To think we’ll be in lockdown by Christmas

When will they ever learn?

sparklefizz when I had my childhood vaccinations that was it!!! No going back every few months for another jab for a little protection!

Biscuitmuncher

sparklefizz when I had my childhood vaccinations that was it!!! No going back every few months for another jab for a little protection!

biscuit Don't you understand about variants?

Biscuitmuncher, The flu jab is repeated every year because the flu virus mutates and last year's protection isn't effective against this year's variant. The CoVid virus is behaving the same way, so our defence against it has to be done the same way.

sparklefizz do you! You were the one comparing them

It seems to me that there are people who are either completely deluded about how vaccines work, despite being told continually, or are going out of their way to be contrary.

Either way, not worth engaging.

My feeling is we are in self imposed lockdown following advice from Chris Whitty and others. The government won’t make it formal because they don’t want to support businesses or sick leave

I agree Iam64.
Businesses and individuals are to cope as well as they can, without financial support.

I think it’s good that we are now able to make our own choices on how much or little we wish to do
We have had to offer of vaccination and a booster giving us the best protection that science has at this moment

If you have had two jabs and a booster, your level of protection from serious illness because of omicron infection requiring hospitalisation is 85%. This compares with 97% protection from serious illness due to delta.

We still need to take every sensible precaution - hand washing, mask wearing, social distancing and especially avoiding social contact in indoor poorly ventilated spaces.

To often we hear the "I'm not wearing a mask" brigade boast that they are not at risk because they've been jabbed.

THEY ARE AT RISK- AND THEY COULD PUT OTHERS AT RISK..

varian, thank you - very true. I'm also concerned by people assuming that a negative LFT before visits means they're not infected. They just aren't that accurate.

I'm waiting for a vaccine that works, that doesn't need topping up every five minutes for some slight protection

What is your definition of "it works" - one jab, two, three? We have flu vaccines that need to be repeated annually as the virus mutates. Covid mutates more quickly, so the doses have needed to be closer together.

Once the vaccine programme has diluted the presence of covid in the population the virus will have nowhere to go - no hosts in which to mutate. At that point it will dwindle away.

But ....that point will never be achieved for 2 reasons:

Firstly there is no co-ordinated programme of world-wide vaccination,
And secondly even first world countries with the privilege of population-wide free vaccination are plagued with idiots who do not get vaccinated, and thus plunge us all into repeated restrictions and risk of serious illness.

Until the unvaccinated are either hit by covid and become ill (and maybe finally get the message) or their freedom to go places is severely curtailed we will go on in exactly the same mess as we are in now.

Am I concerned about civil liberties and curtailing freedoms? - of course, but sometimes the lesser of two evils has to be chosen.

Luckygirl3 you surely don't think forcing something onto people that has even the slightest adverse side effects

It is not being forced on people, but, since the unvaccinated put the whole nation at risk for the foreseeable future, they have to take responsibility for their decision and take the consequences.

Luckgirl3 so the fact the vaccine doesn't work is being blamed on those who won't take it? Interesting, no wonder you are looking for someone to be cross with

So does chemotherapy not work?
Asthma inhalers?

MissAdventure why are you making that comparison? That's silly

Why is it silly?
Because chemo works with some people and doesn't with others.
Because people can still have full blown asthma attacks despite using their inhalers, which usually do the trick.
Nothing at all silly about the truth.

MissAdventure because people don't get sacked for refusing a medical procedure

Your argument was that the vaccine doesn't work.
I'm just pointing out that many well used medicines don't work, or cease to work, or have side affects.
On the whole, though, they are the best option for treating illnesses, diseases, and conditions that have life altering problems for the sufferer.

If you need three lots of it in less than a year it's not that great is it

It's a pain in the arse, frankly.
Better than risking the alternative for me, though.
I'm hoping we might get to the point when once a year might be enough.

......so the fact the vaccine doesn't work - what makes you think it doesn't work?

If you need three lots of it in less than a year it's not that great is it - the pandemic is not that great - we are chasing it and hunting it down bit by bit; and I applaud and am very thankful for the diligent scientists who are making it possible for us to gradually get on top of it.

@LuckyGirl13 - can you not read? I have had both my vaccinations, the second well under 6 months ago. I am so tired of the hysteria surrounding covid - yes I agreed with lockdown etc in the early days when we had no vaccines but the regulations are just getting ridiculous! There will always be another variant - when do we get our civil liberties back exactly? The status quo is both frightening and dangerous - I wear masks because I choose to, not because of government regulation, but I've noticed less and less people in my area are bothering. People are getting less compliant and the government need to pay attention to the reasons why before a real rebellion occurs. Don't believe me? I live in Bristol, the protest capital of the UK, outside London, I worry about what will happen in the New Year because people are so sick of being told what to do regarding covid. I'm no anti-vaxxer but am sceptical about the current position re Omicron. I have no intention of catching covid crap - its well over 5 years since had so much as a cold and I rarely go anywhere to catch it (masked, sanitised and socially distanced when I do).