Schools in scotland closing Friday - not open before summer holidays......
If the info I talked about earlier this week is correct yet another example of Sturgeon getting in first
I don't think she is saying anything dramatic and shocking. TBH I was surprised that schools were left open this week.
They need a plan for: 1 Children of key workers whether that be emergency services, supermarkets or the people who keep the internet running 2 Vulnerable children where school is the only respite they get from the scum they call mum and dad 3 Very poor children where school is the only place they get a healthy / hot / any meal 4 Everyone due to sit GSCEs / A-Levels in a few weeks
I think the exams will be off
Sure, that seems obvious. So universities are intaking in September based on...?
Maybe we just pause the whole system and restart in September repeating the year through the system, add new reception capacity and take the pressure off the graduate job market.
HS2 now feels even more like a massive indulgence.
I'm not sure that works. 27.6 million households in the UK * £10,000 = £276,000,000,000 Which is about £200,000,000,000 more than the actual cost of HS2.
Labour probably only needs to recover to circa 260 seats given the Anti-Tory bloc in Scotland. I also expect some Labour recovery in Scotland under Starmer.
I would say Labour actually needs to get to 280 to 290 seats if the LDs do not gain any seats as any Labour gains from the SNP make no net change in the anti Tory block. If the LDs reach 30 to 40 seats however then yes 260 seats for Labour would be enough to form a minority or coalition Labour government with LD and SNP support
I don't disagree with that really. Labour would only need 260 or so on the basis of the SNP still having circa 45 seats.Were Labour to gain at SNP expense to reach 270 seats, the SNP would only need circa 35.
Labour probably only needs to recover to circa 260 seats given the Anti-Tory bloc in Scotland. I also expect some Labour recovery in Scotland under Starmer.
I would say Labour actually needs to get to 280 to 290 seats if the LDs do not gain any seats as any Labour gains from the SNP make no net change in the anti Tory block. If the LDs reach 30 to 40 seats however then yes 260 seats for Labour would be enough to form a minority or coalition Labour government with LD and SNP support
I don't disagree with that really. Labour would only need 260 or so on the basis of the SNP still having circa 45 seats.Were Labour to gain at SNP to reach 270 seats, the SNP would only need circa 35.
I really don't get this idea....we will have a government allied with the snp. Surely their price will be independence referendum which they will likely win. At which point SNP are no longer part of rump uk government so labour then is no longer the majority and government becomes the tories again.....what am I missing?
Considering the Eurovision song contest 'goes live' to each capital during the judging, I don't see why they couldn't 'go live' to each performance. It could be done with relatively little contact. It would be a live TV and broadcasting event.
To some extent I think these people should think a little bit out more out of the box. Eurovision is no doubt a morale-raising night in for many people, so it's a shame more hasn't been done to keep the 'competition' going even if it's not via a live music event.
Scottish schools to shut from Friday. Might get told tomorrow what they are doing about exams this year. Apparently free school lunches are the priority though.
My son is desperately trying to get assessments completed and lodged but it may be pointless.
Considering the Eurovision song contest 'goes live' to each capital during the judging, I don't see why they couldn't 'go live' to each performance. It could be done with relatively little contact. It would be a live TV and broadcasting event.
To some extent I think these people should think a little bit out more out of the box. Eurovision is no doubt a morale-raising night in for many people, so it's a shame more hasn't been done to keep the 'competition' going even if it's not via a live music event.
I think it might be to stop people congregating in their homes more than anything.
HS2 now feels even more like a massive indulgence.
I disagree. We are going to need some massive capital infrastructure projects to give a shock to an economy in cardiac arrest. HS2 is further down the track (apologies) than most alternatives.
much better value giving everybody 10K for sure rather than waste it on some divvies getting to London 10 minutes earlier
Scottish schools to shut from Friday. Might get told tomorrow what they are doing about exams this year. Apparently free school lunches are the priority though.
My son is desperately trying to get assessments completed and lodged but it may be pointless.
Seems a poor decision driven by producer interests. Scotland so far is barely touched. What happens when they need to flatten the curve in a month or two?
Pressure by people who will get full pay causing people who will be lucky to get ssp to stop work.
Labour probably only needs to recover to circa 260 seats given the Anti-Tory bloc in Scotland. I also expect some Labour recovery in Scotland under Starmer.
I would say Labour actually needs to get to 280 to 290 seats if the LDs do not gain any seats as any Labour gains from the SNP make no net change in the anti Tory block. If the LDs reach 30 to 40 seats however then yes 260 seats for Labour would be enough to form a minority or coalition Labour government with LD and SNP support
I don't disagree with that really. Labour would only need 260 or so on the basis of the SNP still having circa 45 seats.Were Labour to gain at SNP expense to reach 270 seats, the SNP would only need circa 35.
Though that would ve quite an unstable government requiring SNP, LD, Green, SDLP and Plaid support to put Labour in government unless the LDs won more seats from the Tories to reduce the number of parties required to reach 326 seats fir a Commons majority or enough for a working majority without Sinn Fein taking their seats
Agreed. This is the way we will come out of the lockdown without needing a vaccine.
A test to see if you have had the virus would be great.
But unless I've missed something it is not as yet known that getting it and recovering gives immunity for any length of time?
We need a few different types of test.
We have the gold-standard for confirmation that you are sick. This should be reserved for those on the front-line and should be close to 100% sensitive and specific. That's what we have been using so far but it only works in individuals with the virus currently. It takes up to 48 hours as the virus needs cultivating.
We need a rapid rule-out test which can be used for symptomatic sufferers. It needs to be reasonably sensitive and specific but crucially it needs to be fast. This can be used for surveillance and to ascertain incidence in the population.
We need an anti-body based test which can tell us if we have had the disease. Those patients who have had the disease can then start to function in society. Such a test can tell us about prevalence in society.
When sufficient numbers have had the lurgy using the anti-body test, we can then unlock. If it pops up again, we use the other different test modalities to isolate, contact trace and bring it under control in local populations.
It's far more feasible than a vaccine which is possible but is extremely complex to develop and hard to scale quickly.
Considering the Eurovision song contest 'goes live' to each capital during the judging, I don't see why they couldn't 'go live' to each performance. It could be done with relatively little contact. It would be a live TV and broadcasting event.
