await the judgement of the plethora of expert modellers on here to confirm that the boosters may not get a further boost between now and the New Year. Or I guess I could just wait and see what happens.
"50% to 70% less likely to be admitted to hospital"
50-70% being the confidence/credible interval.
But this figure in itself seems pretty meaningless. They excluded known reinfections, so it's presumably meant to be a stab at estimating the intrinsic severity of Omicron versus Delta, excluding the fact that a much larger percentage of those infected with Omicron have some kind of immunity. But they acknowledge that known reinfections will be a "a substantial underestimate".
The Imperial College study did attempt to allow for unidentified reinfections, and came up with only about a 25% reduction in hospital stays of at least one night.
Reportedly SAGE advises that the rate of hospitalisation would need to be 90% lower in order to avoid exceeding the previous peak - not 50-70% and not 25%.
@Chris, if you're really that concerned, I can forward on a list of absolutely stunning but uninhabited Hebridean islands.
You could probably get one rent free as long as you keep an eye on the ewes during lambing and are happy to briefly interact with a local boatman to offload the lambs come the autumn.
On topic, this is why I don't think Sunak or Truss will become the next leader - they won't cut it in the RW seats and the newly elected MPs know that. Same goes for the likes of Hunt etc. In fact, I think, given the change in the Conservative MP base from the last election from leader, there will be a strong demand for a leader whose background is more aligned to RW voters.
I'm loath to admit this as I realise PB will laugh at my stupidity but I've put a few quid on at 100/1 for both McVey and Dorries as next leader. McVey because, if she decides to stand again, can credibly point to be a major driver behind Red Wall Conservatism and also because she has consistently voted against lockdown measures, which will gain her a base amongst the MPs. Dorries because she is a pitbull when it comes to the cultural stuff and, if she gets the DCMS portfolio right, will be seen as someone who takes the fight to Labour.
I get your thought process but disagree with it based on nothing more than British class bollocks.
McVey and Dorries will put off a lot of southern Tories because they are scallies. A lot of southern Tories would rather vote Labour and have nice middle class boy they understand but look down on than a scouse PM.
Whereas red wall voters could accept Sunak - the proles like a wealthy public school leader. He’s also got a Northern seat so whilst it’s a wealthy seat it helps perception.
He also seems (whether true or not) to be in touch with people but I think too many people would see Dories and McV as a bit hectoring (and no it’s not because they are strong women but because they are a bit hectoring in style unlike Rishi Smoothy).
This is likely to be an absolute load of bollocks but I’m going with it.
It's not bollocks and I get that. I can see the argument that Dorries and McVey would put off nice middle class Tories and certainly it would switch a few more seats to the LDs in the South.
However, I think many of the MPs who just got elected will take that chance as it is not their seats. The issue with Rishi - as we are seeing with his handling of the latest restrictions - is that he is not instinctively in tune on the economic front with the RW voters. And he is also not fully in tune on the social conservatism front either. He is the sort of leader who would probably save the Tories some seats in the South East but would lose them a bunch in the North and Midlands.
Also, "the proles" don't necessarily like posh leaders. They took BJ because, like them, his attitude to life seemed tgo be to enjoy it and live and let live. Rishi is not like that. You wouldn't go down the pub with him and I doubt you would see many RW female voters swoon over 'Dishy Rishi' like the middle class housewives of the Home Counties.
The real reason why McVey and Dorries put off southern Tories is not because they are scallies, but because they are crap. The fact that they are scallies is incidental.
Either of them would lead the Tories to a terrible defeat. Even without Scotland, I'd expect Labour to get a big, big majority against a Dorries led Conservative Party. She'd be absolutely useless.... the Tories answer to Jeremy Corbyn.
I'd say the important skill that Boris has not got is the ability to delegate to a competent staff, and the ability to organise one in the first place.
Loved this in The Guardian’s list of the year’s 50 best tv shows:
37. Blair and Brown: The New Labour Revolution (BBC Two)
… It is an inside job, with Labour veterans as unreliable narrators. Brown’s speechwriter Douglas Alexander even says: “They were literally the Lennon and McCartney of British politics.” Rubbish. They were more like Wham!, with no George Michael and two Andrew Ridgeleys.
