Monday 16 March: A long period of enforced isolation could seriously damage the health of the vulnerable elderly

Posted on by Geoff Graham

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Intelligent, polite, good-humoured debate is welcome, whether on or off topic. Differing opinions are encouraged, but rudeness or personal attacks on other posters will not be tolerated. Posts which – in the opinion of the moderators – make this a less than cordial environment, are likely to be removed, without prior warning.  Persistent offenders will be blacklisted.

Today’s letters (visible only to DT subscribers) are here:
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/2020/03/16/lettersa-long-period-enforced-isolation-could-seriously-damage/

827 thoughts on “Monday 16 March: A long period of enforced isolation could seriously damage the health of the vulnerable elderly”

  4. Met Police vow to prosecute rapists even if victim is unwilling to testify in conviction rate shake-up. 15 March 2020 • 9:00pm

    A Scotland Yard chief has vowed to prosecute rapists even if victims are unwilling to testify as part of a radical shake-up to improve conviction rates.

    Detective chief superintendent Helen Lyons, the Met’s lead on rape investigations, said it showed prospective victims that the police took all sexual offences “extremely seriously” and would prosecute in the public interest amid concerns over falling conviction rates.

    Morning everyone. Another piece of meaningless drivel to convince you that the police perform some useful function other than intimidating the public on behalf of the government. All prosecutions are in the hands of the CPS! One notes that there are no comments allowed in case someone points out this salient but unwelcome detail!

    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/03/15/met-police-vow-prosecute-rapists-even-victim-unwilling-testify/

  5. SIR – Will the nation’s obesity crisis get worse when panic buyers try to eat all their food before the “use by” dates?

    Brian Senior
    Slindon, West Sussex

  6. SIR – In her feature (March 12)on the last day as senior royalty of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Bryony Gordon omits the most important aspect of why the couple are in this sad situation.

    In an act of petulant naivety, and without prior consultation, they attempted to bounce the monarchy into accepting their plan for their future role by publicly announcing their intentions. Had they negotiated quietly, calmly and privately with the Queen and her advisers, a solution acceptable to both parties could have been found. By “going public” they left the monarchy with no alternative but to find an instant and unpalatable solution. Far from being victims, Prince Harry and his wife Meghan have been the architects of their own demise.

    Peter Ferguson
    Hertford

    1. It’s worse than that. If the Mass Isolation Order of the over-70s applies, then the Queen and the Prince of Wales would themselves be under house arrest, and unable to fulfill their constitutional roles. There would have to be a temporary regency, similar to that when King George III was incapacitated medically and kept in isolation. How could Boris Johnson (under 70) attend the weekly audience with the Queen (over 70)?

      There is only one major royal left who is not a child and not over 70 to conduct all royal activities. This is the time he might need the faithful support of his brother, not to have to face the desertion of this once-brave British Army captain from the field of battle, because he has to keep in with his woke American wife.

      3. I don’t think Harry would be much use. He doesn’t appear to be able to think calmly and logically and evaluate the consequences of his actions.

  7. SIR – I managed to obtain a pack of four loo rolls today.

    Should I let my insurance company know that I now have a high-value item on the premises?

    Brendon Swidecki
    Chichester, West Sussex

  8. ‘Morning All
    Amid the new draconian powers the government is looking for I hope they haven’t forgot the power to round up and shoot every spectacle frame designer that has the scews holding the lenses in inserted from below rather than above virtually guaranteeing that when they work loose they ping off to vanish for ever!!
    Semi-blind Rik signing off until later!!

  9. UK ministers will no longer claim ‘no successful examples’ of Russian interference. Sun 15 Mar 2020 12.00 GM

    Ministers have been told they can no longer say there have been “no successful examples” of Russian disinformation affecting UK elections, after the apparent hacking of an NHS dossier seized on by Labour during the last campaign.

    The dropping of the old line is the first official admission of the impact of Kremlin efforts to distort Britain’s political processes, and comes after three years of the government’s refusal to engage publicly with the threat.

    So they are going to “admit” that Russia has successfully altered the outcome of UK elections? Would it be too much to point out that this would invalidate the results and that the government was thus illegitimate and that the United States has been saying this for the last three years and has yet to produce one American that will confess to voting for Trump because Vladimir Putin told him to!

    https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/mar/15/uk-ministers-will-no-longer-claim-no-successful-examples-of-russian-interference

  10. Operation Broadshare

    Watch out you over 70’s out after the curfew

    More than 10,000 British soldiers, sailors and airmen could be put on standby in the coming weeks as the coronavirus crisis worsens.
    Officials have been drawing up plans for weeks and are now ready to submit proposals to the prime minister.

