We should have locked down earlier

I agree WWMk2 - here in Wales our FM ditherer extraordinary has pootled around with local county lockdowns for a couple of weeks, National Firebreak for a bit, followed by a free for all for a bit longer!

We then had a national temperance 6pm curfew accelerated by a national Tier4 full on panic mode with a few hours notice.

Oh to have someone who knew what they were doing running things, instead of the ones who’ve been making a pigs ear of the health service in Wales since devolution!

Heard a scientist on the radio today saying we should be closing schools. Unfortunately, as we can't make that equitable (as there's a technological divide) we will have to close other things to allow schools to remain open.

He also said we need to sort out the financial offer to allow people to stay at home. So many are forced to choose between what they should be doing and what they can afford to do.

All obvious really but needs central government to actually DO something about it.

Still don't know why schools didn't get the laptops they were promised. Well, other than cost-saving.

For my own sanity I refuse to look back and go over and over everything every country did wrong. It is all too depressing and pointless.

Instead I have hope we will ALL get locked down tomorrow before the new year. And that the return to school is delayed.

I do wonder sometimes WWM2 if you would complain if any government were in power and whatever they did.
I do not envy anyone who is trying to control this virus. Things are never cut and dried as you seem to think!!

I think the Government has been consistently late to do most things! I think the new variants are accelerating the situation alarmingly.
Not a scientific study but browsing the forums here there seem to be more posters and partners contracting Covid. I doubt they have behaved any less carelessly and still followed guidelines. There are also incidents of friends/family members behaving with total disregard for rules.
The NHS appears to becoming overwhelmed.
The reopening of schools looks like a potential disaster.
I expect mid January when even more damage is done we will go into total lockdown following Johnson saying we wont in the beginning of January ?.
Considering infections and deaths are rising to levels unseen since March I find myself frustrated by the invisibility of the Government. I would like to think they are in a meeting somewhere trying to resolve the situation. Unfortunately they are probably on their country retreats glugging port and letting the British public muddle along as they have done since the summer.
There are so many things that could have been done to alleviate the situation and they have failed to do them. With this in mind it would be a miracle if they successfully roll out the vaccine as promised.
Lockdown is a last resort. Sadly I think we will miss the boat again and dread to think of consequences.

dragonfly46

I do wonder sometimes WWM2 if you would complain if any government were in power and whatever they did.
I do not envy anyone who is trying to control this virus. Things are never cut and dried as you seem to think!!

If I thought that they were wrong - the answer to your question is a resounding of course I would.

I have a brain to think and a critical factor that works.

It's all so predictable and comes as no surprise to anyone except the decision makers. The NHS has been underfunded for a decade, we are living with the consequences. There have been months to prepare for this surge, months to prepare advice for Xmas. It's n

Cut off in full flow! It madness was my final word. Off to walk the dog.

I partially agree Pantglas. Our First Minister didn’t initially dither though, Wales firebreak lockdown started at the right time, and as a consequence levels were well below England for a few weeks. The mistake made here was in not continuing it for longer than two weeks, and sadly, in putting too much faith in the public sticking with the guidance - we can’t blame the mutation of the virus for the fact that the levels in South Wales are now massively high. I don’t think any of the UK governments have handled it well, England has been even worse than Wales, and Scotland and Northern Ireland have been a little bit better in my view.
There was no way field hospitals were ever going to be a solution, the NHS relies on a highly skilled and trained workforce, and it’s impossible to magic hundreds or thousands of additional staff out of the ether when there’s a crisis like this.
It’s also very worrying in terms of the impact of care workers no longer being available from the EU because they don’t more than £25k, as care agencies and homes are reliant on them to such a huge degree, and the default option of admission to hospital at the moment isn’t there. It won’t be long until a large care home goes under through lack of staff, and the Government are forced into action. I think we are in a much more serious position than many people realise.

dragonfly46

I do wonder sometimes WWM2 if you would complain if any government were in power and whatever they did.
I do not envy anyone who is trying to control this virus. Things are never cut and dried as you seem to think!!

I agree.
I'm getting so confused which threads are are political or not, because government bashing is everywhere on GN these days. It comes under the wrong headings - under coronavirus and even an amusing chat - instead of sticking to news and politics.

Does anybody know what's happened to "Test, trace and isolate"?

Off to walk the dogs too Daisy.

Spot on WW2 - and we all saw it coming!

growstuff

Does anybody know what's happened to "Test, trace and isolate"?

Quietly dropped.

How much did it cost?

Sadly the British public weren't great at isolating, growstuff

Less than 20%complied

I despair of Boris governement making right decisions to the extent I switch off The News. It does console me to see the majority of citizens understanding and complying with the principles of controlling infection.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing. It's made Covid experts of many GNs.

Well said, Dorsetcupcake61. Much too late on decisions, but nothing we can do about it now apart from lockdown. Idiots out there still socialising and all the government says is it trusts the British people to do the right thing! They haven't been for the last 8 months so does he really think they are going to now at Christmas and New Year. Wonder how many fireworks are going to be let off at private garden parties on New Years Eve.

I'm hoping they make an announcement about schools

My daughter doesn't know what to do about shifts at work and I'm sure many people are in the same boat.

I suffer with chronic pain. I'll take the boys if need be but it's not easy. The not knitting is adding to the problem

I'm sure many people are in the same boat

Lucretzia

Sadly the British public weren't great at isolating, growstuff

Less than 20%complied

I know and that's why there should have been better incentives to comply.

Unfortunately, the system itself didn't work well because it didn't have the local knowledge. It didn't manage to trace contacts, either those who could have been infected or the source of the infection. It was an expensive disaster.

Now the lateral flow tests are the latest expensive fad - and it really doesn't need an expert to predict they won't work in suppressing transmission either.

Not knowing!

I should proofread my posts

I'm not a knitter ?

Absolutely, growstuff

Many people just couldn't afford to isolate.

Lucretzia

I'm hoping they make an announcement about schools

My daughter doesn't know what to do about shifts at work and I'm sure many people are in the same boat.

I suffer with chronic pain. I'll take the boys if need be but it's not easy. The not knitting is adding to the problem

I'm sure many people are in the same boat

Yes, they are. Pupils are in and out of school like yoyos. They and their families need certainty, even if it's not ideal.

They’re now messing up school.

Headlines ‘army will support schools in testing’

Reality. Army are at the end of a phone line

The lateral flow tests are not reliable enough anyway (50%? Even less against the new variant) & if I have understood correctly the plan is to not send bubbles home to isolate but to keep pretty much everyone in schools. Madness. And you don’t need hindsight to tell you that.