To some extent I think these people should think a little bit out more out of the box. Eurovision is no doubt a morale-raising night in for many people, so it's a shame more hasn't been done to keep the 'competition' going even if it's not via a live music event.
I think it might be to stop people congregating in their homes more than anything.
That precludes putting out anything popular that lots of people want to watch on the TV.
Considering the Eurovision song contest 'goes live' to each capital during the judging, I don't see why they couldn't 'go live' to each performance. It could be done with relatively little contact. It would be a live TV and broadcasting event.
To some extent I think these people should think a little bit out more out of the box. Eurovision is no doubt a morale-raising night in for many people, so it's a shame more hasn't been done to keep the 'competition' going even if it's not via a live music event.
I think it might be to stop people congregating in their homes more than anything.
That precludes putting out anything popular that lots of people want to watch on the TV.
Do people have parties for other TV shows? I think Eurovision is a sort of unique case.
It will likely be cancelled or played with no crowd
Oh yes, no fans is a given. But they could test the players first and then play it for the TV. What an event that would be. It would be one continuous 17 day long valium drip for the nation. Pulses would slow, cares would fade away, all of us glued to the screen thinking not of coronavirus but just how long it was taking Graeme Dott to compile this frame winning break of 36.
Labour probably only needs to recover to circa 260 seats given the Anti-Tory bloc in Scotland. I also expect some Labour recovery in Scotland under Starmer.
I would say Labour actually needs to get to 280 to 290 seats if the LDs do not gain any seats as any Labour gains from the SNP make no net change in the anti Tory block. If the LDs reach 30 to 40 seats however then yes 260 seats for Labour would be enough to form a minority or coalition Labour government with LD and SNP support
I don't disagree with that really. Labour would only need 260 or so on the basis of the SNP still having circa 45 seats.Were Labour to gain at SNP expense to reach 270 seats, the SNP would only need circa 35.
Lots of anger about empty supermarkets and "evil" panic buyers on my FB feed. But is that really justified? My guess (and it is just a guess) is that the shortages are primarily due to lots of people buying, say, 120% of their normal weekly shop rather than the occasional 48-roll desperado. Is my guess justified? How much flexibility is there in the grocery supply line?
HS2 now feels even more like a massive indulgence.
I'm not sure that works. 27.6 million households in the UK * £10,000 = £276,000,000,000 Which is about £200,000,000,000 more than the actual cost of HS2.
Also is £1,000 a week going to provide enough toilet rolls? Surely people can live far cheaper than that giving there arent many ways of spending money!
Lots of anger about empty supermarkets and "evil" panic buyers on my FB feed. But is that really justified? My guess (and it is just a guess) is that the shortages are primarily due to lots of people buying, say, 120% of their normal weekly shop rather than the occasional 48-roll desperado. Is my guess justified? How much flexibility is there in the grocery supply line?
You have not been in a supermarket recently I take it.
Labour probably only needs to recover to circa 260 seats given the Anti-Tory bloc in Scotland. I also expect some Labour recovery in Scotland under Starmer.
I would say Labour actually needs to get to 280 to 290 seats if the LDs do not gain any seats as any Labour gains from the SNP make no net change in the anti Tory block. If the LDs reach 30 to 40 seats however then yes 260 seats for Labour would be enough to form a minority or coalition Labour government with LD and SNP support
I don't disagree with that really. Labour would only need 260 or so on the basis of the SNP still having circa 45 seats.Were Labour to gain at SNP to reach 270 seats, the SNP would only need circa 35.
I really don't get this idea....we will have a government allied with the snp. Surely their price will be independence referendum which they will likely win. At which point SNP are no longer part of rump uk government so labour then is no longer the majority and government becomes the tories again.....what am I missing?
You are missing the key point a Starmer premiership would take the UK back into the single market reducing the likelihood of a Yes vote in any indyref2.
The SNP thus face the problem Boris has banned indyref2 when his hard Brexit makes it winnable, while Starmer would allow indyref2 but his soft Brexit means Yes would likely lose it
I see the daily dose of moronic anti London comments is being administered again
Knock Knock "Who's there?" "Your neighbour..." "Look mate, this is London. I don't want to know you. I will only acknowledge you if you play your tunes too loud, and then I'm calling the police. OK
QED.
Shit the bed, lighten up.
Vastly improve the quality of your 'jokes' or kindly leave the stage.
Labour probably only needs to recover to circa 260 seats given the Anti-Tory bloc in Scotland. I also expect some Labour recovery in Scotland under Starmer.
I would say Labour actually needs to get to 280 to 290 seats if the LDs do not gain any seats as any Labour gains from the SNP make no net change in the anti Tory block. If the LDs reach 30 to 40 seats however then yes 260 seats for Labour would be enough to form a minority or coalition Labour government with LD and SNP support
I don't disagree with that really. Labour would only need 260 or so on the basis of the SNP still having circa 45 seats.Were Labour to gain at SNP expense to reach 270 seats, the SNP would only need circa 35.
Is that us on to fantasy politics then
Everything is a fantasy until it happens.
Fantasising on Labour recovery in Scotland is a real unicorn moment. Only way they have one MP is because he is a Tory.
Typically, it is only for viruses that mutate very rapidly (like the common cold) where immunity does not last a long time. There is no indication (yet) that this is a rapidly mutating virus. (Indeed, it might be better if it were because it would likely lose potency if it were changing quickly.)
Ah OK, potentially good news then. I was in fact thinking of the common cold.
I see the daily dose of moronic anti London comments is being administered again
Knock Knock "Who's there?" "Your neighbour..." "Look mate, this is London. I don't want to know you. I will only acknowledge you if you play your tunes too loud, and then I'm calling the police. OK
QED.
Shit the bed, lighten up.
Vastly improve the quality of your 'jokes' or kindly leave the stage.
Do you know the difference between five cocks and a joke?
Agreed. This is the way we will come out of the lockdown without needing a vaccine.
A test to see if you have had the virus would be great.
But unless I've missed something it is not as yet known that getting it and recovering gives immunity for any length of time?
