Are we approaching another lockdown?

Weds 31st March M. Macron is due to announce 'something' on French TV/media. Possibly a return to 'confinement' ? Who knows?

Well we are all Europeans geographically, but now we are no longer in the European Union, which is a political organisation, based mainly but not absolutely, around trade between the various countries in the EU.

That is a quite different, nanna8
Tasmania is an island State, part of Australia.

We are not a State of Europe, and unfortunately, not part of the Union any more. The European Union is an organisation encompassing different countries.

Of course we're European.

We are part of Europe

That will never change

I will always be a European.

I thought you were all Europeans . All in it together. It seems a bit strange that the uk classes itself as non European when you are only a few miles from France. Ah well. I suppose it is similar to us describing Tasmanians as different . Except we don’t and they are a lot further away than the mainland of Europe is to the UK.

I meant not about a third wave, but that it will be a ripple if we do get it.

Oh I do hope you’re right AGAA4

To answer the OP. I don't think there will be the same level of lockdown as we have seen over the last year but there may be a third wave as cases in the EU rise and it 'washes up on our shores'. This time I hope the wave will be a ripple rather than a tsunami.

One of the problems is that the Europeans never ask for help.
They demand it, with the use of threats to back up the directive.

They define European co operation as a one way street, where we are expected to help them but if we need any kind of assistance, they shrug and say it is the price of Brexit.

The bottom line is that the British people have had enough of it.

We were going fine until the delay from India and the whole EU fiasco who seem to be resorting to piracy just because they couldn't get their act together.
Similar here Rosie our mass vaccination centre is being closed for a few weeks as they haven't got enough vaccine. They were doing thousands every week.

Thanks maddyone. I understand where you’re coming from, I also get annoyed about misleading posts, so do feel mortified when its me that’s erred!

Our family will have had both doses by May apart from my son and son in law who are in their thirtys
We were going fine until the delay from India and the whole EU fiasco who seem to be resorting to piracy just because they couldn't get their act together

My daughter ( 50) and my son in law (42) have been vaccinated.
South east Essex.

I am no expert but common sense says WORLD WIDE PANDEMICS is screaming that this is going nowhere for a wee while yet. We all just need to follow the advice of the scientists and learn to adapt how we behave day by day to minimise the risks worldwide.

The forty and overs are being “jabbed” in S E Essex now, which is good news.

rosie1959

The vacinne is obviously having a positive effect
My concern now is the delay we must get the younger population done as soon as possible they will not stay in once things start to open and quite frankly who can blame them

This is also a concern of mine rosie. We can do without a delay.

Greeneyedgirl Thank you for your post. Apologies if I upset you. I think you’re thinking is similar to mine in actual fact.

I apologise for my earlier post, which was my error. the vaccines we have now are effective against some, but not all of the mutations. I posted in a rush and meant to say that the vaccines are effective against some but less so against all mutations. I’m sorry if I misled because I think vaccine development has been impressive, and UK virologists have excelled at rapidly identifying mutations arising here.

I do believe that it is important to aim towards elimination with efficient track and trace to reduce spread which gives the virus less opportunity to mutate. Vaccinations have been a huge success and are developing constantly to deal with emerging mutations, but I think it’s a bit early to be complacent.

I do not pretend to be an expert but am nerdy and interested in, and try and follow the latest research.

The vacinne is obviously having a positive effect
My concern now is the delay we must get the younger population done as soon as possible they will not stay in once things start to open and quite frankly who can blame them

The more people who are vaccinated, the fewer cases of COVID we have, the less virus there is in circulation, the less the opportunities for it to mutate.

No, I am not making myself a scientist. But a very eminent scientist involved with COVID research in this country said the above on the radio, not a report. I heard him say it.

Knowledge is also cumulative. We went into this pandemic totally unprepared, it is unlikely this will happen with the next one.

The vaccines against COVID have been developed and rolled out so fast because they have been able to take advantages of medical research into vaccines that has been ongoing. As Isaac Newton said. If I have seen further, it is by standing upon the shoulders of giants So with the next pandemic, vaccine development will probably be even faster because of what has been learnt in developing the COVID vaccine, with all the implications that will have on the spread of any disease.

Call me stupid, but unless this virus mutates to become less serious, as is the common cold, I can’t envisage living with it as we do for some less virulent infections.

The so-named Spanish influenza was virulent and very contagious, the second mutated strain being more deadly than the first. The third wave was deadly but people were by then travelling less so it did not spread so rapidly. Of course, vaccines were not then available.
It was an H1N1 type virus and its mutated descendants are still with us.
Viruses mutate or can disappear and vaccines have been developed since those early days.

Many thinking we will be in another lockdown by august as they opened the schools too soon if only it had been left another month..soon as the numbers reduce the flood gates open

Until countries stand firm the full time needed we are not going to rid the World of this or any future episodes and thousands more will die needlessly.
Not my words but from a top pandemic experts.

Our government will not listen to those who know!!!

Alegrias
Thank goodness for a balanced and sensible post.

....vaccines we have now are effective against some, but not all of the mutations.
Apart from being wrong, it seems to me that everyone thinks they are a scientist now. This is absolutely not what the scientists have said. Read the post from Alegrias to see what the scientists have actually said.

Sorry to keep on about this but it is important to be accurate.

All viruses are constantly mutating, but this one appears to be mutating more slowly that others. That doesn't mean its not a problem, but it's not mutating out of control. And there is evidence that some of the mutations are tending towards the same end point, which would make vaccine development easier. Not an expert in this by any means, maybe someone else could elaborate if they know more.

The vaccines we have at the moment are effective against all known mutations. The vaccines may be less effective against some but that does not mean that they are not effective. They still work.

I agree with you Greeneyedgirl that elimination and contract tracing is the best way out of it.

(And before anyone starts shouting, elimination isn't the same as eradication.)