In what way was the money not ‘gone’ either way?

For that price I’d guess at least partly catered, therefore there will be extra cost to staying at home.

Plus, if his employer is like mine, prebooked annual leave has to be taken anyway; therefore there is a week of covid-safe fun that needs to be found in your own locale, which costs further money.

Of course, flip side, with a nice employer that lets him move his annual leave to the future, he could then have no money to pay for said future holiday.

Met some 30 yr old MTBer the other day who was disappointed with his vote for this Gov. He says he did it (and voted Leave) to ‘get Britain away from politics’. You can’t make this stuff up.

You quite literally can, and combine it with a snappy 3 word slogan and some idiots will lap it up.
You would hope his age and choice of hobby would reduce the likelyhood of him being a **** eejit, but they don’t prevent it.

If you buy something off the internet and it wasn’t delivered would you write it off because the money is already ‘gone’, or would you expect a refund and chase the seller if they didn’t provide one?

But given a refund was not on the table that’s an irrelevant analogy. Basically you had choice of go on holiday or not go on holiday, either option cost you the same.

If you had really preferred to stay home you could have, no one forced you to go. Plenty of folks would have already made that decision since covid kicked off, myself included back in March.

If we stay indoors most of the summer then (assuming medical science is correct) this could be a factor preventing us from getting enough vitamin D. I’ll be following my own advice based upon that: Spend more time in the garden/outdoors. Use sunscreen.

As I understand it sunscreen means no or little vitamin D production, vitamin D comes from UVB and sunscreen blocks that.

Hand it to a private company, with an appalling track record on delivery, to set up a centralised system with no regional systems in place

Fwiw, there’s been a GM system in place now for weeks (as well as the LA level systems for complex cases). GM wants the national system to hand over the cases it’s been unable to trace and has been asking for that for ages. https://t.co/XZINKB9Qdv

— Jennifer Williams (@JenWilliamsMEN) August 4, 2020

Apparently according to the track and trace data collected by pubs since they re-opened, a certain Mr Michael Mouse has been going on an epic nationwide pub crawl.

Does anyone feel like being surprised?

Apparently according to the track and trace data collected by pubs since they re-opened, a certain Mr Michael Mouse has been going on an epic nationwide pub crawl.

Do you think anyone would beleive these guys?

https://www.radiotimes.com/news/film/2019-08-26/meet-the-real-life-muggles-named-harry-potter/

Fwiw, there’s been a GM system in place now for weeks (as well as the LA level systems for complex cases). GM wants the national system to hand over the cases it’s been unable to trace and has been asking for that for ages.

Andy Burnham and other council leaders have been saying for ages now that the government and their private sector ‘partners’ have been hoarding and withholding data. The Leicester council leader was utterly scathing about the lack of information given to them before their lockdown was brought in.

It seems that not only central government and their ‘private sector partners’ patently incompetent, they’re also actively obstructing the ‘track and trace’ programmes put in place by local councils and health authorities

They don’t want transparency … if they let others have the data then they can be questioned as regards their actions … rather than waving around vague notions about where transmissions are occurring, and having people lap them up as fact.

Expect lots of nuisance phone calls after the Govt’s appointed T&T company sell your info for $0.25

In Stockport the data is showing that it’s the 18 – 24 age group spreading this virus. I’ve just spoken to a customer who has a 24 yr old son. She cannot do anything to stop him or his friends, (from going out and about, having gatherings etc) as they’ve ‘had enough now’ and think they can’t catch this virus. Ironically she works at our local hospital. She wishes he could witness what is really happening. Mmmm the ignorance and stubbornness of youth!

Also the neighbours are still flouting the rules (we’re in Greater Man) and having her friends and relatives round.

But given a refund was not on the table that’s an irrelevant analogy.

It’s not, but it’s irrelevant in any case. The only relevant thing is whether government policy changed people’s behaviour, and in this case and many others it demonstrably incentivised us to do the activity which you think we shouldn’t have done.

Anyway TP, you seem to have a big problem with me going on holiday. I would advise you spend less time worrying and judging others and more on yourself because quite frankly I don’t care what you think. I weighed up all the pros and cons and am completely comfortable with the risk to both myself and others of going on holiday, especially given the official advice at the time we departed, which if you remember was ‘enjoy the summer’.

As I understand it sunscreen means no or little vitamin D production, vitamin D comes from UVB and sunscreen blocks that.

