Coronavirus (COVID-19) Outbreak

[Stan]

2 minutes ago, RandoEFC said:

That is indeed good news. Hopefully that other strain that apparently emerged over the past week doesn't fuck things up.

It's going to take a while though. I imagine the capacity to vaccinate people will continue to grow a lot from 150k a week, but there's about 60 million people in the UK. At a rate of around 150k vaccinations a week, it would take 400 weeks to vaccinate the entire population, so we still need to be patient. This also doesn't take into account the possibility that you might need the injection again each winter if you're vulnerable (I'm not sure about this, that might have only been one of the vaccines).

That said, once they've vaccinated the vulnerable and health care workers, then you should be able to think about lifting the vast majority of lockdown restrictions and get on with it to an extent.

This is the thing for me - there needs to be a clear plan which you hope government are looking at as to what stage we come out of lockdown, vaccine well in place, and not have to go back in if the vaccine is successful. 

I really hope the vaccine has long term resistance to COVID. Okay it might mean the vulnerable still need to go back to the GPs and get vaccinated each year but they do this with flu jab with relative ease. Has there been any discussion about the vaccine and flu jab being effective with each other? Or can they be administered at the same time?

[RandoEFC+]

2 hours ago, Stan said:

This is the thing for me - there needs to be a clear plan which you hope government are looking at as to what stage we come out of lockdown, vaccine well in place, and not have to go back in if the vaccine is successful. 

I really hope the vaccine has long term resistance to COVID. Okay it might mean the vulnerable still need to go back to the GPs and get vaccinated each year but they do this with flu jab with relative ease. Has there been any discussion about the vaccine and flu jab being effective with each other? Or can they be administered at the same time?

I've not read anything either way on that. I'm not even sure whether the vaccine(s) provide long-term resistance or whether they'll need to be administered annually. I haven't read anything into whether the flu jab and a Covid jab "clash" with each other in any way but I imagine that that research has been done because a lot of the first people to receive the Covid vaccine will have had a flu jab this winter as well. I suppose we'll find out quickly if there are complications there but I'd be surprised if that's not something the leading scientists who have designed these treatments have considered and tested.

The thing is, I'd probably want the Covid jab every year if that's how long the resistance lasts. I haven't had it, but I've read enough about long Covid and further complications to not be one of those people who welcomes getting it so that I get the immunity and it's all out of the way. 

Hopefully if the current vaccines only last for months or a year, they'll continue to develop them until one of them provides longer term immunity.

[Bluebird Hewitt]

Despite having a four nations approach agreed for Christmas and discussions around it, Drakeford has once again decided to be different for no reason by spinning the agreed approach and saying that two households (plus one singular person who lives alone) can meet up for Christmas. This is also to be made law because why the fuck not. 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-55336452

Good luck enforcing that once again. 

[Stan]

And it continues

 

 

And he wanted further lockdowns . Twat.

[Tommy]

Macron got it.  

[Burning Gold]

22 hours ago, RandoEFC said:

That is indeed good news. Hopefully that other strain that apparently emerged over the past week doesn't fuck things up.

It's going to take a while though. I imagine the capacity to vaccinate people will continue to grow a lot from 150k a week, but there's about 60 million people in the UK. At a rate of around 150k vaccinations a week, it would take 400 weeks to vaccinate the entire population, so we still need to be patient. This also doesn't take into account the possibility that you might need the injection again each winter if you're vulnerable (I'm not sure about this, that might have only been one of the vaccines).

That said, once they've vaccinated the vulnerable and health care workers, then you should be able to think about lifting the vast majority of lockdown restrictions and get on with it to an extent.

I read yesterday that there are 18m vulnerable and 25m in priority 1 (which I think is something like vulnerable + carers + healthcare workers), which is fucking loads in a country of 65m and still leaves us needing just over three years!

That said, the rate will definitely increase. For a start, this is only one of three (I think?) vaccines, and the most troublesome in terms of logistics.

They're confident the vaccine will work on this new strain as well. Viruses mutate all the time and there are quite a few strains out there at the moment, so a vaccine that can't deal with mutations would be pretty useless... and arguably not worth bothering with.

[RandoEFC+]

21 minutes ago, Burning Gold said:

I read yesterday that there are 18m vulnerable and 25m in priority 1 (which I think is something like vulnerable + carers + healthcare workers), which is fucking loads in a country of 65m and still leaves us needing just over three years!

That's an insanely high proportion of the population. Surely must be a 'generous' definition of vulnerable, probably including anyone over about 60. The only other thing I can think of is that they're counting anyone overweight as 'vulnerable' as well, there has been some evidence of people who aren't in the best health suffering worse from this and it's been theorised that that's one of the reasons our death toll has been so bad compared to some other countries. 

[Stan]

All of Surrey, barring Waverley which is Jeremy Hunt's constituency, put in to Tier 3.

Pretty much all of South/South East in to Tier 3.

Lancashire and Leeds area stays in Tier 3.

Bristol & North Somerset down to Tier 2.

Herefordshire in Tier 1.