The best political programme of the last decade IMHO
That surely has to be Cumberbatch's Brexit. Took the piss out of everybody quite brilliantly.
For me the best political history programme of the last decade (it was made in 1998 but I only saw it for the first time a couple of years ago) was the Secret History on the Winter of Discontent. Sheds a lot of light on the episode which determined the fate of British politics, economics and society for at least a decade to come, and still influences it to this day.
Thanks for the link. That was excellent but it makes me think that Thatcher was an incredibly moderate and restrained response to that stupidity and arrogance. They really deserved a much harsher response.
On topic, this is why I don't think Sunak or Truss will become the next leader - they won't cut it in the RW seats and the newly elected MPs know that. Same goes for the likes of Hunt etc. In fact, I think, given the change in the Conservative MP base from the last election from leader, there will be a strong demand for a leader whose background is more aligned to RW voters.
I'm loath to admit this as I realise PB will laugh at my stupidity but I've put a few quid on at 100/1 for both McVey and Dorries as next leader. McVey because, if she decides to stand again, can credibly point to be a major driver behind Red Wall Conservatism and also because she has consistently voted against lockdown measures, which will gain her a base amongst the MPs. Dorries because she is a pitbull when it comes to the cultural stuff and, if she gets the DCMS portfolio right, will be seen as someone who takes the fight to Labour.
I get your thought process but disagree with it based on nothing more than British class bollocks.
McVey and Dorries will put off a lot of southern Tories because they are scallies. A lot of southern Tories would rather vote Labour and have nice middle class boy they understand but look down on than a scouse PM.
Whereas red wall voters could accept Sunak - the proles like a wealthy public school leader. He’s also got a Northern seat so whilst it’s a wealthy seat it helps perception.
He also seems (whether true or not) to be in touch with people but I think too many people would see Dories and McV as a bit hectoring (and no it’s not because they are strong women but because they are a bit hectoring in style unlike Rishi Smoothy).
This is likely to be an absolute load of bollocks but I’m going with it.
It's not bollocks and I get that. I can see the argument that Dorries and McVey would put off nice middle class Tories and certainly it would switch a few more seats to the LDs in the South.
However, I think many of the MPs who just got elected will take that chance as it is not their seats. The issue with Rishi - as we are seeing with his handling of the latest restrictions - is that he is not instinctively in tune on the economic front with the RW voters. And he is also not fully in tune on the social conservatism front either. He is the sort of leader who would probably save the Tories some seats in the South East but would lose them a bunch in the North and Midlands.
Also, "the proles" don't necessarily like posh leaders. They took BJ because, like them, his attitude to life seemed tgo be to enjoy it and live and let live. Rishi is not like that. You wouldn't go down the pub with him and I doubt you would see many RW female voters swoon over 'Dishy Rishi' like the middle class housewives of the Home Counties.
The real reason why McVey and Dorries put off southern Tories is not because they are scallies, but because they are crap. The fact that they are scallies is incidental.
Either of them would lead the Tories to a terrible defeat. Even without Scotland, I'd expect Labour to get a big, big majority against a Dorries led Conservative Party. She'd be absolutely useless.... the Tories answer to Jeremy Corbyn.
I'd say the important skill that Boris has not got is the ability to delegate to a competent staff, and the ability to organise one in the first place.
I'm not sure that's right. At London he had some very good staff, and mostly let them get on with it, devoting his attentions to wafting around on visits and pursuing his wacky expensive ideas.
But national government doesn't work in the same way, and can't work with a lazy f****r at the top.
I used to think like that until I appreciated that those who want to defund the police want to defund this police force on the grounds that it is f******* useless and replace it with something better. She may well conclude that being carjacked rather makes her point rather than detracting from it.
I actually have a lot of sympathy, as I have written before, with the actual aims of 'defund the police' - to rethink how policing is done, including stopping asking the police to deal with things for which they are neither trained or funded, such as homelessness, family counseling, and mental health.
However, I think that the name sucks. And it is also obvious that some of the 'defund the police' activists do take the slogan literally.
