Thanks for all your updates. :aok:
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If Boots was an isolated event I'd probably accept that and say it was a company using the situation to their advantage to cover previous failings.
The unemployment rate creeps ever higher though and there are daily announcements of job losses. I've seen yesterday's announcments described as 'radical' but they are anything but. There is limited help for retail and no help for wet led hospitality. The imminent winding down and ending of the furlough scheme is forcing companies still working under restrictions to make big decisions and the government have kicked the can down the road when it comes to offering meaningful support.
Similar with John Lewis, who actually announced the store closure plans in February:
https://www.theguardian.com/business...res-job-losses
As you say, this has next to nothing to do with the pandemic but it's convenient news with which to find fault with the government, whose quick actions to protect jobs at the start of lockdown were something they actually deserve some credit for.
Personally (and I stress personally because I'll be in the minority on here) I've been impressed with Sunak, especially as he'd barely stepped into the role before Covid-19 hit. As a self-employed worker I lost my job in March but the self-employment support scheme has (in my experience) been well run and a big help to me.
Boots and John Lewis aside, the bigger picture is that we're heading towards an almighty recession and as Sunak says, no government could pledge to save every job.
On the face of it the £1000 payment to companies for every furloughed worker they keep on their books until January looks like a good idea. Until you realise many of those workers would have been kept on anyway so the money is just getting spread thinly round everybody rather than being targeted at the areas that most need the support.
Sensible move at Kelvingrove Park. I've got relatives who live not far from the park who say the debris left by big gatherings of drinkers has been appalling:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotla...-west-53347685
I'm not sure it's that sensible a move when it's though that the risk of transmitting the virus is 20 times less outside than indoors.
Young people are not going to stop drinking/partying during the summer , if parks are closed they'll be doing it inside people's houses and flats.
85 deaths registered across the UK today.
If you really need to make redundancies, £1k in February is unlikely to make much of a difference.
It’s a welcome boost for me tbh, and should see an unexpected £7k arrive in February.
The furlough scheme was welcome, as was the CBILS scheme. I had to borrow a six figure sum, and I’ve just had to watch it disappear over the past few months. It’s the price I had to pay to keep my business and keep my staff. It was a bit of a gamble based on people wanting - and being able to afford - what I offer when we get back to normal.
In the grand scheme of things this is a wee bonus that doesn’t make me do anything differently, and I’d be amazed if it affected any other sort of business differently.
Some really progressive and sensible reopening of more businesses and facilities in England announced.
I think they are now understanding the science and the risks.
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Interesting development on testing data yesterday as it turns out that previously data on some Scottish tests undertaken through the UK Government scheme was not being provided to the Scottish Government. Adding these tests in now shows that Scotland has a higher rate of testing per capita than the UK overall (8.71% vs 8.57%) under Pillar 1 (NHS testing) and Pillar 2 (privatised testing through UK government scheme) combined. It also shows that Scotland's reliance on the privatised testing is lower than the UK overall (36% in Scotland, 43% in UK).
Pillars 3 and 4 aren't reported for Scotland, not sure if that's because we don't do them or because the numbers can't be split out. Pillar 3 is serology testing (i.e. testing for antibodies to show if people have had the virus previously but now recovered), Pillar 4 is academic research type testing for national surveillance. The UK government includes both of those categories in their headline testing figures, but as I've mentioned previously, the main value of Pillar 3 seems to be if you're chasing a herd immunity strategy.
I’ll pop back again in another four weeks and by then it will no doubt be something else that will cause an material increase in hospital admissions and deaths.
I mean if you go back on this thread it was:
People going back to work in London
The first heatwave and beaches
Non wearing of masks
Protests
The second heatwave and beaches packed
Reopening of pubs
Reopening of non essential shops
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I missed this one over the weekend, but it’s an interesting take on where it all originated from
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/202...-emerged-asia/
Just had this same discussion with Mr Cruz. I gave him my theory. All those examples you listed have involved in the main, younger people. Therefore, unlikely to become seriously ill, require hospitalisation or perhaps even request a test. They're also less likely at this stage to be mixing in a normal fashion with older or vulnerable people who will understandably be more cautious just now. The reason over 3,000 people are still testing positive daily in England is down to the list you have provided imo.
It's the "anti-social behaviour and disorder, attacks on police officers and staggering amounts of discarded litter" that seems to be more of a concern than social distancing.
It may not have been possible for young folk to gather in pubs, clubs, flats etc in recent months but it doesn't make thoughtless behaviour like this OK when the park is for public use.
England has a 0.03% community infection rate as at July 5th.
It was 0.25% back in May 21st.
Scotland’s is something like 0.009%.
That hopefully gives some people on here some context rather than a headline figure of “ten times the number of cases”.
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