Typically, it is only for viruses that mutate very rapidly (like the common cold) where immunity does not last a long time. There is no indication (yet) that this is a rapidly mutating virus. (Indeed, it might be better if it were because it would likely lose potency if it were changing quickly.)
RCS is right. You don't loose immunity to the virus that made you ill. But a virus is constantly changing a little bit (mutating), and after enough gradual changes the virus "looks" different to your immune system. How quickly this Sars-CoV-2 changes enough so that it is disguised to the immune systems of the "recovereds" essentially being a new Virus, is not yet known AFAIU.
Scottish schools to shut from Friday. Might get told tomorrow what they are doing about exams this year. Apparently free school lunches are the priority though.
My son is desperately trying to get assessments completed and lodged but it may be pointless.
Seems a poor decision driven by producer interests. Scotland so far is barely touched. What happens when they need to flatten the curve in a month or two?
Pressure by people who will get full pay causing people who will be lucky to get ssp to stop work.
Another whining unionist upset that Scottish Government show the leadership required yet again.
Labour probably only needs to recover to circa 260 seats given the Anti-Tory bloc in Scotland. I also expect some Labour recovery in Scotland under Starmer.
I would say Labour actually needs to get to 280 to 290 seats if the LDs do not gain any seats as any Labour gains from the SNP make no net change in the anti Tory block. If the LDs reach 30 to 40 seats however then yes 260 seats for Labour would be enough to form a minority or coalition Labour government with LD and SNP support
I don't disagree with that really. Labour would only need 260 or so on the basis of the SNP still having circa 45 seats.Were Labour to gain at SNP to reach 270 seats, the SNP would only need circa 35.
I really don't get this idea....we will have a government allied with the snp. Surely their price will be independence referendum which they will likely win. At which point SNP are no longer part of rump uk government so labour then is no longer the majority and government becomes the tories again.....what am I missing?
You are missing the key point a Starmer premiership would take the UK back into the single market reducijg the likelihood of a Yes vote inany indyref2.
The SNP thus face the problem Boris has banned indyref2 when his hard Brexit makes it winnable, while Starmer would allow indyref2 but his soft Brexit means Yes would likely lose it
You are assuming that the EU would allow him to rejoin the single market. I would suspect they won't purely on the basis they don't want the uk hopping in and out of it with each change of government
Considering the Eurovision song contest 'goes live' to each capital during the judging, I don't see why they couldn't 'go live' to each performance. It could be done with relatively little contact. It would be a live TV and broadcasting event.
To some extent I think these people should think a little bit out more out of the box. Eurovision is no doubt a morale-raising night in for many people, so it's a shame more hasn't been done to keep the 'competition' going even if it's not via a live music event.
I think it might be to stop people congregating in their homes more than anything.
That precludes putting out anything popular that lots of people want to watch on the TV.
Do you regularly hold Coronation Street parties at your house Cranky?
Gosh - the Italian sports minister has stated that he thinks Serie A can re-start on 3 May. That feels very soon to me but is perhaps a slightly promising sign...
Wow. It has to be said that the rate of new cases stabilised five days after they locked down the whole country.
Agreed. This is the way we will come out of the lockdown without needing a vaccine.
A test to see if you have had the virus would be great.
But unless I've missed something it is not as yet known that getting it and recovering gives immunity for any length of time?
We need a few different types of test.
We have the gold-standard for confirmation that you are sick. This should be reserved for those on the front-line and should be close to 100% sensitive and specific. That's what we have been using so far but it only works in individuals with the virus currently. It takes up to 48 hours as the virus needs cultivating.
We need a rapid rule-out test which can be used for symptomatic sufferers. It needs to be reasonably sensitive and specific but crucially it needs to be fast. This can be used for surveillance and to ascertain incidence in the population.
We need an anti-body based test which can tell us if we have had the disease. Those patients who have had the disease can then start to function in society. Such a test can tell us about prevalence in society.
When sufficient numbers have had the lurgy using the anti-body test, we can then unlock. If it pops up again, we use the other different test modalities to isolate, contact trace and bring it under control in local populations.
It's far more feasible than a vaccine which is possible but is extremely complex to develop and hard to scale quickly.
If you have had Covid-19 and recover, and are then immume, does this also mean that you cannot carry it and pass it on to others? I think the answer to this is yes because I read somewhere that you can only pass it on if you are symptomatic and obviously you canot be symptomatic if you are immune.
Scottish schools to shut from Friday. Might get told tomorrow what they are doing about exams this year. Apparently free school lunches are the priority though.
My son is desperately trying to get assessments completed and lodged but it may be pointless.
Seems a poor decision driven by producer interests. Scotland so far is barely touched. What happens when they need to flatten the curve in a month or two?
Pressure by people who will get full pay causing people who will be lucky to get ssp to stop work.
Another whining unionist upset that Scottish Government show the leadership required yet again.
You are a shining beacon of respect, sympathy and positivity to us all
Gosh - the Italian sports minister has stated that he thinks Serie A can re-start on 3 May. That feels very soon to me but is perhaps a slightly promising sign...
It's wishful thinking, as is UEFA's claim that the Champions League Final will be 27 June.
Schools in scotland closing Friday - not open before summer holidays......
If the info I talked about earlier this week is correct yet another example of Sturgeon getting in first
I don't think she is saying anything dramatic and shocking. TBH I was surprised that schools were left open this week.
They need a plan for: 1 Children of key workers whether that be emergency services, supermarkets or the people who keep the internet running 2 Vulnerable children where school is the only respite they get from the scum they call mum and dad 3 Very poor children where school is the only place they get a healthy / hot / any meal 4 Everyone due to sit GSCEs / A-Levels in a few weeks
I think the exams will be off
Sure, that seems obvious. So universities are intaking in September based on...?
Maybe the government is thinking as follows. Just shut all schools and universities to students until we have either a vaccine or herd immunity no matter how long this takes: 1, 2, 3, 5, ..., 10 years. This would lead to the problem that without medical and dental students the NHS would eventually run out of doctors and dentists, although this would take years. Society would also run out of many of the other technical experts that it needs to function.
