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Can we just file that pointless waste of everybody’s time under ‘now, can you stop talking about all my Christmas party’s now’?
42 military planning teams sounds impressive, because that is the intention: to sound like he’s throwing everything at it. The truth is any team will be going from a standing start with no training, in an unfamiliar region and using unfamiliar systems. It will be chaos and they certainly will not be effective in enough time to contribute meaningfully to getting god knows how many millions of people vaccinated by the end of the month, regardless of hard they graft. It’s a mere sticking plaster to try to mask decades of underspend in the NHS.
We need to get past this idea that throwing the military at the problem is a panacea. We will always go, that’s what we do, but stuff like this destroys morale amongst a force that the Tories have spent the last decade hollowing out; only a week or so ago more news of reorganisation, modernisation and streamlining (ie cuts) landed. I’ve quit because of the shitshow of a Government we are enduring, their incompetence and lies, and the fact I can’t look my soldiers in the face and tell them the future looks great without lying through my teeth.
https://twitter.com/para_medic10/status/1467275176228409347?s=21
Anyway, rant over; go get a jab.
42 military planning teams sounds impressive, because that is the intention: to sound like he’s throwing everything at it. The truth is any team will be going from a standing start with no training, in an unfamiliar region and using unfamiliar systems
What it looks like is the ‘Nightingale’ hospitals built at the start of the pandemic. Window dressing. Making it look like you’re doing something, when in reality they could never have been used as they couldn’t staff them anyway.
Tonight’s announcement looks like more of the same. It’s just propaganda. It’s all for show. More to do with salvaging political reputations and changing the news agenda rather than having a serious impact on public health in a pandemic
I was surprised he took the 'Address to the Nation' approach - breaking into national broadcast schedules - just to restate a message he's been saying for a while. But then I remembered it's the kind of thing his PR team would tell him to do to look more 'leaderly' when he's in deep shit.
All this suddenly throwing the military at it etc, presumably this is something that's been thoroughly planned and prepared and tested and trained for over the last year, right? Right?
binners
Full MemberWhat it looks like is the ‘Nightingale’ hospitals built at the start of the pandemic. Window dressing. Making it look like you’re doing something, when in reality they could never have been used as they couldn’t staff them anyway.
Said this before but the Nightingales did serve a purpose- if the real hospitals had overflowed, as they nearly did, then we'd need somewhere to put the excess. They wouldn't have been hospitals as we understand it, more waiting rooms- waiting to get better with little help or waiting to die.
We came so close to that actually being useful. Obviously they were sold as being more than that
How long does it take to get, as yet un-recruited, volunteer vaccinators recruited and trained to vaccinate?
In terms of how quickly we can train vaccinators….
I applied in Nov 2020 and finally started working for the NHS in Jun21.
I gave up waiting initially and trained up to jab as a volunteer with SJA.
The idea we are going to train 10000 extra before Xmas is crazy!!
All this suddenly throwing the military at it etc, presumably this is something that’s been thoroughly planned and prepared and tested and trained for over the last year, right? Right?
Err…if it’s been planned, someone forgot to tell the people who make up the teams that something might be happening until about a week ago. But even then it was a ‘be prepared to…do something…we’re not quite sure.’
Brilliant, I’ll go warn off the wife that Christmas might be cancelled.
How long does it take to get, as yet un-recruited, volunteer vaccinators recruited and trained to vaccinate?
My wife did the training some time early this year I think, it took a lot of hours.
She was then told she wasn’t needed and has never heard from them again. Same with her friend.
Might be a lot of already trained people out there.
Might be a lot of already trained people out there.
Aside from if someone got trained earlier this year and then never used that training they are liable to have forgotten it all.
Can we just file that pointless waste of everybody’s time under ‘now, can you stop talking about all my Christmas party’s now’?
Judging by the morning's papers it has worked. The old tactic of 'bring out the army', and 'unachievable headline numbers' has worked. Again.
Aside from the actual vaccinator training, the onboarding process for the NHS will take months.
now, can you stop talking about all my Christmas party’s now’?
Totally this - it’s another dead cat - move to a new story, provide a deflection for ongoing criticism (“I’m busy working hard on the unprecedented vaccine rollout, why don’t you support that instead of playing politics etc”).
The irony is that a vaccine push is the right thing to do, albeit in an overt hyped-up, chaotic unplanned manner and he’s skipped any unpopular measures - discouraging Xmas parties etc.
So we now have a PM who is only doing the right thing when it suits his personal needs. Sigh.
If you wanted more vaccines, probably shouldn't have started a fight with GPs.
