Coronavirus

[johnb]

What next?

https://www.theguardian.com/world/20...p-for-covid-19

That is appalling.

Political advisers Dominic Cummings and his sidekick Ben Warner are active participants in the Sage meetings (which is pretty shocking) whereas the Chief Medical Officers and Chief Scientific Advisers for Scotland, Wales and NI are only allowed in as observers and have to submit any questions in writing beforehand.

This seems very wrong indeed.

[johnb]

By the way, the today's figure for the daily increase in hospital deaths includes some 84 deaths in North Wales that occurred between 20th March and 22nd April but have only now been reported, because of a "delay in the reporting process".

If this hadn't been the case today's increase would have been 684 rather than 768.

When I was looking the figures earlier, today's UK total seemed worryingly high when compared to the figure for England alone. Now we know why.

[MrGongGong]

Well he discusses matters with the scientists, processes what was said, and then tells the government what they should do. What could possibly be wrong with that?

He is a liar and isn't to be trusted
for a start

(i'm really struggling to be polite %&$^%$£^%£&^%$&^%$&^%$£$%^£&%^%$)

[LeMartinPecheur]

By the way, the today's figure for the daily increase in hospital deaths includes some 84 deaths in North Wales that occurred between 20th March and 22nd April but have only now been reported, because of a "delay in the reporting process".

If this hadn't been the case today's increase would have been 684 rather than 768.

When I was looking the figures earlier, today's UK total seemed worryingly high when compared to the figure for England alone. Now we know why.

I've just spotted another thing odd in the daily statistics. As mentioned way back up thread, I've been monitoring and crunching the daily stats on total number of recorded cases in 14 mainly south-coast local authorities. Today 2 LAs, Dorset and Wiltshire have reported a drop since yesterday in their total recorded cases, 275 to 272 and 400 to 367 respectively. This has never happened before in the 32 days I've been looking.

Are miracles occurring there? Or perhaps some aspect of better testing? If anyone knows anything definite I'd be very pleased to hear!

[DracoM]

That is appalling.

Political advisers Dominic Cummings and his sidekick Ben Warner are active participants in the Sage meetings (which is pretty shocking) whereas the Chief Medical Officers and Chief Scientific Advisers for Scotland, Wales and NI are only allowed in as observers and have to submit any questions in writing beforehand.

This seems very wrong indeed.

You have never said a truer word.
If politicians were not already pariahs, then the addition to their machinations of people like them at the trough, and shaping our lives is repellent to think, and damaging to our nation.

[muzzer]

Cummings is the single greatest threat to long term democracy in this country in my lifetime, for the very simple reason that he is an unelected ideologue let loose into government like a fox into the chicken coop. Present company excepted of course, I don’t think enough well-connected people really understand quite how destructive he’s been and going to be.

[Count Boso]

Cummings is the single greatest threat to long term democracy in this country in my lifetime, for the very simple reason that he is an unelected ideologue let loose into government like a fox into the chicken coop. Present company excepted of course, I don’t think enough well-connected people really understand quite how destructive he’s been and going to be.

Can Johnson really be so naive as to think that putting Cummings 'in charge' of the govt's secret CovCam20 will ensure the same success as with Vote Leave? Or that, if he does, it will be in the long term interests of the country? Is he really a Russian plant? He might as well be. With disruptive characters like him, who needs Russia?

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/nov/03/dominic-cummings-labour-questions-russia-links

[Cockney Sparrow]

Cummings' wife described on the Today programme, R4 8.50 am how she came down with CV19, he rushed home "he's a vary caring person" and then was laid very low himself.
And his pulse oximeter showed very low levels but he got through it.

[oddoneout]

Can Johnson really be so naive as to think that putting Cummings 'in charge' of the govt's secret CovCam20 will ensure the same success as with Vote Leave? Or that, if he does, it will be in the long term interests of the country? Is he really a Russian plant? He might as well be. With disruptive characters like him, who needs Russia?

https://www.theguardian.com/politics...s-russia-links

Thinking is hard work and boring so I imagine the PM is only to happy to delegate it to someone else, especially someone who can make a convincing( to the PM) case as to why he is the person for the job. It is, IMO, a stark illustration of the level of self-interest in government that no-one challenges the situation.
It is, as has been remarked in many places, a strange state of affairs when large numbers of folk who complain about the 'unelected ' EU politicians 'dictating' to the UK (ditto Upper House for that matter) are seemingly more than happy to have this unelected individual 'dictating' policy in this country. 'Take back control' does have some strange interpretations...

[DracoM]

Oh yes, yes, yes!!!

[eighthobstruction]

Cummings' wife described on the Today programme, R4 8.50 am how she came down with CV19, he rushed home "he's a vary caring person" and then was laid very low himself.
And his pulse oximeter showed very low levels but he got through it.

Yeah cured by a stake through his heart....

[LMcD]

Thinking is hard work and boring so I imagine the PM is only to happy to delegate it to someone else, especially someone who can make a convincing( to the PM) case as to why he is the person for the job. It is, IMO, a stark illustration of the level of self-interest in government that no-one challenges the situation.
It is, as has been remarked in many places, a strange state of affairs when large numbers of folk who complain about the 'unelected ' EU politicians 'dictating' to the UK (ditto Upper House for that matter) are seemingly more than happy to have this unelected individual 'dictating' policy in this country. 'Take back control' does have some strange interpretations...

Unfortunately, members of the Cabinet and their SPADS are probably too busy working on their post-crisis excuses to notice the irony of the current situation.

[eighthobstruction]

....just been digging in the garden....unearthed an old bucket....I thought "Dominic Cummings head would fit in that hole just nicely....

[Serial_Apologist]

Cummings' wife described on the Today programme, R4 8.50 am how she came down with CV19, he rushed home "he's a vary caring person" and then was laid very low himself.
And his pulse oximeter showed very low levels but he got through it.

And I was thinking - did I hear that right?? Of ALL people to bring on to undergo the usual sympathetic hearing, it just HAD to be the wife of Cummings!

[Cockney Sparrow]

The week in Westminster, today Radio 4 - 2nd half so from 11:15.Alastair Campbell lambasting the press for being consistently palmed off with non-responses in the daily press conferences. He made a convincing case.
Yes, I know, tainted with the WMD/Iraq war., for which he makes a case in defence during the programme. For myself, Blair made a grievous error on Iraq - although it does show how dangerous our legitimisation of US adventures were. However he was and is a competent politician, with many benefits delivered in his premiership. His competence stands as a stark contrast to those in power in the last 10 years, and particularly now.