Thé SAGE commission in the UK has warned that coming out of lockdown as Boris has planned in his road map is dangerous as the Indian variant takes more effect. Boris has insisted lockdown will end as planned against the advice of SAGE who reckons the variant could cost 1000 lives daily if not controlled by a lockdown.
What does Boris , and eventually Macron and other leaders do ?
Following the science again! My arse!
I don’t think the British people will stand another lockdown.
He has backed himself onto a corner by stating there would never be another lockdown. You would have thought by now he would have learnt his lesson of making promises may not be able to keep.
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Call me a cynical bugger… but wasn’t that promise of no lockdown to aid his ratings in the May elections 
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You’re a cynical bugger.
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How dare you suggest that he would do such a thing - such a ghastly thought.
But at least he didn’t try going to war with France over fishing near Jersey on election day. Worse still he could have threatened a nearby country about the content of an agreement that he recently negotiated. Even this buffoon wouldn’t do that, would he?
Actually he hasn’t said that. He said the measures for Monday will go ahead but that the end of all measures on 21st June may be affected and this may be put back. Let’s bash the nasty turd but only for what he actually says and does. 
Izzy x
I think it’s about what he said before the elections Izzy, not after 
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Although this is not Covid related, Boris did promise that there would be no border down the Irish Sea and look what has happened in Northern Ireland now.
A Creationist at the head of the DUP and Northern Ireland becoming so bigoted that the rest of the UK do not really want anything to do with the country that so desperately wants the Union to continue.
Boris and his big mouth yet again.
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Peter didn’t specify Graham. BJ held a press conference last night and was very clear and very sombre about the Indian variant situation which has only become a big problem in the UK recently. Even then it’s restricted to small areas of the UK currently and there has only been 4 deaths resulting from it.
The UK has now fully vaccinated all over 70s and clinically vulnerable, in total nearly 20 million have been fully vaccinated. Schools have been opened fully since March with all secondary pupils and staff tested twice a week and there has been no substantial increase in cases. It remains steady at about 2500 cases per day. It’s time we opened up again.
France, on the other hand, has opened up too soon and should have waited till there were fewer daily cases and more people had been vaccinated. The Indian variant in France really could get out of control.
I think the issue is the Indian variant is breaking through vaccines.
I agree with you IzzyM it’s daft to reopen with ICU’s and hospitals still so full. There just isn’t room for a surge.
I’m not dissing our politicians for it there are huge economic and social considerations to balance too.
What I am disappointed with is the attitude of people who think they have the right to decide not to respect distancing, group sizes and travel etc. when asked to. In the UK this would be a number of wealthier individuals (some of whom are ‘influencers’), some communities where people simply aren’t observing the measures (I don’t know why) and quite a few people (often younger, but not exclusively) who feel it’s too long and boring to follow the measures requested because they individually find it inconvenient.
Do people get flamed on here? I think I’ve just set myself up to be…
Yeah sometimes 
I dont’ think you will in this case though as i think most of us think the same way!
I think the very latest news is that it probably isn’t but, of course, it’s early days and more data is needed.
It must be hard for the decision makers who have to decide between public health and the economy. If we only followed the science we would remain locked down until the virus was conquered so they have to balance the science with other factors. Damned if they do and damned if they don’t.
What the UK should have done was close it’s borders earlier once it was realised the Indian variant was potentially so damaging but, as usual, BJ dithered and now it’s threatening full re-opening in June.
And as you say, too many people think they are special and the rules don’t apply. Seriously annoys me as well.
Izzy x
awww, don’t be so hard on him Izzy… all he wanted to do was show off his shiny new expensive toy airplane with a trip to India and that got binned because of it… what a shame 
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Changi airport in Singapore is currently trying to work out how they have a cluster of 9 employees infected. All Changi employees are vaccinated and have continuous testing. Found the 9 only a few days ago. Already traced 200 infected and infections traced into the community
We are lucky around 72 as apart from walking the dog around the lakes, everyone wears masks here, you are not allowed into shops without one.
That’s interesting and just found this article about it. What the vaccine does protect against though, as reported in these cases, is serious illness and death. I think it’s well known that the vaccines are not 100% effective so it’s expected that some people will still get the virus but that they will have a milder illness. The issue really is that they can pass it on to other, more vulnerable/unvaccinated people.
Hard to know what to believe though. There are so many coulds/woulds/perhapses/maybes as scientists simply don’t know one way or the other particularly as new variants are coming along all the time.
Let’s just vaccinate as quickly as possibly and hope for the best!
Izzy x
No flames from me, Karen. It is sad, that placing India on the Red list took so long. I read that of a plane full of Australian citizens flying home from India the other day, the vast majority failed Covid tests and weren’t allowed on. If the UK had made the Red list decision earlier (before Boris’s planned Indian trade deal visit which had to be cancelled anyway) would the UK have less of a problem now? The country of origin is irrelevant to me, I’d be as angry if the new variant had come from Austria, even if the UK citizens who brought it from Austria had been there for family weddings, funerals or whatever. It seems less of a threat in France, but early days.
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I agree Diana. I just hope the south Asian people in the UK don’t get the back lash (as did the SE Asians)