I remember back in September-October, virologists and immunologists were trying to warn the general public that winter was going to be really difficult, and that Western countries were absolutely going to face a devastating surge. Most countries did almost nothing about those warnings, instead playing fast and loose with restrictions here or there, incomprehensible tier systems, or… nothing at all, which is mostly the American system. The holiday season came and went and now ICUs across North America and Europe are at zero capacity. There are spikes in infections everywhere you look. Yesterday, Scotland’s first minister Nicole Sturgeon introduced strict new lockdown rules:
Nicola Sturgeon has unveiled tough new curbs to suppress “an extremely serious” surge in Covid cases – including a legal stay at home order. She told a recalled Holyrood the requirement would start from midnight and remain in place for the whole of January.
“I can confirm now, in summary, that we decided to introduce from tomorrow, for the duration of January, a legal requirement to stay at home except for essential purposes. This is similar to the lockdown of March last year,” she said. “And because it is now spreading faster, that means even tougher restrictions are necessary. We are now seeing a steeply rising trend of infections. Indeed, it is no exaggeration to say that I am more concerned about the situation we face now than I have been at any time since March last year.”
There are bans on gatherings larger than two, and basically there’s a nationwide stay-at-home order. Hours later, Boris Johnson also introduced new restrictions:
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson reimposed a lockdown in England on Monday as a more transmissible variant of Covid-19 fuels a surge in infections and hospitalizations in the country.
“It is clear that we need to do more to bring this new variant under control,” Johnson said. “That means the government is once again instructing you to stay at home.”
During his televised address to the nation, Johnson reimposed measures seen during the first lockdown last spring, including closures of secondary and primary schools to all except the children of key workers and vulnerable children. He added that this means it will not be “possible or fair for all exams to go ahead this summer as normal,” and alternative arrangements are being put in place.
People will be allowed to leave their homes for limited reasons like shopping for essentials, exercise, and medical assistance. Johnson also said people could still leave home “to escape domestic abuse” — an issue that arose earlier during the pandemic, as isolation and lockdown conditions exacerbated barriers to escape for victims of domestic violence.
International departures are now limited to those who have “a legally permitted reason,” such as work. Outdoor sports venues will have to close. But unlike spring’s lockdown, nurseries will not be shuttered, elite sports can go ahead, and places of worship will remain open on the basis that attendees adhere to social distancing rules.
Basically, Scotland and England are going back to the kind of strict lockdown measures imposed back in March and April 2020 throughout Europe. It is very much like closing the barn doors once the horses have bolted – everyone was warned about how bad this winter would be, how we should skip gathering for the holidays, how we should be even more vigilant in social distancing and mask-wearing. And few people listened.
Once again, the gossip angle I can’t avoid is how f–king stupid it was for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge to go on that f–king Covid Choo-Choo tour around Scotland, Wales and England in December. It was beyond tone-deaf – it was a dangerous superspreader tour which sent the worst message to the general public at a time when the UK should have been taking pre-emptive lockdown measures. It wasn’t chaotic neutral, it was chaotic evil.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.
Overnight, my entire income is gone and my students in despair. With their exams cancelled they will have to rely on grades predicted by teachers who haven’t seen them for months. Johnson has destroyed their future and mine without a single thought for either of our futures. I cannot express the depths of loathing that I feel for that awful man.
That is terrible for students, I cant imagine the final year students especially it must feel so hopeless,so close to the their graduation.
I’m really sorry to hear that. Are there plans for an income replacement to make up for that like employment insurance ? They really need to coordinate these things beyond just shutting things down. This is round two and they should have anticipated this from March.
@Nic919 I can go on Universal Credit, which is an absolute maximum of £400 a month. Poverty pay, and completely controlled by the state. Millions of families are heading into absolute poverty because of our appalling social benefits.
@Andrew’s Nemesis – What is the Furlough Scheme talked about in The Guardian?
I’m so sorry. What awful times we are living through. And led by two buffoons honestly. They even look alike.
Andrew… are you a teacher? I don’t understand how you lost your job? Aren’t you teaching remotely? And how are exams canceled? Can’t they be delivered online? Can you clarify? I’m a little confused.
Here in the US, I have been teaching remotely since March and likely will until 2022- I’m staying remote as long as possible.