It is obvious at the moment that many students, teachers and parents are scared of the virus and there may well be huge absenteeism from schools if they are open again after the summer this year. But if students do not attend school they will be unqualified. Good luck with that. This is an area where some of the hardest decisions have to be made by the government. Of one thing I am sure. Without examinations or very similar equivalents the educational system will be essentially useless and meaningless except as a social service.
Agreed. This is the way we will come out of the lockdown without needing a vaccine.
A test to see if you have had the virus would be great.
But unless I've missed something it is not as yet known that getting it and recovering gives immunity for any length of time?
We need a few different types of test.
We have the gold-standard for confirmation that you are sick. This should be reserved for those on the front-line and should be close to 100% sensitive and specific. That's what we have been using so far but it only works in individuals with the virus currently. It takes up to 48 hours as the virus needs cultivating.
We need a rapid rule-out test which can be used for symptomatic sufferers. It needs to be reasonably sensitive and specific but crucially it needs to be fast. This can be used for surveillance and to ascertain incidence in the population.
We need an anti-body based test which can tell us if we have had the disease. Those patients who have had the disease can then start to function in society. Such a test can tell us about prevalence in society.
When sufficient numbers have had the lurgy using the anti-body test, we can then unlock. If it pops up again, we use the other different test modalities to isolate, contact trace and bring it under control in local populations.
It's far more feasible than a vaccine which is possible but is extremely complex to develop and hard to scale quickly.
If you have had Covid-19 and recover, and are then immume, does this also mean that you cannot carry it and pass it on to others? I think the answer to this is yes because I read somewhere that you can only pass it on if you are symptomatic and obviously you canot be symptomatic if you are immune.
Have I understood this correctly?
Almost.
You can pass it on if you are infected but asymptomatic. If you're immune you won't get infected (AFAIK).
Lots of anger about empty supermarkets and "evil" panic buyers on my FB feed. But is that really justified? My guess (and it is just a guess) is that the shortages are primarily due to lots of people buying, say, 120% of their normal weekly shop rather than the occasional 48-roll desperado. Is my guess justified? How much flexibility is there in the grocery supply line?
I think you are right. Much of it is not panic buying but sensible stocking up given that lots of people are expected to stay away from shops for months and on-line shopping appears so insecure with slots not available etc. We have been told by retailers that there is no problem with normal grocery supplies. Most shelves that were empty yesterday pm in my local Waitrose were normally stacked up this morning.
Considering the Eurovision song contest 'goes live' to each capital during the judging, I don't see why they couldn't 'go live' to each performance. It could be done with relatively little contact. It would be a live TV and broadcasting event.
To some extent I think these people should think a little bit out more out of the box. Eurovision is no doubt a morale-raising night in for many people, so it's a shame more hasn't been done to keep the 'competition' going even if it's not via a live music event.
I think this is the approach that will be taken with the Crucible. The whole country is going to go snooker loopy from April 18th. Biggest TV event since the Coronation.
Agreed. This is the way we will come out of the lockdown without needing a vaccine.
A test to see if you have had the virus would be great.
But unless I've missed something it is not as yet known that getting it and recovering gives immunity for any length of time?
We need a few different types of test.
We have the gold-standard for confirmation that you are sick. This should be reserved for those on the front-line and should be close to 100% sensitive and specific. That's what we have been using so far but it only works in individuals with the virus currently. It takes up to 48 hours as the virus needs cultivating.
We need a rapid rule-out test which can be used for symptomatic sufferers. It needs to be reasonably sensitive and specific but crucially it needs to be fast. This can be used for surveillance and to ascertain incidence in the population.
We need an anti-body based test which can tell us if we have had the disease. Those patients who have had the disease can then start to function in society. Such a test can tell us about prevalence in society.
When sufficient numbers have had the lurgy using the anti-body test, we can then unlock. If it pops up again, we use the other different test modalities to isolate, contact trace and bring it under control in local populations.
It's far more feasible than a vaccine which is possible but is extremely complex to develop and hard to scale quickly.
If you have had Covid-19 and recover, and are then immume, does this also mean that you cannot carry it and pass it on to others? I think the answer to this is yes because I read somewhere that you can only pass it on if you are symptomatic and obviously you canot be symptomatic if you are immune.
Have I understood this correctly?
Almost.
You can pass it on if you are infected but asymptomatic. If you're immune you won't get infected (AFAIK).
That is correct. It is possible that future iterations of the virus will be sufficiently mutated that you will not have total immunity, but there is no sign of that currently. (And if that were to happen then symptoms would likely be less severe as your immune system would still have a headstart.)
Considering the Eurovision song contest 'goes live' to each capital during the judging, I don't see why they couldn't 'go live' to each performance. It could be done with relatively little contact. It would be a live TV and broadcasting event.
To some extent I think these people should think a little bit out more out of the box. Eurovision is no doubt a morale-raising night in for many people, so it's a shame more hasn't been done to keep the 'competition' going even if it's not via a live music event.
I think this is the approach that will be taken with the Crucible. The whole country is going to go snooker loopy from April 18th. Biggest TV event since the Coronation.
Hopefully there’ll be a good film on the other side.
Labour probably only needs to recover to circa 260 seats given the Anti-Tory bloc in Scotland. I also expect some Labour recovery in Scotland under Starmer.
I would say Labour actually needs to get to 280 to 290 seats if the LDs do not gain any seats as any Labour gains from the SNP make no net change in the anti Tory block. If the LDs reach 30 to 40 seats however then yes 260 seats for Labour would be enough to form a minority or coalition Labour government with LD and SNP support
I don't disagree with that really. Labour would only need 260 or so on the basis of the SNP still having circa 45 seats.Were Labour to gain at SNP to reach 270 seats, the SNP would only need circa 35.
I really don't get this idea....we will have a government allied with the snp. Surely their price will be independence referendum which they will likely win. At which point SNP are no longer part of rump uk government so labour then is no longer the majority and government becomes the tories again.....what am I missing?
You are missing the key point a Starmer premiership would take the UK back into the single market reducing the likelihood of a Yes vote in any indyref2.
The SNP thus face the problem Boris has banned indyref2 when his hard Brexit makes it winnable, while Starmer would allow indyref2 but his soft Brexit means Yes would likely lose it
LOL, Boris cannot ban a referendum if Scottish Government want to go ahead, you southern fanboys are deluded.