[Burning Gold]

34 minutes ago, RandoEFC said:

That's an insanely high proportion of the population. Surely must be a 'generous' definition of vulnerable, probably including anyone over about 60. The only other thing I can think of is that they're counting anyone overweight as 'vulnerable' as well, there has been some evidence of people who aren't in the best health suffering worse from this and it's been theorised that that's one of the reasons our death toll has been so bad compared to some other countries. 

I thought that as well. Apparently it's everyone over 50, plus adults with an underlying condition; being overweight doesn't count (because that'd be 60% of the population right there ) but morbid obesity does

It's prioritised within that phase 1 so we should start seeing good results (and hopefully easing of restrictions) sooner.

[Stan]

11 minutes ago, Burning Gold said:

It's prioritised within that phase 1 so we should start seeing good results (and hopefully easing of restrictions) sooner.

Bloody hope so having just been put in Tier 3. I realise results and conclusions from vaccinations might not be for a while but one can hope... 

[The Artful Dodger]

Managed to cling on to tier 2 for now, I presume we'll see another full lockdown at some point. As it is I've just booked a table at a local pub for me and my 5 brothers on Xmas eve.

[MUFC]

We're are staying in 3 in Manchester.

[CaaC (John)+]

6 hours ago, The Artful Dodger said:

Managed to cling on to tier 2 for now, I presume we'll see another full lockdown at some point. As it is I've just booked a table at a local pub for me and my 5 brothers on Xmas eve.

Bloody hell, my old man gave my mother 7 girls and me and my younger brother, any sisters? 

[Stan]

17 minutes ago, CaaC (John) said:

Bloody hell, my old man gave my mother 7 girls and me and my younger brother, any sisters? 

Will probably be too young for you Johnny boy

[Carnivore Chris]

4 hours ago, CaaC (John) said:

Bloody hell, my old man gave my mother 7 girls and me and my younger brother, any sisters? 

My mother has 4 brothers(one of them her twin) and 2 sisters.

 

 

[Bluebird Hewitt]

Boris has announced a press conference for 4pm. Not another lockdown already surely. 

[Bluewolf]

Just now, Bluebird Hewitt said:

Boris has announced a press conference for 4pm. Not another lockdown already surely. 

Boris Johnson is holding talks with his Cabinet this lunchtime amid warnings from scientists over the new strain of COVID-19 and surging infections.

The prime minister is hosting a cabinet call now and will hold a news conference at 4pm with England's chief medical officer Chris Whitty and the chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance, Downing Street has said.

Mr Johnson said on Friday he hoped that England would not need to go into a third lockdown after Christmas, which a number of experts have warned is possible.

However, he held an unscheduled meeting late into the night the same day to discuss whether action may need to be taken more swiftly.

[Honey Honey]

35 minutes ago, Bluebird Hewitt said:

Boris has announced a press conference for 4pm. Not another lockdown already surely. 

Just the South East likely. No one allowed out or in. China style. They're bricking it that people travel in and out of the South East for Christmas. I myself was going to Newcastle but that will likely be off now. Have to see what happens at 4.

[Burning Gold]

1 hour ago, Bluebird Hewitt said:

Boris has announced a press conference for 4pm. Not another lockdown already surely. 

"Tier 4" for London and the South East over Christmas according to Twitter. For the government go from "I won't cancel Christmas" to "Okay I won't cancel Christmas, but please don't have Christmas" to "Christmas is cancelled!" in less than a week is truly cowardly

[Honey Honey]

4 minutes ago, Burning Gold said:

"Tier 4" for London and the South East over Christmas according to Twitter. For the government go from "I won't cancel Christmas" to "Okay I won't cancel Christmas, but please don't have Christmas" to "Christmas is cancelled!" in less than a week is truly cowardly

What happens when politicians are briefed and advised to never show any doubt in what they are saying. Only positive is that they are willing to change and not sticking to something to save face.

[tlr]

So we've gone from three tiers reviewed every fortnight to changing things on random days of the week and creating a new tier out of thin air when required?

[RandoEFC+]

It's Johnson's MO. Promise the most optimistic scenario possible for a cheap boost in popularity, hope for the best. If he's right, bang on about how he told us this would happen and how he told us we should never have listened to Labour, Europe, the media, scientists, Project Fear, etc. If he's wrong, just make a u-turn and act like that was the plan all along in the knowledge that too much of the media are unwilling to or incapable of pointing out how wrong he was.

Thankfully the majority of the public have a better perception of reality than Johnson does so many were already planning to keep themselves locked down or away from their elderly relatives over Christmas knowing that it really isn't worth risking lives when the vaccine is finally being rolled out.

We need to know more about this new strain though, read a few troubling stories about it being transmit in hospitals and taking down health workers again.

[Smiley Culture]

Gutted. 

[Bluebird Hewitt]

Not to be outdone by Boris and on the basis of absolutely fuck all once again, Drakeford has decided to bring forward the lockdown. 

From 28th December to midnight tonight, with the only exception being Christmas Day. 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-55379237

But naturally, like everything else in Wales, they won't be contested, the media won't challenge like they do with the UK Government and the lapdogs will lap it up once again. 

Only need the non essential ban back with no preparation time again to round it off. 

[Smiley Culture]

Cannot wait for the day Johnson is dead.