Good point! The sunscreen bit was more a throwaway disclaimer as I did recommend spending ‘more time outdoors’. Earlobes, etc.. 👍🏼

Thanks for that

Expect lots of nuisance phone calls after the Govt’s appointed T&T company sell your info for $0.25

Dont worry, like everyone in my age group, I dont answer unknown or withheld numbers anyway. How an actual track and tracer will get hold of me is not clear…

For those thinking I’ve been taking excessive risks things get a whole lot worse on Thursday. 22-year-old junior rocks up on the train fresh from Berlin and Paris with the stated intention of seeing all his old mates.

But even that pales into insignificance compared with the risks we were exposed to back in late February/March with Madame teaching in a school with Covid infected kids returning from Italian ski holidays, junior working with infected colleagues and myself skiing in a Covid hotspot. Madame is convinced we’ve both had it, she had some characteristic symptoms and my seasonal alergies/asthma were several steps up from usual. I’ve no idea, I’m sticking to what the government wherever I am tells me I can and can’t do and applying what I learned in a bacti lab.

How did the holiday go Dazh? It’s been great most places I’ve been. The last time I was in Berlin I gave up visiting many places because of the queues, this time there were more staff than tourists in the Bundestag and the precautions resembled visiting Porton Down.

We did Pau Lourdes and back on the voie verte today, never seen as many people on bikes, was great.

Was Lourdes as busy as usual? Nothing quite tests your faith like a pandemic…

No, all the major pilgrimages have been cancelled. Campsite half empty, no busier than a Winter weekend. Lots of people on bikes though. 🙂

Edit: looks like it’ll get busy next week though, the 15/08 events are stil on:

Pèlerinage National et fête de l’Assomption 2020

How did the holiday go Dazh?

Holiday was very quiet and stress free. Airports were empty with no queues, and the flights half full. The port where we were staying was very quiet with most places still closed or empty. We avoided the bars and restaurants in any case just to be extra safe. The Spanish seem very vigilant with almost all of everyone wearing masks both outdoors and In. Honestly any worries I had before were unfounded and I had much less contact with others than I did here in Todmorden before we went.

Not stepped inside someone else’s home since February.

I was going to say I was astonished by this, then I realised that other than my parents house – trying to stay socially distanced – throughout lockdown when I’ve delivered their shopping, and since it was allowed socially, neither have I. The kids have been in to their garden when dropping stuff off. MrsMC visited her parents in Sussex at the weekend for the first time since Christmas, though as a social worker she’s been in quite a few houses throughout lockdown.

Anyway TP, you seem to have a big problem with me going on holiday. I would advise you spend less time worrying and judging others and more on yourself because quite frankly I don’t care what you think. I weighed up all the pros and cons and am completely comfortable with the risk to both myself and others of going on holiday, especially given the official advice at the time we departed, which if you remember was ‘enjoy the summer’.

Well you clearly weren’t completely comfortable with the risk otherwise you wouldn’t have stated numerous times that you’d have preferred not to go.

No problem with folks going on holiday however. My issue is folks going on holiday, then whining about having to quarentine on their return when it was always a possibility that might happen.

All good then Dazh, I’d like to be able to say the same about France but it’s quite variable. On the whole it’s good but places popular with young adult party goers are a little too festive.

@Edukator – do you think that the rural/mountainous areas like the Vosges/Jura/Auvergne will be quieter than normal?

We’re still thinking about going in early Sept if France is not on the Quarantine list and we’re allowed to leave the UK.

Some parts of Auvergne have had their busiest season ever as people have opted for staycations in Covid free areas, that still doesn’t mean they are busy by any objective measure. We spent a night in Cernay, Vosges which was really quiet as was driving through the Jura. By September the kids are back to school so it’ll only be French oldies holidaying along with a few Dutch, Germans and Brits. The number of foreign plates is nowhere near normal for this time of year and there will be less in September.

It’ll be quiet almost everywhere unless you go to places that are always busy late season such St Jean de Luz, Arcachon… .

Merci

I am just back from a week in the Durance valley and a week in the Maurienne. Definitely quieter than usual, but not abandoned by any means. We stayed in apartments (usually we camp) and set up click and collect for Supermarket shopping. Covid precautions always clear and very well observed. Masks and hand sanitiser everywhere. Appropriate social distancing at all times. As tourists, we were very well received by all those with whom we came into contact. Biking was quiet, via ferratas always had someone else visible on the route as we arrived or left, but not busy. One climbing crag got busier at one point, and that was as we were leaving. Quite a few Dutch and Belgians and Italians, some Germans and Swiss, very very few Brits. I didn’t hear English being spoken anywhere. Saw one Norwegian car all trip. Took the Eurotunnel to avoid interactions. Never done it before, and I was quite impressed.