@Rapunzel I’m a private tutor. I help kids who have been badly let down by the system gain confidence and prepare for exams. The government swore that they wouldn’t cancel exams – and then U-turned last night. My services are useless when no exams are in play.
Well, if you or your students get the virus and die then there will really be no future. I really don’t understand why people feel as if life is over when as long as you can breathe it is not. I don’t have kids but my nieces are being looked after by my mom while their mother works. My mom feels that if they did not pass their grade it’s preferable to them getting this virus as people don’t really know all of the long term side affects of this. While many children and teens have gotten sick the mortality rate is low but why risk it. I don’t get why people don’t seem to mind if their kids get infected. It’s weird. I am not a Boris fan by the way. But this order would have been better before the holidays.
@Lizzythe2 You try living without an income.
I’m so sorry.
Finally, this action has been taken three months too late. From what I can tell most people here aren’t angry about being in lockdown, rather it’s the dithering and the u-turns causing high levels of uncertainty and anxiety in so many that’s truly created the most upset.
Lockdown is needed and welcome, our curve is no longer a curve but a vertical cliff face.
EDIT: Brit who has lost employment (twice) to COVID and wasn’t able to see my grandmother for the nine months leading up to her death. COVID sucks, not having a job sucks, losing family members sucks, forgetting what carefree fun feels like sucks, but, damn no lockdown and carrying on as we were sounds so much worse
I agree, this should have been done sooner. I’m swinging wildly between despair, sorrow, anger and downright depressed. My son is at home with me, I’m trying to work and badger him into school work (which has been one bright spark about this lockdown, schools seem more prepared in terms of home learning so far) and it’s making me miserable. So much for a happy new year. My heart breaks for the frontline health care workers, shop workers, delivery drivers, bin men who have to come into contact with so many due to the nature of their jobs. I am very lucky, I appreciate this. However much more could have been done sooner and I honestly think rule breaking needs to be clamped down on, we could have avoided so much if people just stuck to the rules (looking at Will and Kate).
Just saw your edit, I’m sorry for your loss.
So much respect to all you parents through this!
It very much is the U-Turns that’s pissing everyone off. On Sunday or something, Boris was saying that schools were completely safe yet 24 hours later, he’s shutting them down. I’m not mad that he is, I’m upset and mad about the lack of leadership
We know nothing he says can be trusted. You can just count down to the U-turn every single time. The majority are fine with harsh limitations we just want to be told the truth and treated like adults. He hates to be the ‘bad guy’ and thinks he can continue to bluster through his premiership as he has done with every other job to date.
Yeah it was stupid, but no one is listening anyway. It’s what they call “living room” spread now. A lot of it. My own stupid family did Thanksgiving (I certainly was NOT there). It was my SIL’s family. But they took my niece and nephew, and of course my MAGA brother was there and all for it. Guess what happened? My SIL’s mother is still in the hospital and won’t really survive. I mean she’s in her late 80’s, so it’s not a big surprise, but her mind is gone now. And they all got it. Here is what stunned me. Her dumb, vain, really just awful sister is apparently patient zero. So, she takes out her mother on Thanksgiving, she survives, but you think she might feel guilty right? I see a picture of her with her big stupid face smiling wide as she hosted them all again on Christmas Eve at her house. I don’t know what to do with that, but I vowed right then that i will never be in a room with that vicious dumb b*tch again in my life. And I mean to stick to it.
The UK is a lot like us. There’s a reason Brexit predicted Trump if you were watching. As soon as that passed my stomach went into turmoil. I had a real bad feeling.
Your SIL sounds like a real piece of work ! I have family in the UK that were following guidelines strictly but let their guard down for Christmas. Two households got together. They are all now sick with Covid, one of them is in the ICU. So incredibly stupid of them.
The sad thing is, I wouldn’t be surprised if the Conservatives were voted in AGAIN at the next general election. I despair at the state of this country.
How awful. It’s crazy how your SIL did not learn a thing. It’s disturbing that her mom is sick and she is still congregating.
A lot of countries in Africa its really business as usual. UK seems to have the most drastic lockdown rules with little explation to its public. South Africans friends of mine are also facing silly rules like no cigs and alcohol,what does that help?
