Coronavirus

[Anastasius]

Given that his company doesn't pay tax in the UK he can f*ck off , sell his island or something else but preferably go bust and make the world a better place.
We don't need these parasites

Of course, Virgin Atlantic does nothing for charity either.

I don't see you spraying your bile and vitriol against the many other companies that trade significantly in the UK yet pay little in the way of taxes. Amazon Google eBay to name but a few. But perhaps that doesn't fit with your shoulder chips ?

If there was anyone out there deserving of a pointed finger for gross incompetence then that would be Hancock - "Setting the new benchmark for Not-Fit-For-Purpose".

[MrGongGong]

Of course, Virgin Atlantic does nothing for charity either.

I don't see you spraying your bile and vitriol against the many other companies that trade significantly in the UK yet pay little in the way of taxes. Amazon Google eBay to name but a few. But perhaps that doesn't fit with your shoulder chips ?

If there was anyone out there deserving of a pointed finger for gross incompetence then that would be Hancock - "Setting the new benchmark for Not-Fit-For-Purpose".

Just because you don't see something doesn't mean it's not there... try closing your eyes, the world still exists when you aren't observing it.

If the likes of Virgin (and Amazon, Google etc etc ) paid tax we wouldn't need to rely on charity for basic needs.
Furthermore, I don't think we should we be taken in by their clumsy PR "charity" work.


Asking for a bailout when you pay no tax and are massively rich is obscene and is asking the poorest in the country to support a multi-millionaire.


As for Hancock ..... I'm looking forward to the day when he is in the dock

[LMcD]

Of course, Virgin Atlantic does nothing for charity either.

I don't see you spraying your bile and vitriol against the many other companies that trade significantly in the UK yet pay little in the way of taxes. Amazon Google eBay to name but a few. But perhaps that doesn't fit with your shoulder chips ?

If there was anyone out there deserving of a pointed finger for gross incompetence then that would be Hancock - "Setting the new benchmark for Not-Fit-For-Purpose".

Oh dear, they're at it again!

Not that I disagree in this view of the Health Secretary, whose press briefings I've renamed 'Hancock's Half-Hour' seeing as much of his material is in the form of repeats. There is talk of him being set up as the fall guy when he fails to reach his 100,000-a-day target and the full extent and consequence of the government's mistakes become clearer.

[Anastasius]

Just because you don't see something doesn't mean it's not there... try closing your eyes, the world still exists when you aren't observing it.

If the likes of Virgin (and Amazon, Google etc etc ) paid tax we wouldn't need to rely on charity for basic needs.
Furthermore, I don't think we should we be taken in by their clumsy PR "charity" work.


Asking for a bailout when you pay no tax and are massively rich is obscene and is asking the poorest in the country to support a multi-millionaire.


As for Hancock ..... I'm looking forward to the day when he is in the dock

You make a fair point, GG.

[oddoneout]

Oh dear, they're at it again!

Not that I disagree in this view of the Health Secretary, whose press briefings I've renamed 'Hancock's Half-Hour' seeing as much of his material is in the form of repeats. There is talk of him being set up as the fall guy when he fails to reach his 100,000-a-day target and the full extent and consequence of the government's mistakes become clearer.

The dratted R3 programme interruptions keep mentioning the real version is now available on some platform or other. Has someone at the Beeb gone rogue?

[DracoM]

What very few sources seem to be doing is saying what is the AVERAGE number of deaths occurring in UK per period in an ordinary March / April, so that the Covid stats appear in a landscape and not as a skyscraper.

[Cockney Sparrow]

"More or Less" (Radio 4 9am today) had an interesting discussion (they address the suggestion that the peak in infection was about 5 weeks ago - in short, they can't be certain......).

"We compare Covid-19 rates around the world. When is the UK going to be past the worst?"

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m000hfqq

[Dave2002]

What very few sources seem to be doing is saying what is the AVERAGE number of deaths occurring in UK per period in an ordinary March / April, so that the Covid stats appear in a landscape and not as a skyscraper.

I don't think that's quite fair - but it is an issue. There are significantly more deaths due to Covid which does raise the level substantially, but you're right - people are still dying from other things. There is also a concern about certain groups, where the deaths due to Covid are disproportionately higher than other reasons, or so I've been led to believe.

Concentrating only on Covid might give a wrong impression - but I think it depends a bit which sources and media outlets you look at.

[Anastasius]

You make a fair point, GG.

But to inject a bit of realism into the discussion, it's all very well claiming that Branson is worth £x billion...whatever the actual amount is and who can say...the reality is just how liquid are those assets ? Stocks ? Shares ? Gold bullion?...LOL..George Brown knows all about the advantages of selling gold bullion ...NOT!