The most alarming part of the whole trip seeing the behaviour in England on our drive back to Scotland. I get the rationale of the Eat Out to Help Out scheme, but when we went through the McDonald’s Drive Through at Leeming Bar the interior was mobbed with “diners” in close proximity seemingly grinning from ear to ear over the cash they’d saved. Is it worth it to save £2 per person?

The Mash nails it again:

https://www.thedailymash.co.uk/news/food/five-reasons-why-eat-out-to-help-out-is-bollocks-20200803199088

Interesting BBC Article Today.

If by “interesting” you mean white washing based on dubious suppositions, yes, it is.

The “rising but no where near as high as the previous peak” is just the new “rising but no where near as high as Italy” from earlier in the year. Ignore the rise, and don’t act to stop it, and things can only go one way. Sorry.

As for the defence of the track/trace/isolate… it reads like PR from Serco (Dido in interviews constantly repeating the NHS branding they have been given to use is really grating with me right now)… for example… “NHS Test and Trace employs more than 20,000 call handlers and contact tracers” …yes, they have employed those staff, but they are mostly still twiddling their thumbs waiting to be used properly. Paying people tax payers money to do little to nothing is an odd metric to try and prove “success” with.

Anyway… when do we get that contact tracing app that was promised for May… June.. ?

From the same article :

But most people agree it is unrealistic to expect a service that was put together in a matter of weeks to be perfect from day one

FFS – this is the kind of completely stupid spin that makes me resent paying my BBC licence fee – the reason the service was put together in a matter of weeks is that the pathetic scarecrow in No 10 sat on his fat lazy arse for months instead of getting moving on what was obviously going to be needed.

Scotland, I think. Oh, you said when, not where, my mistake.

It’s not saying ignore the recent rise in cases at all.

It would be useful if they could more regularly publish positive tests as a proportion of tests carried out, or even hospital admissions with suspected Covid for local areas. Both would be a more reliable guide.

As it is, we don’t know how much is grumbling along in the background until it gets into the elderly population and we start to see admissions rising. By which time, infections will have doubled twice at least.

And now they will be asking local authorities to make decisions on pub/shop reclosures (classic shifting of unpopular decisions), but are they getting decent data on which to make those decisions?

FFS – this is the kind of completely stupid spin that makes me resent paying my BBC licence fee – the reason the service was put together in a matter of weeks is that the pathetic scarecrow in No 10 sat on his fat lazy arse for months instead of getting moving on what was obviously going to be needed.

Couldn’t agree more. They’ve known since March that the only way to get out of lockdown successfully was aggressive test and trace, and it seems they’ve done virtually **** all about it. I posted a while back about how the government would squander the few months of relaxed lockdown, and it seems that’s the case.

If by “interesting” you mean white washing based on dubious suppositions, yes, it is.

Did seem a strange article, given how the Beebs Reality Check and other articles have been pulling government action apart quite well

Scotland, I think. Oh, you said when, not where, my mistake.

Do Scotland have the app rolled out now? I didn’t realise. I knew Northern Ireland had (and every other country in the world that I know someone living in).

As I understand it sunscreen means no or little vitamin D production, vitamin D comes from UVB and sunscreen blocks that.

Correct. I take a daily supplement. around 3p per day. Probably not necessary in the summer months but won’t do any harm. Almost certainly helpful during dark SCottish winters.

https://www.gov.scot/news/contact-tracing-app-development/

It says autumn which is a bit vague!

I didn’t think it was available in Scotland yet… the switch to the Irish developers was only announced the other week.

I posted a while back about how the government would squander the few months of relaxed lockdown, and it seems that’s the case.

That was their response to the EU negotiation extension period too, this is no different. Why do something that could be wrong, when you can do nothing.

Well I booked an air BnB for the south coast at half term, same place we were supposed to go in April. I now fully expect to see a second wave build as the school’s go back and lockdown restrictions return.
I’d go away now but it’s not really the best time with a 6 week old baby. Although how much different it would be with a 16 week old…. Other than he should be sleeping through by then…. Who knows if we will get to enjoy a little holiday this year? I don’t.

Other than he should be sleeping through by then….

You’re more optimistic than Boris about Covid! 😉