Coronavirus - Strange times

[Pete]

Well this thread has cheered me up.

yes this thread is really fucking boring and I am on the verge of locking it for being a misery fest (and I've had several DMs from people complaining about this thread).

So... NEW RULE

Nothing is to be posted unless something new happens, and when it does, please keep it concise. There's a setting on here that lets me reduce the max length of a post and I am very tempted to use it rn.

[Charlie Wells]

Looks like in England from next Thursday 'work from home', Covid passes, and face coverings in public places will all come to an end, ref https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-60047438.

Slightly surprising that face coverings is also being dropped from 27th Jan. Arguably it might have been better to have kept this measure in place for a couple more weeks, but presumably that would have meant a vote in parliament. I'm guessing not wanting to rely on Labour for such a vote to pass, and also not wanting to irritate some backbenchers further into submitting letters of no confidence may have been a large factor.

It'll be interesting to see whether the London mayor will still require face coverings on TFL services. The last time they did it wasn't enforced well, resulting in not many people wearing face coverings prior to them becoming legally required again.

[cwathen]

No real surprise of end of plan B and end date for mandatory self isolation. This is not a change of policy, this is just allowing existing time-limited measures to expire since Johnson is too weak politically to extend them.

Two things are interesting though:

A) Labour (albeit with qualifications) is not opposing the end of plan B, mere weeks after their votes were needed to get it through. Where does this leave Khan and Drakeford? Can they really continue, as Labour-run administrations, to persue a pro-restriction policy if the Westminster PLP is no longer in support of this? And if they fold on restrictions, can Sturgeon really stand alone in continuing with them? EDIT - Khan is going it alone. Masks remain on TFL.

B) Johnson speaks not only of letting the self isolation rules time out, but of bringing the date forward. That will require a vote which will likely pass with a huge majority given it will probably be a 3 line whip and few Tory MPs will be against it anyway. Will he use this as a proxy for a confidence vote? Unless he's planning to hold such a vote within days, I don't think he has enough time left to pull that off.

[scottishtv]

In other Covid-related news, my local M&S has got the nicer-smelling hand sanitiser back in (the free stuff you get as you go in the door).

Much better than the rough grain alcohol stinky stuff they were using for a while.

[cdd]

I’ve been to a few places where they just put soap in the dispensers. Got fed up with hand sanitiser roulette ages ago.

[thegeek]

I rarely, if ever, sanitise my hands on my way into a shop. I don't appear to have caught Covid so far.

(hand hygiene is good, but Covid doesn't spread on surfaces.)

[Finn]

It's a bit like the 'hygiene theatre' of being asked to clean your trolley handle on the way into a store.

I stopped bothering with that some time back.

[bilky asko]

It's a bit like the 'hygiene theatre' of being asked to clean your trolley handle on the way into a store.

I stopped bothering with that some time back.

I quite like to have a clean trolley / basket in general, especially if I've got any loose vegetables to purchase, when you see the state of some of them at the end of a shop.

Also, you're much more likely to have the requisite drying towels to take off any water or frost from the trolley being outside overnight.

[Philip]

It's a bit like the 'hygiene theatre' of being asked to clean your trolley handle on the way into a store.

I stopped bothering with that some time back.

I quite like to have a clean trolley / basket in general, especially if I've got any loose vegetables to purchase, when you see the state of some of them at the end of a shop.

Also, you're much more likely to have the requisite drying towels to take off any water or frost from the trolley being outside overnight.

It's nice to know you have a trolley that doesn't have a grubby handle too.

[all new Phil]

I’m interested - do we think the easing / abolition of COVID restrictions are…
a) spot on
b) reckless
c) somewhere in between?

[Charlie Wells]

I’m interested - do we think the easing / abolition of COVID restrictions are…
a) spot on
b) reckless
c) somewhere in between?

I'd go for 'c'.

The cases have fallen sharply and hospitalisations are beginning to fall, so it was right for at least some measures to be lifted. Removal of the 'work from home' rule should help a lot of businesses that rely on commuters, as well as TFL and other public transport companies.

However I feel the use of face coverings on public transport perhaps should have been kept for at least a couple more weeks as a precaution. I suspect the reason for not keeping face coverings is due to the politics than economics. It would have required another vote, which would have relied on Labour support and disgruntled more of the Tory backbench, who might be tipped into sending off their letter of no confidence.

The removal of Covid passports for venues is another which presumably has more to do with politics. Arguably their purpose was as a way to nudge people into getting their first and/or second vaccine. I suppose as two (or in some cases three) doses are still needed for overseas travel there's still a nudge there, which from what I've been told is the reason behind some still only now coming for their first dose.