It's all very well to say 'sell your island' but that could take months or even years and VirginAtlantic, like other airlines, needs cashflow now. It's why British Airways are reneging on their legal obligation to refund the money and Avios for the flights that they have cancelled.

And he's not asking for a handout but a commercial loan. So where's the beef ?

[Bryn]

But to inject a bit of realism into the discussion, it's all very well claiming that Branson is worth £x billion...whatever the actual amount is and who can say...the reality is just how liquid are those assets ? Stocks ? Shares ? Gold bullion?...LOL..George Brown knows all about the advantages of selling gold bullion ...NOT!

It's all very well to say 'sell your island' but that could take months or even years and VirginAtlantic, like other airlines, needs cashflow now. It's why British Airways are reneging on their legal obligation to refund the money and Avios for the flights that they have cancelled.

And he's not asking for a handout but a commercial loan. So where's the beef ?

And he is happy to put his island up as collateral. The vast majority of his wealth gets reinvested into a wide range of 'job-creating' businesses. That said, his failure to pay tax in the UK is totally unacceptable.

[DracoM]

"More or Less" (Radio 4 9am today) had an interesting discussion (they address the suggestion that the peak in infection was about 5 weeks ago - in short, they can't be certain......).

"We compare Covid-19 rates around the world. When is the UK going to be past the worst?"

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m000hfqq

Yes, I heard that and that is what prompted my Q: so, what are the usual average number of deaths in a typical March or April week / day so that the Covid totals can be more interestingly landscaped.
And we do NOT get that figure.

So easy to make a political / big media story out of any big number, but if that big number is actually only a touch above average, where's your story?

I am NOT saying Covid does not matter at all, but I'd just like to know the Covid stats in a bigger landscape and not in an isolated way.

[Pulcinella]

Yes, I heard that and that is what prompted my Q: so, what are the usual average number of deaths in a typical March or April week / day so that the Covid totals can be more interestingly landscaped.
And we do NOT get that figure.

So easy to make a political / big media story out of any big number, but if that big number is actually only a touch above average, where's your story?

I am NOT saying Covid does not matter at all, but I'd just like to know the Covid stats in a bigger landscape and not in an isolated way.

I'm pretty sure that I've seen reports giving 'usual average numbers' somewhere (but perhaps not recently).
If I find them I'll post links.

Btw, Draco, did you get your BT email problem fixed?

[Dave2002]

But to inject a bit of realism into the discussion, it's all very well claiming that Branson is worth £x billion...whatever the actual amount is and who can say...the reality is just how liquid are those assets ? Stocks ? Shares ? Gold bullion?...LOL..George Brown knows all about the advantages of selling gold bullion ...NOT!

Wrong Brown, I think.

[Cockney Sparrow]

Yes, I heard that and that is what prompted my Q: so, what are the usual average number of deaths in a typical March or April week / day so that the Covid totals can be more interestingly landscaped.
And we do NOT get that figure.

So easy to make a political / big media story out of any big number, but if that big number is actually only a touch above average, where's your story?

I am NOT saying Covid does not matter at all, but I'd just like to know the Covid stats in a bigger landscape and not in an isolated way.

Yes, I agree the program doesn't answer your precise and very relevant question. (We have some members here following the data closely - maybe Johnb can point you in the right direction?)

If I was to embark on a search (sorry, I'm off the allotment just now) I'd look for the Office Nat Statistics information, which so far as I recall is the basis for any reports on deaths this year as against other years...... albeit it takes some weeks for that data to be issued.

[johnb]

Yes, I heard that and that is what prompted my Q: so, what are the usual average number of deaths in a typical March or April week / day so that the Covid totals can be more interestingly landscaped.
And we do NOT get that figure.

So easy to make a political / big media story out of any big number, but if that big number is actually only a touch above average, where's your story?

I am NOT saying Covid does not matter at all, but I'd just like to know the Covid stats in a bigger landscape and not in an isolated way.

Well, we might not be getting the monthly comparison but ONS is publishing weekly figures which include a comparison of this years weekly deaths and what would normally be expected. These are figures for all registered deaths - not just hospital deaths.

I'm surprised you haven't heard about the ONS figures as they are widely reported and discussed on news programmes when the figures are released each week, though admittedly the news programmes concentrate on the additional deaths and don't always put them in context.

https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/deaths/bulletins/deathsregisteredweeklyinenglandandwalesprovisional/weekending10april2020

I've extracted the chart you might be particularly interested in:



(It's worth noting that the number of Covid-19 deaths *might* be understated somewhat as it depends on whether Covid-19 is mentioned on the death certificate. It can be difficult for doctors to accurately diagnose the exact cause of death, especially when they are remotely completing the death certificate - e.g. for Care Home deaths.)