The equivalence I would make with these idiots, is not just refusing to go into the bomb shelter during the war, but refusing to stick to the blackout and lighting up all their homes to make it easier to be bombed.
Lots of people saying its really hard to do anything equivalent for renters as the mortgage holidays.
So here is a simple policy suggestion: 3 months rent offered as interest free loan repayable over 36 months, underwritten by govt for anyone with valid tenancy agreement and utility bill. Delivered by at least Natwest/RBS which is govt majority owned so should be straightforward but hopefully all major banks can sign up.
A small bonus of this approach is it will give the govt access to vast records of tenancy agreements to cross check against tax cheats when things have calmed down in the future.
Scottish schools to shut from Friday. Might get told tomorrow what they are doing about exams this year. Apparently free school lunches are the priority though.
My son is desperately trying to get assessments completed and lodged but it may be pointless.
Seems a poor decision driven by producer interests. Scotland so far is barely touched. What happens when they need to flatten the curve in a month or two?
Pressure by people who will get full pay causing people who will be lucky to get ssp to stop work.
Another whining unionist upset that Scottish Government show the leadership required yet again.
You are a shining beacon of respect, sympathy and positivity to us all
The equivalence I would make with these idiots, is not just refusing to go into the bomb shelter during the war, but refusing to stick to the blackout and lighting up all their homes to make it easier to be bombed.
My Grandfather helped out the local air raid warden to deal with such people in Glasgow.
Gosh - the Italian sports minister has stated that he thinks Serie A can re-start on 3 May. That feels very soon to me but is perhaps a slightly promising sign...
Wow. It has to be said that the rate of new cases stabilised five days after they locked down the whole country.
No. New cases will have collapsed since lockdown. Remember, the number we're seeing is delayed by 10 days as people only get diagnosed 10 days or so after infection. We can reasonably expect to see new Italian cases come down rapidly from the beginning of next week.
Scottish schools to shut from Friday. Might get told tomorrow what they are doing about exams this year. Apparently free school lunches are the priority though.
My son is desperately trying to get assessments completed and lodged but it may be pointless.
Seems a poor decision driven by producer interests. Scotland so far is barely touched. What happens when they need to flatten the curve in a month or two?
Pressure by people who will get full pay causing people who will be lucky to get ssp to stop work.
I am not sure I agree with that. Firstly, if kids are transmitting it around the playground, which they almost certainly are, schools are no longer a safe place of work for older teachers or those who have underlying heart conditions. Secondly, the reality is that this has been coming for a month. About 1/4 of the kids in my son's school are already off. Many are the children of doctors/consultants (easily the largest source of kids for the school now). If this is in any way indicative the number infected in the community is many, many times the official figures, at least 20x but possible 200x for all we know. Thirdly, I fear as a country that we are on the steep part of the curve and steps to date will not put the brakes on sufficiently. I expect our hospitals to be under severe pressure by the end of next week. We cannot have cases increasing at the same rate the week after.
Lots of anger about empty supermarkets and "evil" panic buyers on my FB feed. But is that really justified? My guess (and it is just a guess) is that the shortages are primarily due to lots of people buying, say, 120% of their normal weekly shop rather than the occasional 48-roll desperado. Is my guess justified? How much flexibility is there in the grocery supply line?
You have not been in a supermarket recently I take it.
I visit supermarkets regularly. You clearly didn't ready my post, which was asking why there are shortages. Are they due to a small number of manic hoarders (as my FB feed seems to think) or because most of us are buying a bit more than usual (which adds up to lots)?
I presume the UK government are going to announce school closures at 5pm, but the Welsh and Scottish governments doing their silly buggery act again by announcing a few hours before just so they can claim they are leading on this.
I presume the media will be again claiming UUUUUUUU-TURNNN....
Gosh - the Italian sports minister has stated that he thinks Serie A can re-start on 3 May. That feels very soon to me but is perhaps a slightly promising sign...
Behind closed doors, if they implement twice weekly testing of all players, is possible. Optimistic. But possible.
Agreed. This is the way we will come out of the lockdown without needing a vaccine.
A test to see if you have had the virus would be great.
But unless I've missed something it is not as yet known that getting it and recovering gives immunity for any length of time?
We need a few different types of test.
We have the gold-standard for confirmation that you are sick. This should be reserved for those on the front-line and should be close to 100% sensitive and specific. That's what we have been using so far but it only works in individuals with the virus currently. It takes up to 48 hours as the virus needs cultivating.
We need a rapid rule-out test which can be used for symptomatic sufferers. It needs to be reasonably sensitive and specific but crucially it needs to be fast. This can be used for surveillance and to ascertain incidence in the population.
We need an anti-body based test which can tell us if we have had the disease. Those patients who have had the disease can then start to function in society. Such a test can tell us about prevalence in society.
When sufficient numbers have had the lurgy using the anti-body test, we can then unlock. If it pops up again, we use the other different test modalities to isolate, contact trace and bring it under control in local populations.
It's far more feasible than a vaccine which is possible but is extremely complex to develop and hard to scale quickly.
If you have had Covid-19 and recover, and are then immume, does this also mean that you cannot carry it and pass it on to others? I think the answer to this is yes because I read somewhere that you can only pass it on if you are symptomatic and obviously you canot be symptomatic if you are immune.
Have I understood this correctly?
Almost.
You can pass it on if you are infected but asymptomatic. If you're immune you won't get infected (AFAIK).
That is correct. It is possible that future iterations of the virus will be sufficiently mutated that you will not have total immunity, but there is no sign of that currently. (And if that were to happen then symptoms would likely be less severe as your immune system would still have a headstart.)
We don't know for sure. Short-term certainly. Beyond that? We don't know. That's why banking on herd immunity with 300K deaths was a bonkers idea. It's a big gamble with an uncertain positive outcome at the end.
By contrast, locking down and testing the theory of permanent immunity would be a good idea. In the mean-time, develop a range of diagnostics so this can be quickly caught if it pops up again in the wild.
Agreed. This is the way we will come out of the lockdown without needing a vaccine.
A test to see if you have had the virus would be great.