I think the reasoning is that when drunk, people are more likely to break social distancing rules if they are out and about. They are also more likely to hurt either themselves or others which puts further strain on emergency services.
If they want people to stay home they should put cig’s and alcohol on everyones front porch.
With cigarettes you are literally blowing out into the air much farther than you normally would, and you leave a little cloud around you, which puts others at risk. Also you can’t smoke without pulling down your mask or not wearing one at all.
And like another commenter said, alcohol lowers inhibitions. Plus people are probably drinking larger quantities when they do drink now in an attempt to self-medicate.
Both of those laws make sense.
Hi @Noki! I have some insight on that. For the alcohol bans, the South African Public Health Authorities have found that when people drink there is a lot more violence and crime committed (like alcohol-related incidences of violence against people)– which in turn leads to higher rates of occupancy in hospitals.
There was one time that they unbanned alcohol, got all these alcohol related injuries (like stabbings and fights and that stuff) and then they rebanned it and saw a major drop. It doesn’t help that some folks are drinking strong moonshines.
At least that is the explanation that I read.
Waiting for the guidelines people to pretend the Covid Choo Choo tour was actual work and not a vector spreading the fast spreading variant even more than necessary.
To be fair, Wilster had said in March or April, that people should tell everyone that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are spreading the coronavirus. I guess that he wasn’t joking and he really really wanted to see through with that threat.
What’s really annoys me is how much of a revolving door there is between the Keens and the Tory party.
The situation in the UK is such a mess. I’m based in Canada(also a mess) but the majority of my dad’s family is British and based in London. This week my cousin died of Covid, unexpectedly. No symptoms(he actually had gone in to see his doctor about his diabetes and collapsed there). Died within a day. He had been taking the lockdown pretty seriously as has my entire family but as a black person with comorbidities he was at risk. The whole family is devastated.
All this too say, glad Britain is taking stricter measures now but I am so mad at how lax they were before this. Old Boris is a terrible leader.
I’m so sorry for your loss. That’s terrible.
I am so sorry for your loss.
Deepest sympathies Sunny.
OMG. I’m sorry for your loss. And it was so sudden.
OMG. I’m sorry for your loss. And it was so sudden too
Oh no, my comment keeps double posting.
I’m exhausted. I had panic attacks seeing people get together over the holidays, maskless. My sil who is a doc had a family gathering for Christmas. Over 20 people in attendance. Now multiple people including her 89 yo grandmother have covid. I just can’t find the f**ks to care. Stay home!
I cannot understand how a doctor could do that.
I think everyone believes it won’t happen to them. Smart and stupid people keep doing it.
That’s exactly it, Rose. Everyone thinks *they’re* safe and *they’re* not the problem. So frustrating.
And to top it off, the country’s vaccination programme is in the gutter. They’re not going to give people the second dose until months later which could in turn reduce the effectiveness of said vaccine.
It’s a bit more complicated than that. The vaccine trials show that even the first dose alone is very, very effective at stopping people getting Covid that is severe enough to warrant a hospital stay. The debate in the UK is whether or not it would be better to give as many people as possible one dose rather than give both doses to half that number. In theory this method should bring down the number of people in hospital and those dying much faster.
If the scientists who went to schools for years so that they could make vaccines say that 2 doses are needed for 95% efficacy, then I’ll believe those scientists.
Is one dose effective? Sure. But it’s not as effective as 2 doses. If 1 dose was all that’s needed, the scientists wouldn’t have said 2 doses and just said “1 dose is enough guys”
@Sofia that’s not the point @Mara is making. We have a finite supply of vaccine so if one done gives c.70% coverage and has a big impact on hospitalisations it buys us time and could give far more protection overall than giving half the number of people both doses.
No-one is debating the need for a second dose, it’s about protecting as many people as possible with what we have.
I’m with you Sofia. The vaccine should be taken as it was designed.
