I think the government would undo a lot of the, shockingly, good decisions they've made over the last few months sending all the schools and colleges back at once. It should definitely be phased from the 8th, probably Primary first, then Secondary final years and then gradually a full return. Don't think it's the worst idea for some year groups (providing they can work well online) to just start back after Easter.

 

I agree. I think either Raab just got it wrong when he said they wanted all schools back that day or that they leaked it for a reaction so they’ll begin announcing the phased return on Monday as the reaction hasn’t been good.

 

In other news I saw my brother today and he thinks all the numbers have gone down so low that we should just reopen everything and everyone is being too cautious. But he never needs any reason to start badmouthing the Welsh government.

I agree. I think either Raab just got it wrong when he said they wanted all schools back that day or that they leaked it for a reaction so they’ll begin announcing the phased return on Monday as the reaction hasn’t been good.

 

In other news I saw my brother today and he thinks all the numbers have gone down so low that we should just reopen everything and everyone is being too cautious. But he never needs any reason to start badmouthing the Welsh government.

 

Seen the last line getting peddled a little bit too and some scientists are starting to push it too. I think some of this is fatigue and spring/summer on the horizon now. My concern is I don't want us to lockdown again and while the case numbers are good, all it is going to take is a couple of weeks of cases increasing 40% than they currently are for us to be in a bit of a mess with the NHS. I think we've got to try and get case numbers under 1,000-2,000 a day. My worry is the baying mob are only going to get louder but we're still in a terrible position for a while yet.

Seen the last line getting peddled a little bit too and some scientists are starting to push it too. I think some of this is fatigue and spring/summer on the horizon now. My concern is I don't want us to lockdown again and while the case numbers are good, all it is going to take is a couple of weeks of cases increasing 40% than they currently are for us to be in a bit of a mess with the NHS. I think we've got to try and get case numbers under 1,000-2,000 a day. My worry is the baying mob are only going to get louder but we're still in a terrible position for a while yet.

 

I’m the same as you. My biggest fear is going back into another lockdown again. Of course I want restrictions lifted but I’d like the lifted for the last time. I really suffered Autumn/Winter with things constantly opening and closing.

Johnson has said that the easing of restrictions will be irreversible this time. Obviously, common sense says that he cannot possibly make that commitment. However, if he wants to maximise the chances of meeting it then he needs to be very cautious about easing off.

We can’t play hokey kokey with restrictions, it’ll destroy what little patience people have left.

 

Slowly and gently does it with a pause between each new opening to check it’s all ok before going to the next step. Still waiting for an idea of what to expect here but the rumour is that it’ll be based on infection level as a guide to step through the various reopenings

Yeh I’m still of the opinion that after Easter is a better plan overall as the rate of cases will be well down by then. There was still the same amount in hospital this week as in last April!

@1362303029307994112

 

So. It would appear that the UK has a clause in the AZ contract that says it is to be supplied above all others. A contract signed AFTER the EU contract. Maybe the EU didn’t make such a mess of this after all? Maybe people should stop taking everything our government and unionist press state at face value?

 

 

If the Tory apologists among you would like to send flowers as an apology for trying to come for me when I, correctly, said the UK was playing vaccine nationalism- PM me and I’ll send you the delivery address ;)

So. It would appear that the UK has a clause in the AZ contract that says it is to be supplied above all others. A contract signed AFTER the EU contract. Maybe the EU didn’t make such a mess of this after all? Maybe people should stop taking everything our government and unionist press state at face value?

If the Tory apologists among you would like to send flowers as an apology for trying to come for me when I, correctly, said the UK was playing vaccine nationalism- PM me and I’ll send you the delivery address ;)

Perhaps the people who denied that AstraZeneca should take a lot of the blame owe me an apology.

Nah AZ have some serious explaining to do. If this clause exists then they allowed it to be inserted and have been trying to hide that and pass the buck to the EU for „being slow“ when the EU final contract was signed first. OR if this clause doesn’t exist then the UK and EU contracts are effectively identical and they need to explain why the UK is being prioritised over the EU.

