Richard Fisher

The COVID Diaries – 43 10th May

Boris Johnson has been accused of delivering a confusing and dangerous message in his speech this evening. His decision to change the message in England from “Stay at Home” to “Stay alert” has cut England adrift from the three-nation approach which now exists between Wales, Scotland and Northern England.

The Police Federation of England and Wales Phas said that police officers have been put under extreme pressure because of the mixed messages from government about the lockdown. In a statement on the Prime Minister’s speech, John Apter, the federation’s national chair, said:

“The government has, as expected, made a decision to relax its lockdown guidance in England. This comes following a week of mixed messages and the release of some information which, fuelled by media speculation, meant many people acted as though the lockdown had already ended. This is putting extreme pressure on my colleagues who are on the frontline trying to enforce legislation in these most challenging of times.

“What we need from the prime minister and the government now is clear and unambiguous messaging and guidance, explaining what exactly is expected of the public, so that my colleagues can do their level best to police it.

“Police officers will continue to do their best, but their work must be based on crystal clear guidance, not loose rules that are left open to interpretation – because that will be grossly unfair on officers whose job is already challenging. If the message of what is expected of the public is not clear, then it will make the job of policing this legislation almost impossible.”

The COVID Diaries – 42 9th May

Leading UK scientists have highlighted that the scientific basis for the coronavirus lockdown is the result of work by a large group of experts. Following the resignation of epidemiologist Prof Neil Ferguson after he flouted lockdown rules by receiving visits at home from his lover, there has been concern that the science he helped coordinate might be discredited due a misconception that he alone persuaded the government to implement the lockdown.

There is a strong view from the scientific community that too quick a relaxation of the lockdown could result in a disastrous second spike in COVID-19 infections and deaths.

In the United States, former President Obama has described the handling of the pandemic as an absolute chaotic disaster because of the ‘what’s in it for me’ and ‘to heck with everybody else’ mind-set.

The COVID Diaries – 41   8th May

Those inspiring words from Winston Churchill on VE Day 75 years ago captured the essence of what our nation had fought for.

So there is a heartbreaking irony that, 75 years on from the end of the war in Europe, that precious and hard fought for freedom has been suspended, at least for the time being.

We face the consequences of humankind’s loss of respect for creation and our failure to replenish the earth. Suddenly our technologically advanced, global society has been brought crashing back to earth.

As and when we emerge from the current crisis, lets us hope that we might rekindle the hope that existed 75 years ago. A hope that after a time of crisis and hardship, we might achieve something better: a society that values all people and lives at peace with itself.

The COVID Diaries – 40 7th May

At the UK government’s briefing today, we heard a bit more about the “R”, or reproduction, number which shows us how fast the coronavirus is spreading. An R number of more than one means each person who gets the virus passes it on to more than one person, with the result that the infection quickly escalates. One of the key aims of the government’s lockdown policy has been to get the R number significantly below one.

At today’s government briefing, the foreign secretary Dominic Raab said the R number was somewhere between 0.5 and 0.9. This would mean that the number of new cases will fall.

But earlier a government advisor, Prof John Edmunds, said it had gone up a little – to between 0.75 and 1 – meaning the infection rate could increase. He said this was due to the spread in care homes, not in the community.

The danger is that the epidemic in care homes will spread back into the community, meaning it may not be safe to relax the current lockdown restrictions.

The COVID Diaries – 39 6th May

Today Boris Johnson announced that some lock down restrictions would start to be eased from Monday. Speculation is that picnics, sunbathing and unlimited walks may soon be allowed.

Details will be announced on Sunday and the rules are expected to be changed allowing people to leave the house repeatedly in a single day, so long as they keep a safe distance from anyone from outside their household.

But some sources also cautioned against expecting an imminent reopening of the wider economy.

Meanwhile the message seems to be changing: Government Twitter accounts have started using a new, more nuanced message – “Stay Safe, Save Lives” – suggesting that the starker “Stay Home, Save Lives” slogan is about to be dropped.

The COVID Diaries – 38 5th May

Reopening all schools in England would risk a second spike in coronavirus cases, scientists have warned government ministers.

In response, the government is saying there will be a “phased approach” to reopening schools as opening all schools would risk a dramatic rise in the rate of transmission of coronavirus

Britain now has the worst coronavirus death toll in Europe, official figures showed today.

The government’s total fatalities across the UK reached 29,427 for those who tested positive for coronavirus, exceeding the 29,029 recorded in Italy which until now was Europe’s worst-hit country.

The COVID Diaries – 37 4th May

The BBC reported today that the Government is now paying the wages for nearly a quarter of UK jobs under the programme aimed at helping people put on leave due to the lock-down.

About 2.5 million people registered last week for the scheme, bringing the total claims to 6.3 million – 23% of the employed workforce.

The job retention scheme funds 80% of workers’ wages when they are furloughed, up to £2,500 a month.

Separately, the Department of Work and Pensions reported there have been another 1.8 million new Universal Credit claims.

The spike in the numbers of people seeking assistance comes as the world braces for the most severe economic crisis since the 1930s. Forecasts suggest the UK economy will contract 6.5% or more this year.

The COVID Diaries – 36 3rd May

Last Friday the health secretary Matt Hancock announced that the government target he had set of 100,000 tests per day by the end of April had been achieved. More than 122,000 tests had been made available on the last day of the month. It later emerged that a third of these had not been carried out.

Today we are told that the number of daily tests dropped below 80,000.  Care home staff reported difficulties in getting tested and it is reported that home testing kits were delivered without return envelopes.

Earlier, the government’s transport secretary, Grant Shapps, admitted that more lives could have been saved if tests had been made sooner and in larger numbers.

The COVID Diaries – 35 30th April

This week the number of UK deaths due to COVID-19 jumped  by nearly 5,000 to 26,097 in one day because belatedly figures for non-hospital deaths that had tested positive for the virus were included in the total.

But sadly even this grim total is too low, as it does not include the many deaths of people who were not tested. The Office for National Statistics data on death registrations is the most definitive record and, although inevitably delayed by around 10 days, these figures would be expected to take the current total to significantly more than 30,000.

Meanwhile in the United States a row between Donald Trump and his election campaign manager, Brad Parscale, over a recent drop in the president’s poll numbers apparently resulted in Trump threatening Parscale with a lawsuit.

This happened as the US death toll from the pandemic reached 50,000 in three months and the fallout continued from Trump’s suggestion that taking disinfectant internally could be tested as a possible treatment for coronavirus, even though it is potentially lethal.

The COVID Diaries – 34 29th April

Today, Boris Johnson announced that his fiancée Carrie Symonds had given birth to a baby boy.

A spokesperson for the prime minister pand his partner said both mother and baby were “doing very well” after the birth in a London hospital.

But how many other children does Boris Johnson have?

It is believed that the prime minister has seven children, however he has never officially confirmed the exact number.

We know that Boris and his second wife, Marina Wheeler, who separated in 2018, have four children together

He also has a fifth child, who was fathered as a result of an affair with art consultant Helen Macintyre.

As for any others? We may never know!