But unless I've missed something it is not as yet known that getting it and recovering gives immunity for any length of time?
We need a few different types of test.
We have the gold-standard for confirmation that you are sick. This should be reserved for those on the front-line and should be close to 100% sensitive and specific. That's what we have been using so far but it only works in individuals with the virus currently. It takes up to 48 hours as the virus needs cultivating.
We need a rapid rule-out test which can be used for symptomatic sufferers. It needs to be reasonably sensitive and specific but crucially it needs to be fast. This can be used for surveillance and to ascertain incidence in the population.
We need an anti-body based test which can tell us if we have had the disease. Those patients who have had the disease can then start to function in society. Such a test can tell us about prevalence in society.
When sufficient numbers have had the lurgy using the anti-body test, we can then unlock. If it pops up again, we use the other different test modalities to isolate, contact trace and bring it under control in local populations.
It's far more feasible than a vaccine which is possible but is extremely complex to develop and hard to scale quickly.
If you have had Covid-19 and recover, and are then immume, does this also mean that you cannot carry it and pass it on to others? I think the answer to this is yes because I read somewhere that you can only pass it on if you are symptomatic and obviously you canot be symptomatic if you are immune.
Have I understood this correctly?
Almost.
You can pass it on if you are infected but asymptomatic. If you're immune you won't get infected (AFAIK).
That is correct. It is possible that future iterations of the virus will be sufficiently mutated that you will not have total immunity, but there is no sign of that currently. (And if that were to happen then symptoms would likely be less severe as your immune system would still have a headstart.)
I don't think it's quite so simple as that (and how effective and durable acquired immunity to this virus might be is certainly a matter of current debate amongst scientists).
Gosh - the Italian sports minister has stated that he thinks Serie A can re-start on 3 May. That feels very soon to me but is perhaps a slightly promising sign...
It's wishful thinking, as is UEFA's claim that the Champions League Final will be 27 June.
At what point does Uncle Rupert demand refunds on all the money he has paid for broadcasting rights?
Lots of people saying its really hard to do anything equivalent for renters as the mortgage holidays.
So here is a simple policy suggestion: 3 months rent offered as interest free loan repayable over 36 months, underwritten by govt for anyone with valid tenancy agreement and utility bill. Delivered by at least Natwest/RBS which is govt majority owned so should be straightforward but hopefully all major banks can sign up.
A small bonus of this approach is it will give the govt access to vast records of tenancy agreements to cross check against tax cheats when things have calmed down in the future.
You do realise a lot of renters struggle make the money last till payday as it is now you want to tack 3000/36 = 83£ a month onto their woes.....its a non starter
Lots of anger about empty supermarkets and "evil" panic buyers on my FB feed. But is that really justified? My guess (and it is just a guess) is that the shortages are primarily due to lots of people buying, say, 120% of their normal weekly shop rather than the occasional 48-roll desperado. Is my guess justified? How much flexibility is there in the grocery supply line?
You have not been in a supermarket recently I take it.
I visit supermarkets regularly. You clearly didn't ready my post, which was asking why there are shortages. Are they due to a small number of manic hoarders (as my FB feed seems to think) or because most of us are buying a bit more than usual (which adds up to lots)?
I was being ironic, it is mostly morons going over the top. I imagine most sensible people are trying to buy a few extra items but some of them are like animals.
I presume the UK government are going to announce school closures at 5pm, but the Welsh and Scottish governments doing their silly buggery act again by announcing a few hours before just so they can claim they are leading on this.
I presume the media will be again claiming UUUUUUUU-TURNNN....
LOL, another Little Englander upset at being the cow's tail
Lots of people saying its really hard to do anything equivalent for renters as the mortgage holidays.
So here is a simple policy suggestion: 3 months rent offered as interest free loan repayable over 36 months, underwritten by govt for anyone with valid tenancy agreement and utility bill. Delivered by at least Natwest/RBS which is govt majority owned so should be straightforward but hopefully all major banks can sign up.
A small bonus of this approach is it will give the govt access to vast records of tenancy agreements to cross check against tax cheats when things have calmed down in the future.
You do realise a lot of renters struggle make the money last till payday as it is now you want to tack 3000/36 = 83£ a month onto their woes.....its a non starter
I think it's the requirement for a tenancy agreement that is the most problematic, actually.
Lots of people saying its really hard to do anything equivalent for renters as the mortgage holidays.
So here is a simple policy suggestion: 3 months rent offered as interest free loan repayable over 36 months, underwritten by govt for anyone with valid tenancy agreement and utility bill. Delivered by at least Natwest/RBS which is govt majority owned so should be straightforward but hopefully all major banks can sign up.
A small bonus of this approach is it will give the govt access to vast records of tenancy agreements to cross check against tax cheats when things have calmed down in the future.
You do realise a lot of renters struggle make the money last till payday as it is now you want to tack 3000/36 = 83£ a month onto their woes.....its a non starter
Well its a lot better than expecting them to find 3000 over 3 months which is the status quo! And to be fair it is the same as mortgage owners are being offered, they still have to repay eventually.
Our spending over the next 3 months is also going to be loads less than normal.
“Following the Government’s latest advice around social distancing, it is with sadness and reluctance that we recommend that all forms of recreational cricket are for now suspended.
“This extends to training, pre-season friendlies and any associated cricket activity.
“Sport plays an absolutely vital role in the nation’s mental and physical wellbeing, and it helps people find meaning where there is fear and uncertainty, so one of our goals in the coming weeks will be to explore ways that we can support some levels of physical activity in communities - particularly at junior levels.
“Using our cricket community to support others could be one of the most important services we can offer during the difficult next few months.
“It will be critical that any decisions we do make are medically-led. And we will continue to work with Government and their advisors to ensure we are informed by science in our decision making.
“Over the coming weeks we will work with the game to understand what support is required across the cricket community, particularly local clubs and leagues - who will have such a huge role to play in our nation’s response to coming out of this situation.”
Lots of people saying its really hard to do anything equivalent for renters as the mortgage holidays.
So here is a simple policy suggestion: 3 months rent offered as interest free loan repayable over 36 months, underwritten by govt for anyone with valid tenancy agreement and utility bill. Delivered by at least Natwest/RBS which is govt majority owned so should be straightforward but hopefully all major banks can sign up.