 

Either way, they are far from an innocent party in this

Nah AZ have some serious explaining to do. If this clause exists then they allowed it to be inserted and have been trying to hide that and pass the buck to the EU for „being slow“ when the EU final contract was signed first. OR if this clause doesn’t exist then the UK and EU contracts are effectively identical and they need to explain why the UK is being prioritised over the EU.

 

Either way, they are far from an innocent party in this

That's what I said. I blamed AZ from the start and this story makes it look like I was right.

Isn't that article a bit of a non-story? Can't really make too many inferences with only seeing the redacted contracts. I thought it was well know that the UK funded AZ to boost their manufacturing campaign to be able to supply the world? That's obviously how they got preference with the batches that were available. I'm not even sure why signing the contracts comes in to it either, I'm no legal expert but surely when it goes to tendor the agreement in principle is pretty much legally binding whilst the lawyers draw up the contracts.

 

Not saying there isn't vaccinate nationalism going on from both parties or that AZ aren't to blame somewhat, because they are.

That's what I said. I blamed AZ from the start and this story makes it look like I was right.

🤦🏼‍♂️ Imma go back to bed.

 

So yes, I agree. The latest reveals as more questions of AZ and it is right to point a finger there way.

Isn't that article a bit of a non-story? Can't really make too many inferences with only seeing the redacted contracts. I thought it was well know that the UK funded AZ to boost their manufacturing campaign to be able to supply the world? That's obviously how they got preference with the batches that were available. I'm not even sure why signing the contracts comes in to it either, I'm no legal expert but surely when it goes to tendor the agreement in principle is pretty much legally binding whilst the lawyers draw up the contracts.

 

Not saying there isn't vaccinate nationalism going on from both parties or that AZ aren't to blame somewhat, because they are.

Oh so now the signing date doesn’t matter when previously it did because it looked like the UK signed first? Uh huh sure.

 

The UK funded AZ so get better access = vaccine nationalism. That’s exactly what you are saying is happening. The EU also funded AZ with a hefty upfront payment and got no access in return. Germany put up 0,5bn Euro for the BioNTech jag and we ain’t got no preference. The UK is and has always been playing a nationalist game because it feeds into their far-right flag waving propaganda narrative to distract you from what’s actually happening in the UK.

 

 

Like I said. Tory apologists can send flowers to me. I’ll even help y’all find a German website to use.

🤦🏼‍♂️ Imma go back to bed.

 

So yes, I agree. The latest reveals as more questions of AZ and it is right to point a finger there way.

 

Oh so now the signing date doesn’t matter when previously it did because it looked like the UK signed first? Uh huh sure.

 

The UK funded AZ so get better access = vaccine nationalism. That’s exactly what you are saying is happening. The EU also funded AZ with a hefty upfront payment and got no access in return. Germany put up 0,5bn Euro for the BioNTech jag and we ain’t got no preference. The UK is and has always been playing a nationalist game because it feeds into their far-right flag waving propaganda narrative to distract you from what’s actually happening in the UK.

Like I said. Tory apologists can send flowers to me. I’ll even help y’all find a German website to use.

 

I don't see how signing the contract matters though, like I said surely the agreement in principle is the one that matters and has some sort of legality attached to it. I'm not a legal expert nor a procurement expert, but I would expect when the verbal agreement is made there are legalities attached before the full contract is drawn up by the lawyers. The UK put all their eggs in their basket in April/May time.

 

We funded AZ because we backed them. The same way the US backed Moderna for example. I don't really know how that can be classed as vaccine nationalism, it's more of a gamble that paid off. Since the pandemic began vaccines were the way out of the pandemic once it became apparent, it doesn't take a genius to wotk out or to be called a nationalist. Most people would say the UK messed up lots of different parts, which is the truth. But I just cannot for one moment lay blame to the UK Government with the vaccine strategy, whatever they have done they have pulled a blinder in the short term. You can't really argue against that.