There was a very good piece on what happened with defund the police in Burlington VA where the aim was literally to cut the police department budget by 30% over a number of years through natural attrition of the workforce. It happened in 6 months because the police officers thought "f this for a game of soldiers, we have no political support", and more than 30% resigned. Crime and anti-social behaviour is rampant in downtown, and businesses there are suffering as a consequence.
It is a pity there is not a potential leader as capable as Gove, as hardworking as May, as charismatic as Johnson and as decent as Hunt. Though they would still need the self-self-promotional skills of Truss to win.
BUPA have been utterly useless on the covering of my counselling, they refused to cover it as they don't recognise the person I get it from. I went because my GP recommended it, which is what people will do.
So I am off to AVIVA
Counselling is an unregulated profession. There are no bars to anyone offering such services without any recognised qualification. Which is a national scandal to be honest. It is also why no-one can ban "conversion therapy" despite many thinking it is a good idea. Since there is no definition of therapy. Good luck with yours.
"50% to 70% less likely to be admitted to hospital"
50-70% being the confidence/credible interval.
But this figure in itself seems pretty meaningless. They excluded known reinfections, so it's presumably meant to be a stab at estimating the intrinsic severity of Omicron versus Delta, excluding the fact that a much larger percentage of those infected with Omicron have some kind of immunity. But they acknowledge that known reinfections will be a "a substantial underestimate".
The Imperial College study did attempt to allow for unidentified reinfections, and came up with only about a 25% reduction in hospital stays of at least one night.
Reportedly SAGE advises that the rate of hospitalisation would need to be 90% lower in order to avoid exceeding the previous peak - not 50-70% and not 25%.
@Chris, if you're really that concerned, I can forward on a list of absolutely stunning but uninhabited Hebridean islands.
You could probably get one rent free as long as you keep an eye on the ewes during lambing and are happy to briefly interact with a local boatman to offload the lambs come the autumn.
"50% to 70% less likely to be admitted to hospital"
50-70% being the confidence/credible interval.
But this figure in itself seems pretty meaningless. They excluded known reinfections, so it's presumably meant to be a stab at estimating the intrinsic severity of Omicron versus Delta, excluding the fact that a much larger percentage of those infected with Omicron have some kind of immunity. But they acknowledge that known reinfections will be a "a substantial underestimate".
The Imperial College study did attempt to allow for unidentified reinfections, and came up with only about a 25% reduction in hospital stays of at least one night.
Reportedly SAGE advises that the rate of hospitalisation would need to be 90% lower in order to avoid exceeding the previous peak - not 50-70% and not 25%.
@Chris, if you're really that concerned, I can forward on a list of absolutely stunning but uninhabited Hebridean islands.
You could probably get one rent free as long as you keep an eye on the ewes during lambing and are happy to briefly interact with a local boatman to offload the lambs come the autumn.
Gruinard deprecated tho.
I thought they cleaned it up.
They said they had. Sprayed the place with formalin. Supposed to have inactivated the anthrax spores.
Seems odd to me - if it inactivated them you'd think it would inactivate anything else, given how resistant the spores are, but the place is still grassy etc.
"50% to 70% less likely to be admitted to hospital"
50-70% being the confidence/credible interval.
But this figure in itself seems pretty meaningless. They excluded known reinfections, so it's presumably meant to be a stab at estimating the intrinsic severity of Omicron versus Delta, excluding the fact that a much larger percentage of those infected with Omicron have some kind of immunity. But they acknowledge that known reinfections will be a "a substantial underestimate".
The Imperial College study did attempt to allow for unidentified reinfections, and came up with only about a 25% reduction in hospital stays of at least one night.
Reportedly SAGE advises that the rate of hospitalisation would need to be 90% lower in order to avoid exceeding the previous peak - not 50-70% and not 25%.
You mustn't forget the average duration of stay matters too. You can half twice the intake, if the length of stay has halved.
Anyway, hankies at the ready - Jon Snow's last ever Ch4 news coming up.
He was my favourite news presenter when I started watching the news in about 1990. Sad that this is his final time.
I made him laugh once. I was on a panel on one of his shows (probably 1998) , and without realizing it, I rolled my eyes at what one of the other panelists said. He loved it.