A small bonus of this approach is it will give the govt access to vast records of tenancy agreements to cross check against tax cheats when things have calmed down in the future.
You do realise a lot of renters struggle make the money last till payday as it is now you want to tack 3000/36 = 83£ a month onto their woes.....its a non starter
A lot less woeful than being expected to still pay their rent right now. Its a positive idea.
Gosh - the Italian sports minister has stated that he thinks Serie A can re-start on 3 May. That feels very soon to me but is perhaps a slightly promising sign...
Behind closed doors, if they implement twice weekly testing of all players, is possible. Optimistic. But possible.
Isn’t there a delay between getting the virus and testing positive, during which transmission is positive? As far as we know.
I bet she's got a shelfful of Ayn Rand at home. If hypocritical dependency on the state in their time of need was good enough for Randy, you can be sure oor Laura will find ways of justifying it.
Lots of people saying its really hard to do anything equivalent for renters as the mortgage holidays.
So here is a simple policy suggestion: 3 months rent offered as interest free loan repayable over 36 months, underwritten by govt for anyone with valid tenancy agreement and utility bill. Delivered by at least Natwest/RBS which is govt majority owned so should be straightforward but hopefully all major banks can sign up.
A small bonus of this approach is it will give the govt access to vast records of tenancy agreements to cross check against tax cheats when things have calmed down in the future.
You do realise a lot of renters struggle make the money last till payday as it is now you want to tack 3000/36 = 83£ a month onto their woes.....its a non starter
I think it's the requirement for a tenancy agreement that is the most problematic, actually.
well never found a place that hasnt offered a tenancy agreement as yet but I don't doubt you. The people needing this will be however those that are already desperate however and thinking they could pay off that rent over 36 months is farcical
Possible solutions for GCSEs and A-levels if schools shut for the summer: 1). Base grades on teacher assessments. This could work if parents were not able to appeal, but would be very tricky to moderate. Might be the best solution though if it were genuinely one-off situation. 2). For A-levels at least just assume everyone would have got their first choice offer. This might cause problems in terms of numbers for some universities who rely on clearing, but students would not complain. 3). Rapidly deploy some form of online testing that students could do from home. Making that secure would be quite a challenge I think. 4). Run the exams but in a very cut down form: only one paper per subject with enough optional questions so that those who could not finish the course are not penalised. This would be very difficult for practical subjects like Art but could work as the candidates are widely separated in an exam hall. Might need to recruit invigilators who have recovered from CV-19 for that one.
I’m sure there are other solutions, and I’m sure that many students will be hard done by whichever one is picked.
Agreed. This is the way we will come out of the lockdown without needing a vaccine.
A test to see if you have had the virus would be great.
But unless I've missed something it is not as yet known that getting it and recovering gives immunity for any length of time?
We need a few different types of test.
We have the gold-standard for confirmation that you are sick. This should be reserved for those on the front-line and should be close to 100% sensitive and specific. That's what we have been using so far but it only works in individuals with the virus currently. It takes up to 48 hours as the virus needs cultivating.
We need a rapid rule-out test which can be used for symptomatic sufferers. It needs to be reasonably sensitive and specific but crucially it needs to be fast. This can be used for surveillance and to ascertain incidence in the population.
We need an anti-body based test which can tell us if we have had the disease. Those patients who have had the disease can then start to function in society. Such a test can tell us about prevalence in society.
When sufficient numbers have had the lurgy using the anti-body test, we can then unlock. If it pops up again, we use the other different test modalities to isolate, contact trace and bring it under control in local populations.
It's far more feasible than a vaccine which is possible but is extremely complex to develop and hard to scale quickly.
If you have had Covid-19 and recover, and are then immume, does this also mean that you cannot carry it and pass it on to others? I think the answer to this is yes because I read somewhere that you can only pass it on if you are symptomatic and obviously you canot be symptomatic if you are immune.
Have I understood this correctly?
Almost.
You can pass it on if you are infected but asymptomatic. If you're immune you won't get infected (AFAIK).
That is correct. It is possible that future iterations of the virus will be sufficiently mutated that you will not have total immunity, but there is no sign of that currently. (And if that were to happen then symptoms would likely be less severe as your immune system would still have a headstart.)
I don't think it's quite so simple as that (and how effective and durable acquired immunity to this virus might be is certainly a matter of current debate amongst scientists).
(Measles, for example, can erase immune memory.)
You would not have been about to recover from this virus (or any virus), if your body's immune system did not learn to fight it. The only reason why your body's immune system would "forget" the virus would be if it had mutated sufficiently so as to be less recognisable. There is no evidence of any reinfection.
I presume the UK government are going to announce school closures at 5pm, but the Welsh and Scottish governments doing their silly buggery act again by announcing a few hours before just so they can claim they are leading on this.
I presume the media will be again claiming UUUUUUUU-TURNNN....
Boris should be nonchalant about their preempting the UK govt. Last time he couldn't resist a dig at Nicola saying that he understands there is a problem with the resilience of the nhs in Scotland.
I presume the UK government are going to announce school closures at 5pm, but the Welsh and Scottish governments doing their silly buggery act again by announcing a few hours before just so they can claim they are leading on this.
I presume the media will be again claiming UUUUUUUU-TURNNN....
LOL, another Little Englander upset at being the cow's tail
It seems as though they are following the Speaker's tweet yesterday and announcing it in the Commons at 5pm. Likely the decision was made jointly at the cobra meeting.
Labour probably only needs to recover to circa 260 seats given the Anti-Tory bloc in Scotland. I also expect some Labour recovery in Scotland under Starmer.
I would say Labour actually needs to get to 280 to 290 seats if the LDs do not gain any seats as any Labour gains from the SNP make no net change in the anti Tory block. If the LDs reach 30 to 40 seats however then yes 260 seats for Labour would be enough to form a minority or coalition Labour government with LD and SNP support
I don't disagree with that really. Labour would only need 260 or so on the basis of the SNP still having circa 45 seats.Were Labour to gain at SNP to reach 270 seats, the SNP would only need circa 35.