It’s like Mara and SarahCS say.. Everyone agrees that this is how it would happen ideally – but this is a catastrophic emergency, and it’s a decision made by medical scientists dealing with the emergency. The seriousness of the situation can’t be overstated – things are looking really really bad – 1 in every 50 people has covid, and getting the first 4 groups of vulnerable people (I think number is around 13-14 million people) vaccinated by mid-Feb is the objective – to stop them dying or becoming seriously ill is the priority. So the best protection = both doses, but in an emergency getting as many people one dose as quickly as possible is better than leaving half that number unvaccinated, and seriously at risk. One dose stops you being at immediate risk of serious illness or death. It’s purely utilitarian. They’ll use it as intended once the immediate emergency eases. I’m so sorry to everyone here that has lost someone, and is suffering in every way with all this. This is a really terrifying situation.
My husband had the first vaccine jab in late Dec. He was due for the 2nd one on 12 Jan but the NHS texted him to say the 12 Jan appointment is cancelled and they are going to wait 11 to 12 weeks between jab instead of 3 weeks. Waiting for the 2nd jab date. We shall see.
And the US says hold my beer. Some states have only given out 1% – I think that is CA where the hospitals are full.
I don’t understand why nowhere in the US other than California is locking down at all. Cases are astronomical here in NJ, but indoor dining is open, non-essential stores are open. I don’t really understand, it feels like nothing is being done to curb this anymore.
I think we have to conclude that the majority of people simply don’t care. They are basing their decisions on a very basic animal level of operation (perhaps I am disrespecting animals in saying that…) but what I mean is, they don’t care if they live or die. And the hardwired American exceptionalism and selfish navelgazing means that they don’t expect that it will ever happen to them, even when those around them are sick. I’m so exhausted from this as many of us are who are trying to take precautions. But I really do think people who don’t mask are fine with others dying, like natural selection (except this virus doesn’t just kill the weak) or nature weeding out the population. And now with reports that it was a manufactured virus, not some bat or other animal from a market place, what I’ve always known would happen is happening. Just like in the tv shows and movies, viruses government-produced and “accidentally” escape the lab. It’s the new warfare. Except it’s not targeted like a missile, the spread is near-impossible to contain, but certainly it’s doing its “job” in league with Amercian exceptionalism.
@anna – the notion that this was a government produced virus is being pushed by Qanon. Can I ask where you read that this is truly a government created virus? I’m genuinely asking.
I don’t understand it either. I went to pick up takeout for me and my partner for our (alone) New Year’s Eve, and I arrived early so had to wait. I stood outside and could see tables packed with multiple couples, young and old, obviously not from the same household, chattering maskless. The owner saw me outside and came and told me, “come in, you can sit inside while you wait”—I was like no way. some of us are trying to be so careful, it was horrifying to see.
It’s downright scary to witness isn’t it? It’s like those old films of buffalos all running off a cliff together. Having worked in medicine, I knew that it was going to get so bad, hospitals would have to start triaging cases and now it’s beginning to happen. Los Angeles just announced that ambulances and paramedics have been told not to attempt to transport anyone they feel has little chance of survival as the LA hospitals are so inundated they can only now attempt to take those who have a chance at survival. It’s a war zone triage mentality now coming into play for most medical centers and it is mostly down to the millions of idiots who just won’t take it seriously. Unfortunately, they’re not the only ones dying. Their behavior is also killing those of us who are trying to hang in their and follow all the protocols.
I don’t understand either. I’m in Maryland, and our governor did a very good job, IMO, in the spring of shutting things down promptly and then slowly reopening. Now he has reduced indoor dining a great deal and other things like that, but its still nowhere near the shutdown we need with our numbers.
Our county just voted for kids to go back to school (hybrid), but they said they are not shutting down completely again unless the state shuts schools down……regardless of metrics. They may close a school here and there for a deep cleaning, but that’s it.
I feel it puts parents in a REALLY tough spot. I would be okay with hybrid if I knew the county was willing to shut down if things got worse. But they aren’t.
I feel the same about NJ — our governor did a really great job in the spring and summer and we were very slow to reopen things. We had some of the best case numbers in the country. But now that things are open and bad again, all talks of closing down again are seemingly off the table. Are politicians worried about the “but the economy!” arguments? I don’t get it. Things are much, MUCH worse than they were in March. Yes, we know more about how to lessen risk now, with mask wearing and social distancing, but I can’t see how anyone can justify restaurants, schools and offices being open right now. Shouldn’t we be eliminating any route of transmission possible?