    The plans, codenamed Operation Broadshare according to army sources, were originally due a few weeks ago but have been delayed so they can be altered to reflect the rapid spread of the virus.

  11. Morning all

    SIR – The Government is apparently to advise all those over 70 to self-isolate for three or four months, because it feels this would take pressure off the National Health Service.

    In reality, it will almost certainly increase pressure on our health service. Lack of exercise could cause or exacerbate physical problems and being forced to into isolation could cause serious mental problems for those obliged to submit to this ill-thought-out measure.

    Marcia MacLeod

    London NW6

    SIR – In 2006 my wife and I co-founded the Community Emergency Foodbank (CEF) in Oxford: each year we – and 30 volunteers – feed thousands of the city’s poorest. Most CEF volunteers are over 70: if we self-isolate the service is likely to stop. The result would be devastating to the most vulnerable in the community and this would be replicated in food banks around the country.

    –– ADVERTISEMENT ––

    Advertisement

    Perhaps the Government should rely on the common sense and long experience of the over seventies to take the steps necessary to look after their own safety.

    Tom Benyon

    Bladon, Oxfordshire

    SIR – I am a relatively fit 82-year-old, no underlying health problems that I know of. I like to walk two or three miles every day and enjoy voluntary work. I am sure I am no more at risk than the many obese 50 or 60-year-olds. Perhaps they should be asked to stay at home for four months.

    John D Guthrie

    Winchester, Hampshire

    SIR – My mother and I live together in a remote rural area and I shop once a week. My mother is 95, frail and disabled, I have a heart problem; we are self-isolating. Last week I did a an online order (no delivery slots available for six days) and discovered that several items, such as lavatory paper, were unavailable.

    A phone call to customer services revealed that panic buying has got seriously out of hand. This means that those of us who are unable to get to the shops for one reason or another cannot receive the food supplies we need. If this goes on, the Government will have to introduce food rationing.

    Miranda Gudenian

    Yarcombe, Devon

  12. SIR – In her feature (March 12)on the last day as senior royalty of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Bryony Gordon omits the most important aspect of why the couple are in this sad situation.

    In an act of petulant naivety, and without prior consultation, they attempted to bounce the monarchy into accepting their plan for their future role by publicly announcing their intentions. Had they negotiated quietly, calmly and privately with the Queen and her advisers, a solution acceptable to both parties could have been found. By “going public” they left the monarchy with no alternative but to find an instant and unpalatable solution. Far from being victims, Prince Harry and his wife Meghan have been the architects of their own demise.

    Peter Ferguson

    Hertford

  14. SIR – Badgers, which since 1992 have been a protected species, only seem to make the news in discussions on tuberculosis in cattle (“Badger culls to be phased out in favour of vaccinations”, March 6). The cost of compensating farmers for their losses can be assessed but this takes no account of the cost to the English countryside and its wildlife.

    I farm 500 acres in Oxfordshire and have 2,000 breeding ewes. Since 1992 two-thirds of the farm has been in countryside stewardship. There are large areas of wild flowers and improved woodland for wildlife. However, we are now overrun by badgers, which tear up the grass and wild flowers. We used to have populations of ground-nesting plovers and skylarks, but these have disappeared. Badgers also feed on hedgehogs, whose numbers are fast dwindling.

    The damage badgers are doing to our countryside has been largely overlooked by those responsible for the environment. If humans were the cause of this damage there would be an outcry, but the champions of the badger choose to ignore the problem.

    Remove protection from badgers and the natural balance of the countryside will be restored.

    Tony R Good

    Wantage, Oxfordshire

        2. Morning Bob

          Near to where you stayed when you visited us here in Dorset , is a pub which during wartime apparently used to serve up Badger ham .. Our elderly friend told us that .

    2. Yet again we have a hysterical human blaming another species for destroying the balance of nature.

      Whilst at the same time the number of his own species is rapidly edging towards EIGHT BILLION and causing irreparable damage and extinction to countless species of animals and plants.

      1. But, but, but, George, are you not aware that if coronavirus doesn’t decimate the human population, the Chinese have another trick up their sleeves to get the rest?

        Anyway, badgers digging under our single track road for the second year, and closing same, does little to enamour me to Brother Brock.