I really don't get this idea....we will have a government allied with the snp. Surely their price will be independence referendum which they will likely win. At which point SNP are no longer part of rump uk government so labour then is no longer the majority and government becomes the tories again.....what am I missing?
You are missing the key point a Starmer premiership would take the UK back into the single market reducing the likelihood of a Yes vote in any indyref2.
The SNP thus face the problem Boris has banned indyref2 when his hard Brexit makes it winnable, while Starmer would allow indyref2 but his soft Brexit means Yes would likely lose it
LOL, Boris cannot ban a referendum if Scottish Government want to go ahead, you southern fanboys are deluded.
Of course he can and he already has, there can be no indyref2 without Westminster consent
Comments
27.6 million households in the UK
* £10,000
=
£276,000,000,000
Which is about £200,000,000,000 more than the actual cost of HS2.
Surely their price will be independence referendum which they will likely win. At which point SNP are no longer part of rump uk government so labour then is no longer the majority and government becomes the tories again.....what am I missing?
To some extent I think these people should think a little bit out more out of the box. Eurovision is no doubt a morale-raising night in for many people, so it's a shame more hasn't been done to keep the 'competition' going even if it's not via a live music event.
My son is desperately trying to get assessments completed and lodged but it may be pointless.
https://twitter.com/LPerrins/status/1240178331020152833
Pressure by people who will get full pay causing people who will be lucky to get ssp to stop work.
We have the gold-standard for confirmation that you are sick. This should be reserved for those on the front-line and should be close to 100% sensitive and specific. That's what we have been using so far but it only works in individuals with the virus currently. It takes up to 48 hours as the virus needs cultivating.
We need a rapid rule-out test which can be used for symptomatic sufferers. It needs to be reasonably sensitive and specific but crucially it needs to be fast. This can be used for surveillance and to ascertain incidence in the population.
We need an anti-body based test which can tell us if we have had the disease. Those patients who have had the disease can then start to function in society. Such a test can tell us about prevalence in society.
When sufficient numbers have had the lurgy using the anti-body test, we can then unlock. If it pops up again, we use the other different test modalities to isolate, contact trace and bring it under control in local populations.
It's far more feasible than a vaccine which is possible but is extremely complex to develop and hard to scale quickly.
The SNP thus face the problem Boris has banned indyref2 when his hard Brexit makes it winnable, while Starmer would allow indyref2 but his soft Brexit means Yes would likely lose it
Londoners can't handle a joke.
Pub closures are off?
https://twitter.com/HouseofCommons/status/1240275584229486592
Have I understood this correctly?
It is obvious at the moment that many students, teachers and parents are scared of the virus and there may well be huge absenteeism from schools if they are open again after the summer this year. But if students do not attend school they will be unqualified. Good luck with that. This is an area where some of the hardest decisions have to be made by the government. Of one thing I am sure. Without examinations or very similar equivalents the educational system will be essentially useless and meaningless except as a social service.
You can pass it on if you are infected but asymptomatic. If you're immune you won't get infected (AFAIK).
Most shelves that were empty yesterday pm in my local Waitrose were normally stacked up this morning.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Gtp646snb0
It is possible that future iterations of the virus will be sufficiently mutated that you will not have total immunity, but there is no sign of that currently. (And if that were to happen then symptoms would likely be less severe as your immune system would still have a headstart.)
So here is a simple policy suggestion: 3 months rent offered as interest free loan repayable over 36 months, underwritten by govt for anyone with valid tenancy agreement and utility bill. Delivered by at least Natwest/RBS which is govt majority owned so should be straightforward but hopefully all major banks can sign up.
A small bonus of this approach is it will give the govt access to vast records of tenancy agreements to cross check against tax cheats when things have calmed down in the future.
They cut the power cables going into the houses.
New cases will have collapsed since lockdown.
Remember, the number we're seeing is delayed by 10 days as people only get diagnosed 10 days or so after infection.
We can reasonably expect to see new Italian cases come down rapidly from the beginning of next week.
I presume the media will be again claiming UUUUUUUU-TURNNN....
When's the Merseyside Derby going to played? That's all that matters.
C'mon, Ian, it will be viewing in the national interest.
Optimistic. But possible.
By contrast, locking down and testing the theory of permanent immunity would be a good idea. In the mean-time, develop a range of diagnostics so this can be quickly caught if it pops up again in the wild.
(Measles, for example, can erase immune memory.)
https://twitter.com/DHSCgovuk/status/1240279247501111297?s=20
Our spending over the next 3 months is also going to be loads less than normal.
“This extends to training, pre-season friendlies and any associated cricket activity.
“Sport plays an absolutely vital role in the nation’s mental and physical wellbeing, and it helps people find meaning where there is fear and uncertainty, so one of our goals in the coming weeks will be to explore ways that we can support some levels of physical activity in communities - particularly at junior levels.
“Using our cricket community to support others could be one of the most important services we can offer during the difficult next few months.
“It will be critical that any decisions we do make are medically-led. And we will continue to work with Government and their advisors to ensure we are informed by science in our decision making.
“Over the coming weeks we will work with the game to understand what support is required across the cricket community, particularly local clubs and leagues - who will have such a huge role to play in our nation’s response to coming out of this situation.”
https://www.ecb.co.uk/news/1646355
See, for example, this thread;
https://twitter.com/NAChristakis/status/1235204443362205699
1). Base grades on teacher assessments. This could work if parents were not able to appeal, but would be very tricky to moderate. Might be the best solution though if it were genuinely one-off situation.
2). For A-levels at least just assume everyone would have got their first choice offer. This might cause problems in terms of numbers for some universities who rely on clearing, but students would not complain.
3). Rapidly deploy some form of online testing that students could do from home. Making that secure would be quite a challenge I think.
4). Run the exams but in a very cut down form: only one paper per subject with enough optional questions so that those who could not finish the course are not penalised. This would be very difficult for practical subjects like Art but could work as the candidates are widely separated in an exam hall. Might need to recruit invigilators who have recovered from CV-19 for that one.
I’m sure there are other solutions, and I’m sure that many students will be hard done by whichever one is picked.
The only reason why your body's immune system would "forget" the virus would be if it had mutated sufficiently so as to be less recognisable.
There is no evidence of any reinfection.