Said this before but the Nightingales did serve a purpose- if the real hospitals had overflowed, as they nearly did, then we’d need somewhere to put the excess. They wouldn’t have been hospitals as we understand it, more waiting rooms- waiting to get better with little help or waiting to die.
Thos keeps getting overlooked, they weren't built for the role people thought they were for. Luckily, they were never quite needed.
Thos keeps getting overlooked, they weren’t built for the role people thought they were for. Luckily, they were never quite needed.
Very luckily. We couldn't staff them.
Does this not sound familiar? "Operation Moonshot" anybody? Useless lazy pillock did not even bother coming up with anything new, just repackaged an old shite and unworkable but headline grabbing idea.
So we now have a PM who is only doing the right thing when it suits his personal needs. Sigh.
Absolutely nothing new about that. Also does the wrong thing when it suits his personal needs. That said, you'd be forgiven for thinking his personal needs come before, say, those of the country.
How long does it take to get, as yet un-recruited, volunteer vaccinators recruited and trained to vaccinate?
Here is the job advert for Local NHS.
https://apply.jobs.scot.nhs.uk/displayjob.aspx?jobid=80588
We are now looking to appoint permanent Band 5 Vaccinator roles across the Grampian vaccination program. This will be within vaccination centres, as well as outlying community clinics. Successful individuals will support the Partnerships to deliver the full Vaccine Transformation Programme across all age ranges, in line with their professional registration, skills and experience.
Applicants should hold a valid registration with a governing body or be a registered nurse with current full NMC registration. They must be able to demonstrate a high standard of care, so the immunisation programme is carried out safely, effectively and according to the national policies. Applicants must have good time management and should be an active team player, but also be able to work on their own initiative. They need to have an open, friendly manner with excellent communication skills, as they can be dealing with a diverse range of people from all age groups, occasionally resulting in stressful situations.
Applicants must have completed the NES online immunisation course, showing they will have an increased knowledge of vaccinations and service delivery, including a working knowledge of the UK immunisation schedule and the “Green Book”, thus having the ability to make decisions relating to safe principles of vaccination delivery. Experience in supervising junior staff and mentoring students would also be very desirable.
Not something you can just walk into off the street unless you come from a healthcare background. Not sure how the army fit in with that other than being "supervised" by a NHS trained staff member. If something goes wrong remember its the persons NMC registration that is at risk not the military person who is un registered with the NMC. NHS staff cannot work without this registration.
If you wanted more vaccines, probably shouldn’t have started a fight with GPs.
This the same GP's that are doing vaccinations for £60 phr along side a band 5 on £16 phr nhs employee?
We need to get past this idea that throwing the military at the problem is a panacea.
Standard right wing politician sound-bite, usually gobbled up by your average punter as a 'good thing'.
No doubt for Scotland they'll use the phrase "British Army" and have a "Jack on It".
The ‘jabbers’ have been on stand by for a while and have been doing the online training in their spare time. That’s not new though and isn’t linked to last night’s announcement.
No provision being made for the planning teams as far as I have heard though; pretty sure they’re just being pulled together and being told to ‘do some planning’ to make the PM look good.
‘do some planning’
Flipchart with some numbers on that everyone knows are impossible, but worked out just to make sure. A lot of crossing out and a flippant remark about interviewing Santa on how he does it at the bottom.
Page 2, someone's drawn a cock. Much laughter.
Page 3 - we've established the size of the challenge - how are we going to do it? The rest of the page is blank.
Pretty much.
This the same GP’s that are doing vaccinations for £60 phr along side a band 5 on £16 phr nhs employee?
None of my GPs are. The point was we found out last night at the same time as everyone else. Luckily for me I'm losing one of my GPs all afternoon as he's part of the clinical governance team that will have work out how to delivery this.
clinical governance team that will have work out how to delivery this
Pah, mere details. Details, details, don't bother me with details, just tell me when it's done.
I had a boss like this not so long ago. It was a nightmare. I left.
Listening to five live this morning, the only part of that bell ends speech that seems to have resonated with people are the words ‘tidalwave of omicron infections’
Nice use of language, dickhead
So now people are crashing NHS websites etc in a panic to get boosters, without the infrastructure in place to actually administer them
It’s almost as if they’re making it all up on the hoof 🙄
We only need 1 new planning team... and all it needs is a basic understanding of critical paths... and that team needs to be in the cabinet office.
There's a pattern that needs breaking... announce huge dramatic "national" change... and do nothing to arrange the procedures or do the work required before the change hits.
There’s a pattern that needs breaking… announce huge dramatic “national” change… and do nothing to arrange the procedures or do the work required before the change hits.