        1. Greetings, Tom.

          If we decimate (reduce by one-tenth) the human population there will still be 6,994,107,090 (and counting) of us left. We need to control our numbers MUCH more radically than decimation.

          Building under-road tunnels has long been a satisfactory way of providing access for Brock and his chums.

    3. I imagine so, Tony Good. I’m sure that the bat-munching Chinks of Wuhan could come up with a suitable recipe…

    4. I am pretty sure he’s 20 years out with the start of badger protection. They were included in the Wildlife Act of 1972.

  15. Fewer than 10,000 patients in China currently

    Since the outbreak began, the Chinese National Health Commission has confirmed 80,860 cases, including 3,213 deaths.

    Some 67,749 patients have been cured and discharged from hospital, leaving 9,898 confirmed cases. The total includes 3,032 in a serious condition.

  16. South Africa now A no Fly Country for UK

    South Africa declared a state of disaster, closing its borders to foreign nationals from countries badly impacted by the disease. The ban includes China, Iran, Italy, Spain, the UK and the US.

    1. Now the torture and slaughter of white farmers may go ahead without observation or interference.

  17. Djibouti and Tanzania, which do not yet have confirmed cases, are suspending international flights.

  18. New York City and Los Angeles shut down bars, restaurants and other public places
    MGM resorts closes casinos and hotels in Las Vegas “until further notice”

  20. UK Pensioners face £1000 fine

    You will probably be ok if you are out with a knife though or are BAME

    Police are set to be granted emergency powers if members of the public refuse self-isolation, it emerged on Sunday night.
    Those who flout the rules could be slapped with a £1,000 fine – or be detained.

    It comes as over-70s are set to be made to go into self-isolation for four months even if they are not ill.

    3. And if they don’t pay? Take them to court? Can’t do that they’ll break house arrest.

    4. Police in England and Wales will be given emergency powers so they can use “reasonable force” to detain people who may infect others, The Telegraph reports.

      Under the Health Protection (Coronavirus) Regulation 2020, which have been published on the government’s website, people who are suspected of having the disease can be held for 14 days.

        1. I don’t see 70 or seventy anywhere in that. It refers to the detention of people suspected of having the virus.

          1. Good morning, Sue.

            BJ has never let the truth interfere with what he
            sees as a good, catchy headline!

          3. I think it’s enabling legislation. It refers to groups, and it looks like Johnson can decide what the groups are at a future time and what he wants to do with them.

  21. I suggest that the EU’s ‘Stability and Growth Pact’ be renamed the ‘Stability and Lockdown Pact’.

  23. After a tiring day, a commuter settled down in his seat and closed his eyes.

    As the train rolled out of the station, the young woman sitting next to him pulled out her mobile phone and started talking in a loud voice:

    “Hi sweetheart. It’s Sue. I’m on the train”.

    “Yes, I know it’s the six thirty and not the four thirty, but I had a long meeting”.

    “No, honey, not with that Kevin from the accounting office. It was with the boss”.

    “No sweetheart, you’re the only one in my life”.

    “Yes, I’m sure, cross my heart!”

    Fifteen minutes later, she was still talking loudly.

    When the man sitting next to her had enough, he leaned over and said into the phone,
    “Sue, hang up the phone and come back to bed.”

    Sue doesn’t use her cell phone in public any longer.

    2. That reminds me of a true story about some friends of my sisters.

      They were walking along the street (Kings Road), just browsing and not saying much and then in quiet conversational tones.
      Alex swears he has no idea what he did to provoke this, but obviously something. But they were walking along behind some woman in one of those Ascot style hats which even for the Kings road and in those days was a bit over the top.

      All of a sudden, and in a loud enough voice to be heard by anyone within thirty feet or so Liz suddenly says in a tone of reprimand:”Well. I think its a very nice hat.”
      The hat wearer turned and gave Alex such a glare he his past life flashed before his eyes.

    1. According to Grant Shapps on Toady 5 mins ago, it’ll be OK to go out for a walk with or without a dog, etc., etc. but don’t go to the greyhound races.

      1. Wot, not allowed to “go to the dogs” (‘Minder’ used to love the dog racing).

    2. 317159+ up ticks,
      Morning LD,
      It smacks very much of corralling the sane, common sense segment of the herd there by bringing the population to heel.
      They have had a snake pit meeting and come up with
      threats of fines & incarceration.
      Your future is truly in the hands of the the same , in the main, 650, due to people power.

  27. Just heard this – Latest Breaking News, all old people over 70 to report to their nearest local council waste incinerator for a long lasting curative procedure.