Just watch the Trump clip. He's going to run, and he's going to win.
He has far, far more energy than Biden.
Don't think US democracy would survive another Trump term.
Likewise.
He will run. He will beat a clearly past it but stubborn Biden.
And then it's over. 200-odd years of democracy. It's done.
Some states will leave the union when he refuses to stand down after end of second term is my guess. It will not be peaceful.
I don't understand this point of view. If Trump wins an election fairly under the rules, how does that pose a problem for democracy? Do you expect him to abolish elections.
It is a problem for democracy because he, like other fascists before him, only believes in elections if they deliver victories to people like him. it is a weakness of the system which there is no easy answer
Then have the courage of your convictions and ban him (or the GOP) as a threat to democracy as the Germans did with the Nazi party post-1945. If you truly believe what you state, that is the logical next step - just be open about it.
Donald Trump should indeed be barred from running again. I have no problem whatsoever with saying that.
He should be in jail for inciting an attempted coup.
Comments
Whether or not this would please GPs is unclear. On the one hand, it would relieve them of all the burden of deal with jabs. On the other hand, it would also relieve them of the income.
All this data is based on tiny sample sizes as well. The hospitalisation was based on 132 people...
Hampstead too has Tory councillors despite being heavy Remain and with a Labour MP
Time will tell.
Monolith inspired cocktail of the day - Loco Unicorn.
https://mixthatdrink.com/loco-unicorn-loconut-cocktail/
As I posted the other day, Gibraltar, one of the most vaccinated place on earth, cancelled Christmas a few days ago. The restrictions are pretty tight.
He's simply following the example of his beloved leader, Boris.
But I'm shocked HYUFD has voted for any party other than the Tories. He is to me the prime example of the type of voter who will vote for anyone with a Blue (or Red) Rosette.
Tactical voting does look to be on. Let's make sure this time it leads to an actual electoral system where tactical voting is no longer needed because everyone's vote has equal relevance. I find it thoroughly boring living in a constituency with a 30k+ Labour majority where my sweet little Lib Dem vote will never count for anything.
We need to remove restrictions and live with it. Another mate today has tested positive. A slight sniffle. No more.
Expect more of this. There have been whispers about a big party outside Bute House, too.
PCR came in finally and was positive but this makes no difference now
Alas I've been getting slower anyway as I am also bulking so I am slightly at odds anyway
HYUFD this dirty martini is for you
https://www.therarewelshbit.com/dirty-martini-cardiff-red-dragon-cocktail/
🍹cheers
So I am off to AVIVA
A MAN has been arrested and charged for allegedly organising a Hogmanay party on Nicola Sturgeon’s street.
The 33-year-old was nicked yesterday under the Communications Act 2003 after allegedly creating a Facebook event titled “NYE street party @ sturgeons house”.
https://www.hud.ac.uk/news/2021/january/covid-vaccine-jab-volunteer-training/
If you're actually ill then stay home and recuperate if you need to do so. Though that should be at your own judgement no different to any other illnesses.
But if you're positive yet not ill, eg asymptomatic then yes you should live your life as normal.
Not sure where you link infecting others in with that. The asymptomatic positive, and those who don't know they're positive, and plenty of others can "infect" others. Getting infected with lurgies is something that happens to people every day.
However, I await the judgement of the plethora of expert modellers on here to confirm that the boosters may not get a further boost between now and the New Year. Or I guess I could just wait and see what happens.
They now can’t afford not to do it, especially given that Putin seems hell-bent on choking the European gas supply.
https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/insurance/healthcare-cash-plans/
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10339587/Now-Sturgeon-loses-terraces-Anger-boils-football-matches-Scotland.html
“A crowd of young supporters at Hibernian v Aberdeen chanted 'Sturgeon, get tae f***' while others held a banner saying 'open your homes for COP26, closed doors for fans, f*** SNP' - a reference to the climate change conference which some have blamed for fuelling cases.”
Broadly, anyone sensible and paying attention supported Remain. I would prefer my politicians to be the sort that are sensible and paying attention, and not to restrict ourselves entirely to the other kind.