 

I don’t see how when you sign a contract matters but you previously did:

 

They over promised and under delivered and it will be the same for the UK. I am a huge fan of the EU but I can't help but feel this is also politics. If they had concrete proof they would be calling their lawyers, not press conferences. The EC are doing it publiclly because they want to see the UK contract, which I think is not needed and also to protect the Bloc mentality. The problem lies in that they went as a Bloc and were slow to sign deals. There are loads of reports out there that the EC dithered and made the same orders that Italy, Germany, & Netherlands made after the UK purchase.. just 2 months later rather than a few days later.

 

There very well might be technical issues, but having it all play out for everyone to see is not what anyone needs. And the vaccine hasn't even been approved for use in the EU yet!

 

🤷🏼‍♂️

 

 

 

Securing preferential access over and above all others is vaccine nationalism. It’s like a f***ing textbook definition of the practice. You’ve got China and Russia playing vaccine diplomacy by tripping over each other to „donate“ batches of jags to various nations to promote their own self-image and soft power and then you have the UK and USA playing vaccine nationalism with hoarding doses and then banging on about how amazing they are compared to others. Being the first to approve and then securing a contract with some dodgy underhand preferences isn’t „striking it lucky“ at all. What a Tory way to say „tilting the scales in your favour“.

 

The vaccine roll out in the UK has worked for one primary reason, the f***ing NHS has done it and it’s had f*** all to do with the government. Signing a contract does not a vaccine programme make. The NHS has done what it does best and wielded it’s super power to get this done and yet people will chalk it up to the success of a government who would sell the NHS for scrap to the yanks in a heartbeat and a Party that has spend every waking moment since May 2010 draining as much life from the NHS and starving it of as much funding as they can.

Interesting piece reproduced in the Independent today which provides an estimate that the total amount of the Sars-Cov-2 virus currently in existence would fit inside a coke can.

 

https://theconversation.com/all-the-coronav...to-spare-154226

I think most of the discussion around the EU 'losing the plot' was them invoking Article 16 of the Northern Ireland Protocol - squandering the moral high ground that they had (up until that point) easily held over our shambolic and corrupt government. That and the trash talking of the Oxford/AZ vaccine, the only one being developed and sold at cost inperpituity to the developing world.

I think most of the discussion around the EU 'losing the plot' was them invoking Article 16 of the Northern Ireland Protocol - squandering the moral high ground that they had (up until that point) easily held over our shambolic and corrupt government. That and the trash talking of the Oxford/AZ vaccine, the only one being developed and sold at cost inperpituity to the developing world.

Except they didn't actually invoke it. They made moves to do so so but changed their mind within hours.

They also didn’t trash the AZ jag. A handful of individual member states and the press therein were responsible for that. The French being gobby gits and the German press sensationalising the data for 65+ does not the EU rubbishing AZ make. The EMA has said it’s no problem and the EU has come after AZ for supply issues and over contracts not over the effectiveness of the jag. That individual countries have taken decisions not to approve it for 65+ is up to them as sovereign nations. The majority have taken the same view as the UK and EMA that it’s effective for all. Some like Germany don’t like the small sample of older trial participants and are being overly cautious. Again, not an EU response.

 

 

The German press has caused a substantial percentage of people in Germany to decline to receive the AZ jag and there is a lot of people trying to choose which they get (according to Berlins press today which carries the Berlin State Health Senator telling folk they have no Choice if they’re under 65 and they’ll get the AZ and be happy to be jagged)

Except they didn't actually invoke it. They made moves to do so so but changed their mind within hours.

 

Hmm, yes they rowed back immediately when they realised what they'd done. Still invoked it.

Lockdown in NI extended to April 1st. Schooling for children up to 7-years-old to resume on 8th March.

 

It looks like I’ll be spending at least one birthday in lockdown after all.