Aside from it has worked exactly as intended. He gets to pretend to be a statesman and the media are diverted for a while.
Okay so there may be some negative consequences for the country as a whole but sacrifices have to be made.
the only part of that bell ends speech that seems to have resonated with people are the words ‘tidalwave of omicron infections’
Don't worry, he also said: "Two jabs aren't enough", without any context, thus making other people question what the point of vaccinating at all is.
Like his 'plan', it was a shit, hyperbolic script, which will carry unintended consequences because it was thrown together on the back of a fag packet by a PM panic-stricken about his own future, not ours.
Government website reporting that it's run out of LFT kits to send out.
Id like to see the military step in.....and remove this shower of shit government 🙂
We only need 1 new planning team… and all it needs is a basic understanding of critical paths… and that team needs to be in the cabinet office.
The fact that this isn't in place after 18 months is concerning.
Even accepting that the Forces should be in the loop in case we need boots in car parks, or logistics support etc
Savage stuff there
The Fly-tipped sofa was just interviewed by Sky. They pointed out that there are now no more lateral flow tests available, the NHS website has crashed so nobody can book boosters and its all round pretty chaotic
His answer was what it always is. Completely ignore all that inconvenient stuff and just start banging on about the NHS being wonderful instead
Ryanair were the very bottom of my list of airlines I'd fly with. That just moved them up to second bottom, ahead of Delta. If they keep that up they may pass US Airways.
Edit - never mind, just seen the origin of that tweet.
'Poorest families worse off under Boris Johnson while incomes of richest soar, new analysis finds
‘Far from ‘levelling up’, the families and places that were already poorest have fallen even further behind’' (Independent)
And, as this vague "levelling up" campaigning was aimed at seats in the North and the Midlands....
https://twitter.com/AndyBurnhamGM/status/1470316846599573510?s=20
the NHS website has crashed so nobody can book boosters and its all round pretty chaotic
Is that the English NHS website?
English NHS website currently has queues... but is working if you're patient. It's not offering me any earlier slots than it did last week though (not sure how it could yet). Accurx GP supplied link offers me similar slots (at a different location).
the trouble with Johnson is he's a lefty girl :/
So....
'Levelling Up' is bullshit.
Government have been taking the piss with illicit Xmas parties last year.
Health Secretary caught playing tonsil hockey with a woman who wasn't his wife.
Super injunction left, right and centre covering up their hypocrisy.
Billions awarded to mates for shonky PPE.
Afghanistan ceded to the Taliban and a dithering mess of evacuation of UK friendlies whose first meal on UK soil was provided by charities.
Plus countless others.
BUT....BUT....BUT
A handful of desperate migrants in a dinghy, always appear in front of a minimum of four union jacks and oh dear, the Queen looks a bit pale and......
NOTHING CHANGES.
Go us. Woooooo.
🥳
It seems enough Tory MPs will rebel that Boris Johnson needs Labours votes to get his "Plan B" measures through.
Considering how much bad press he has at the moment, would it not be tempting for Labour to abstain or something?
It would be other than it would not be in the national interest, and maybe, just maybe they're not that cynical?
Also there is general public support for not killing and injuring loads of people, so not sure if it would go down well. The unholy alliance of antivaxxers, antimaskers, tory ERG faux libertarians and the wetherspoons guy are probably not the sort of voters labour can or needs to pander to.
Never side with the swivel eyed loons. They did that over Brexit and we got Boris Johnson as a result.
would it not be tempting for Labour to abstain or something?
They should be demanding that Boris sorts out sick pay as a condition of their support. That doesn’t seem to have occurred to starmer though.
They should be demanding that Boris sorts out sick pay
Good point as it is something they've been banging on about. They are between a rock and a heard place, they'd love for Boris to be taken down by his own side, this is not the time to play that card though and they know it.
It would be other than it would not be in the national interest, and maybe, just maybe they’re not that cynical?
It was pretty much ignored/drowned out by other news yesterday, but Starmers "address to the nation" was really well thought out and worded - agreeing to support the government when it was in the national interest but getting some nice digs in at the same time.
Sadly it was delivered in a dull dry monotone without a trace of self belief and passion. Being the adult in the room is a tough line to get right.
And, as this vague “levelling up” campaigning was aimed at seats in the North and the Midlands….
Is this a bit like brexiteers complaining about brexit? Those red wall seats voted Tory and they got Tory. This is what that means. Hopefully it will be remembered at the next election (but my faith in the electorate has taken a bit of a hit recently)
That NEF data fails to reveal the massive inequalities in eg London and it invites the mindless North vs South juxtaposition.