She's just been given the OK to WFH permanently when we marry, which is pretty much a win all round (especially as she's on a Bristol wage but will be moving up to somewhere far cheaper) - but it took the intervention of someone very senior in her firm for this to happen - I teHR weren't keen to set a precedent.
Some of her colleagues hate full time WFH as they find the social isolation too big a deal, and have been in the office most days when it's allowed.
It's all very academic to me - I make real stuff, so have to be there to do stuff with it.
I'm loath to admit this as I realise PB will laugh at my stupidity but I've put a few quid on at 100/1 for both McVey and Dorries as next leader. McVey because, if she decides to stand again, can credibly point to be a major driver behind Red Wall Conservatism and also because she has consistently voted against lockdown measures, which will gain her a base amongst the MPs. Dorries because she is a pitbull when it comes to the cultural stuff and, if she gets the DCMS portfolio right, will be seen as someone who takes the fight to Labour.
But this figure in itself seems pretty meaningless. They excluded known reinfections, so it's presumably meant to be a stab at estimating the intrinsic severity of Omicron versus Delta, excluding the fact that a much larger percentage of those infected with Omicron have some kind of immunity. But they acknowledge that known reinfections will be a "a substantial underestimate".
The Imperial College study did attempt to allow for unidentified reinfections, and came up with only about a 25% reduction in hospital stays of at least one night.
Reportedly SAGE advises that the rate of hospitalisation would need to be 90% lower in order to avoid exceeding the previous peak - not 50-70% and not 25%.
https://collection.nam.ac.uk/detail.php?acc=1966-11-32-173
What's your position on Typhoid Mary? She was completely asymptomatic positive and wanted to be left to get on with her life as a cook.
McVey and Dorries will put off a lot of southern Tories because they are scallies. A lot of southern Tories would rather vote Labour and have nice middle class boy they understand but look down on than a scouse PM.
Whereas red wall voters could accept Sunak - the proles like a wealthy public school leader. He’s also got a Northern seat so whilst it’s a wealthy seat it helps perception.
He also seems (whether true or not) to be in touch with people but I think too many people would see Dories and McV as a bit hectoring (and no it’s not because they are strong women but because they are a bit hectoring in style unlike Rishi Smoothy).
This is likely to be an absolute load of bollocks but I’m going with it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5eaOo-2eJM
However, I think many of the MPs who just got elected will take that chance as it is not their seats. The issue with Rishi - as we are seeing with his handling of the latest restrictions - is that he is not instinctively in tune on the economic front with the RW voters. And he is also not fully in tune on the social conservatism front either. He is the sort of leader who would probably save the Tories some seats in the South East but would lose them a bunch in the North and Midlands.
Also, "the proles" don't necessarily like posh leaders. They took BJ because, like them, his attitude to life seemed tgo be to enjoy it and live and let live. Rishi is not like that. You wouldn't go down the pub with him and I doubt you would see many RW female voters swoon over 'Dishy Rishi' like the middle class housewives of the Home Counties.
You could probably get one rent free as long as you keep an eye on the ewes during lambing and are happy to briefly interact with a local boatman to offload the lambs come the autumn.
Voted Plaid = welsh nationalist = a disgrace to the Tory cause. What a massive massive hypocrite.
Macron blaming the UK incoming in 5...4...3...2...1.
But national government doesn't work in the same way, and can't work with a lazy f****r at the top.
However, I think that the name sucks. And it is also obvious that some of the 'defund the police' activists do take the slogan literally.
There was a very good piece on what happened with defund the police in Burlington VA where the aim was literally to cut the police department budget by 30% over a number of years through natural attrition of the workforce. It happened in 6 months because the police officers thought "f this for a game of soldiers, we have no political support", and more than 30% resigned. Crime and anti-social behaviour is rampant in downtown, and businesses there are suffering as a consequence.
Which is a national scandal to be honest.
It is also why no-one can ban "conversion therapy" despite many thinking it is a good idea.
Since there is no definition of therapy.
Good luck with yours.
Oh, there is someone at the door. I may be some time.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/1819816/
https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/gruinard-island
Seems odd to me - if it inactivated them you'd think it would inactivate anything else, given how resistant the spores are, but the place is still grassy etc.
Edit: on checking, it was reseeded.