My friend is a high school teacher and they’ve had 60+ cases since September. Haven’t shut down for more than a day at a time. Very hesitant to contract trace, still allowing sports to happen after school. It’s puzzling. It feels like the selfish idiots got their way by having everything open again, regardless of the consequences.
Actually, Oregon is. Oregon has been largely locked down since March, with no end in sight. I think the strictness of it is why our cases have been so much less than any states around us.
Of course, idiot Tootie Smith, the local govt official who promptly had to quit due to broadcasting a huge thanksgiving celebration, put a tweet out that said, Oregon has the strictest lockdown but the 4th fewest cases in the country!!! Like one didn’t explain the other.
I’m telling myself ‘better late than never’ on repeat but yeah, just the diagnosed cases are double what they were when we did the ‘light’ lockdown in November so why the hell wasn’t something done before now? Oh right, ‘Christmas’, sure Boris, just be honest for once and admit you wanted good PR and people in the shops. Yes we desperately need to economy functioning but I don’t care if you allow restaurants to open, you won’t catch me indoors with anyone who isn’t my boyfriend anytime soon.
I work freelance and am eligible for exactly £0 government support, in May I invoiced for a whole £400 of work and the months around that weren’t much better. The sooner we stop this thing killing people the better and if forcing people to stay away from each other is what it takes I am totally behind that solution.
I feel so bad for scientists right now. Studying their whole adult lives in order to prevent people from dying, and then a significant percentage of the people they’re trying to help say, “Screw you, egghead, and your snowflake science, I WILL drink out of the toilet in the public restroom!”
speaking of chaotic evil, have been thinking a lot about this great op-ed from a year or two ago. once you realize that the aristocracy are truly dumbasses but a ton of (stolen) money, and you take into consideration the cruelty of british empire, then what’s happening ‘at home’ in england now, makes total sense. malign incompetence begins abroad, then comes home, as it were. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/17/opinion/sunday/brexit-ireland-empire.html
Yes – totally agree. Apparently a high proportion of new covid cases in Scotland are now from the new strain first detected in London and the South East. It’s almost as if the variant magically appeared north of the border one day, a few weeks ago.
Oh yes- hang on, there was a train from London that toured Scotland in December featuring lots of walkabouts and a brass band. Coincidence, much?
I think Kate and will will have lost an awful lot of their residual goodwill among Nationalist Scots thanks to their pompous, piss-poor pandemic parade.
Why can’t people just follow the damn rules instead of going on holiday vacations and traveling?! I’m in the states but tons of my friends and family have been skiing, visiting family and basically living their best life over the holidays while my family has been stuck in our home for freaking year, Only going to target, the grocery store and my daughter’s doctor appointments. I’m so sick of missing out (but happy to be doing my part to keep myself and others safe) while So many people are living their lives as normal without a second thought to anyone else. I’m so over humanity!
Most humans are garbage. This pandemic has shown us the majority of people don’t give a f*ck about anything. Had everyone been strict with lockdown measures, this pandemic would have been long gone. But nope, parties and vacations are keeping this thing going.
The past 10-12 months have shown just how self-centered some people truly are. The willful negligence and ignorance is still astounding.
I see frail elders in the stores, and invariably there will be one or more maskless people roaming the aisles. I cannot understand how people can be this uncaring of others.
Even if one survives, the after effects can be terrible. My elderly aunt dodged the virus in her care home for a couple of months, but then she got it along with nearly every resident. Because of no visiting, her children only know that she reportedly had a “bad cough” during the illness period. Now she is confused and has other cognitive deficits. As my cousin puts it, she survived but “it hit her like a hammer” and she is just not the same.
More places should be like Australia and temporarily shut down domestic flights. But of course we won’t in the U.S., bc freedumb.
The WaPo put out an article today about how US airlines are trying to reduce international travel restrictions!
It’s like we want to destroy ourselves.
Oh, no, Hawaii shut down all international flights, only reopening flights from Japan this past October.
Talk Radio (Murdoch owned, current home of scumbag Dan Wootton) has been suspended from YouTube today, allegedly for spreading misinformation about Covid-19. They’re currently anti-lockdown (they go back and forth to support the contrarian point of view.) Now saying that hospitals are no busier this year than any other and if 99% of people who get Covid-19 get mild or no symptoms then we should accept the others will die, if it will be easier on the economy.