Considering how much bad press he has at the moment, would it not be tempting for Labour to abstain or something
Tempting but stupid. I doubt that watching the hardline Brexiteer, anti-vax libertarian nutjobs thanking them for their cooperation would be a particularly good look
Strangely, Boris is actually in the unfamiliar position of doing the right thing at the moment over this and actually facing down the fruitloops in his own party, for once
Somewhat Bizarrely, the Lib Dems have just announced they'll be voting with the Tory Rebels 🤷♂️
Lib dems continue their descent into utter obscurity.
this is not the time to play that card though and they know it.
It's exactly the time to play that card as it supports the effort against the new variant and bolsters the new measures. Without sufficient sick pay the new measures are pointless so why support them without also demanding the necessary support via sick pay for people to isolate? It's a no-brainer, but Starmer is so meek and deferential he can't bring himself to do it. Leadership my arse!
the Lib Dems have just announced they’ll be voting with the Tory Rebels
It's a bit more nuanced than that, they've said they will vote for the new measures, but against Vaccine passports, which they see as an ineffective measure (vaccines don't stop you spreading Covid) that will give more fuel to the anti-vaxers and conspiracy nuts.
See Daisy Cooper's statement in this article: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-59640792
Lib dems continue their descent into utter obscurity.
All eyes on North Shropshire on Thursday.
All eyes on North Shropshire on Thursday.
After the vox pop on the Today Programme this morning I wouldn’t hold out much hope. It made the vote for the blue rosette brigade round here look positively open minded. Apparently Boris is a nice honest boy who is making lots of good decisions and he is being slandered by the press, labour party, and the over educated elite (I’m guessing they were setting the boundary around mid grade GCSE level)
Polls are neck and neck.
I genuinely wouldn't want to call it either way, and that alone is a pretty crazy thing to say in part of the world that's basically been solidly Tory for 200 years.
Guess we'll find out soon enough.
over educated elite (I’m guessing they were setting the boundary around mid grade GCSE level)
It shifts, but fundamentally it can be defined as people telling them true stuff they don't like to hear. Stuff that runs against notions like "everyone respects the Britain of 2021 because Britain won the war" and "we are special" and "yah boo sucks to you Johnny Foreigner is a wise and acceptable way to make the rest of the world realise they need us somehow".
In short, people who aren't tossers.
Johnson will sleaze his way to a victory in North Shropshire
a seat that Tory will take a lot to shift when 1/3rds nationally still say theyll vote Tory
Johnson will sleaze his way to a victory in North Shropshire
Now that he's successfully stoked the omicron panic I think you're right. All the rancour from last week will evaporate as he gets the opportunity to play statesman on the evening news. It's so bloody transparent and everyone falls for it, including it would seem the official 'opposition'.
Johnson will sleaze his way to a victory in North Shropshire
North Shropshire has voted Tory before the Tory party was even a thing. They've never returned anything but a Tory MP I think the only real question is how marginal (or not) it'll turn out to be.
I personally think the public will tolerate Johnson longer than this forum would.
Well the public have tolerated a tory party for most of the last 50 years
It'll be interesting to see the extent to which 'their' increasing realisation of his fundamental unsuitedness for rule, trumps 'their' knee jerk action to vote tory. Suspect the tories will win, albeit by a vastly reduced majority.
In the meantime, David Squires in the Grauniad has it absolutely nailed..
Partygate not going away
https://twitter.com/PaulBrandITV/status/1470825725305442306?t=6g_1htqBrIjVaRAW5moEvA&s=19
Also
https://twitter.com/josiahmortimer/status/1470814974905925632?t=5_wpz0aasaKXvKRmV6xhOw&s=19
First indications of 101 Tory rebels on COVID passport vote
Edit may be 103
98 Tory rebels in the end
Well the public have tolerated a tory party for most of the last 50 years
I believe the technical term is tory gathering or group since no balloons were involved.
I think the mirror have loads of these lined up...
Release them progressively for maximum damage
"Natural Party of Government."
Utter s****.
Yep, hypocritical arsehats.
Release them progressively for maximum damage
That or as people are thrown under the 350m bus they decided might as well try and get someone else to cushion the blow.
Johnsons switch from:
"No one broke the law"
to
"I didnt break the law"
Was very noticeable.
I suspect the pics of some prominent MP's are being held back for the mo.
It's horrific and fascinating in equal measure.
I honestly can't wait for politics to be insanely boring again.
Never thought I'd live in such a dysfunctional time in British history.
I suspect the pics of some prominent MP’s are being held back for the mo.
My guess is there wouldnt be many at least at the downing street parties. There is a possibility at that rumoured tory hq party but I think downing street would be mostly staffers.