They won’t be banned for long, I’m sure and will be crowing about how the ‘leftist’ media are trying to shut them down for telling the ‘truth’. Arseholes.
Cases are high here in CT where I am, in NY (I live just 10 minutes from NY state), and in NJ in the tri-state. I’m really surprised Cuomo hasn’t issued another state-wide lockdown. Bill de Blasio recently announced that NYC public schools can remain open after the two week winter break, when they had closed again in early December. Teachers are reporting a lot of kids traveled over that time period, meaning teachers are being exposed to whatever their students picked up over their winter break travels. I understand we all have virus fatigue, but officials don’t seem to care all that much this time around. I really don’t get it.
I’m in Illinois and the pandemic response of the government has really impressed me. Politicians here have problems (soooo many problems), but the governor and his team have been clear and consistent about what everyone needs to do to reduce transmission.
In NJ, wondering why there hasn’t been another lockdown here, too. It’s VERY bad here right now and I’m scared every minute of every day for my loved ones that have to be out in the world for work.
I’m in NY and also wish that Cuomo would issue a state wide lockdown but I think he knows there would be an outcry and people would just not go along with it.
I think Cuomo made the judgement that NYC won’t come back from a second shutdown, and with the vaccine so close…the business community would kill him anyway. It’s the wrong call. But I wonder if the city could come back any time soon from another shut down. I mean, the city is hurting.
Yeah, big business interests are pushing governors to keep things open. Newsom now has a recall campaign brewing because of his state shutdown. Hopefully will go nowhere (Biden won the state 65-34) but an incredible waste of time and energy.
American Celebitchy living in London. Admittedly, I am an introvert so the first few lockdowns haven’t really had a huge impact on me (and I count my blessings). I have probably left the house less than 15 times in 9 months (for groceries). But honestly, this time, I am just so tired and angry. This could all have been avoided if we had any semblance of competent leadership. Everyone could see it coming, no one should be shocked by this, but to hear Boris last night, we would have been fine, its just that this “New Variant” is to blame, you see.
No, you bloviating turd. You and your terrible terrible messaging, waffling and dithering, crap ‘World Beating’ test and trace system, the Eat Out to Help Out Scheme, ‘the schools are safe’, are to blame. Capitalism and cronyism will always take precedent when Tories are in charge.
Oh my god, they are so full of shit. Honestly, I’m more angry that they didn’t do this months ago. They KNEW this was coming, and they still told everyone they could mix at Christmas. FFS.
Capitalism is truly the reason so many have died. If governments were willing to truly help those who were struggling instead of saying “hey, do your patriotic duty by going out and helping local businesses stay afloat!” imagine how much better off many countries would be.
What is the lockdown situation in Wales? Is Wales in Tier 4 lockdown too?
What is the lockdown situation in Northern Ireland? Is Northern Ireland in Tier 4 lockdown too?
devolved nations have their own rules, Wales and Scotland have imposed far stricter rules than England, Northern Ireland is also currently under tight restrictions amidst the rising cases.
The breathtaking thing is that Boris came on TV on Sunday morning commanding us to take our children to our schools that were supposedly completely ‘safe’.
Barely 24hrs later, he then states that it is too dangerous for any of us to leave our homes. Which is it, Boris?
I wish we had someone capable of leadership. The sad irony is in the US our deranged president lied and did next to nothing and even mocked those trying to stop the spread because he thought it would hurt his reelection chances. So now hundreds of thousands are dead and he is a big loser anyway. I cannot wait for the day when I hear neither his name or his voice. He is old and will have to explain those deaths to St. Peter.
Sturgeon was asked about the rumor that Trump would go to Scotland to play golf during the Biden inauguration and said that the rules applied to him the same way they applied to everyone else:
“We are not allowing people to come into Scotland without an essential purpose right now, and that would apply to him just as it applies to anybody else. And coming to play golf is not what I would consider to be an essential purpose.”
The biggest problem is that most Western cultures and governments are not set up to enforce regulations like these. There either has to be enough pressure from society that the group is more important than the individual, so people see lockdown regulations as protection instead of restriction (South Korea). Or a country has an authoritarian government that can enforce any regulation rapidly (China).
Basically, rugged individual freedom doesn’t work in a pandemic.