    1. Locking up the over 70s or enforcing testing is not going to happen – when did you last see a policeman on the street let alone be close enough for him to tell if you’re sneezing etc.?

      1. It’s irrational. All the farmers except one in our (long) lane are over 70.

        How are the Police going to keep them all captive?
        Who is going to move their stock to market?

        It’s just empty twaddle from dreamy politicians whose idea of a visit to the country is a taxi to Primrose Hill!

          1. Yes, you are quite right Vouvray.

            The only sensible solution acceptable to the Government is to insist that all people over 70 must wear a yellow star.

            Then the Police can easily identify them and lock them up.

    2. I composed the following at about 1 o’clock this morning after I’d had a few, so I decided not to post it until I reread it in the clear light of day:

      “Is there any evidence that the rumour of an “Over 70s curfew” has any substance? It is nothing more than a rumour, yet it is being repeated as if it were a Govt policy. The notion that such a restriction could be announced, let alone enforced is just absurd. Okay, the Govt might ask people of a certain age group to restrict their movements to reduce the risk, but this is not the same as a diktat, yet this rumour is being treated as if it were such.

      My 71 year old brother assured me tonight that he will continue to collect his granddaughter from school twice a week while her Mom is on shift as a nurse in A&E, and take care of her until her Dad gets home from work at 6 PM. Multiply this scenario by countless thousands across the nation and it will soon become apparent that such a measure cannot work. Talk of a ‘curfew’ is just adding to the hysteria.”

      In view of the tweets you have quoted, maybe I should have posted it then after all. I wonder if the likes of Andrew Pierce will make a full retraction?

  30. Have just reviewed the position in respect of panic-buying procuring sensible stock levels for 4 months incarceration. We can survive for four months* without any further requirements, if we forego eggs, milk and fresh fruit and veg. We are running low on tonic water although that won’t matter until after Lent.

    A note had been pushed through the letterbox this morning. When I unfolded it, it was rather badly written, to the effect that it was hoped that we had enough wild bird seed supplies. It was signed “Woodpecker”. That was when I realised that it was a round robin.

    *Then what? Our nearest child is 80 miles away and does not have a car. We will have to sneak out at night to the 24 hr ASDA.

    1. At the same time as government wishes to curtail freedom of movement for four months, the NHS will only prescribe for 28 days. So I shall have to make a monthly trip to our rural surgery/.pharmacy and ensure the spread of disease.

      That works well, don’t it just?

      1. We get 56 days but I looked it up recently and the cap is apparently 84 days. Not sure if it’s still the case.

      2. And what about over 70s who still have hair, how’s that going to work ?
        Mine needs cutting at least every 6 weeks.👱👀

          1. Back to the 70s eh.
            I’ll have to go through the wardrobe see if I can find the flares and the platforms.

          1. The mod fashion could come back Conners. Back in the days of tonic and mohair suits hush puppies and scooters. I use to cut my own with a little device i bought from a magazine.
            It worked well. But I’ve forgotten where it is now 😆

          2. I used to have one of those razor trimmers which would produce the layered look and DA at the back. Like you, I have no idea where it is now.

          3. I once went to Brighton from North London on the back of a 175 Lambretta scooter. Fook dat. I came home on the train.

    3. You’ve just reminded me that when I walked the dog this morning the woodpecker was going at it hammer and tongs in the copse. It’s the first time I’ve heard it for a long time.

  32. Just a point about long-term isolation for oldies or others which has not been mentioned.
    Has everyone forgotten about the biggest killer ? It’s called ” Depression “.
    I am beginning to go down with it myself, already.

    1. Great. So I will be mown down in a local street as I go to pay my paper bill; a small gesture aimed at sustaining Britain’s economy.

      1. 317159+up ticks,
        Morning Anne,
        On the way to the dance studio more like, good to hear of a success.
        So you are the one still financing the MsM I believe there is a price on your head.

    1. Nice try, Lewis but, since the council and mayoral elections due in May have been postponed for a year, I can’t see any by-elections going ahead.

      It also means that Sad Dick Khant lives to shite another year.

    2. Leave them alone, Lewis. They are just like a mass of harmless blubber floating in the sea at the sea-side. They will disappear eventually.

      1. I demand that Beckett’s caravan be impounded. And police should cordon off Corbyn’s allotment.

  36. Toady… advice for the over 70’s from Mr. Motivator.

    Practise getting out of your chair….

        1. That has run through my mind as I assemble crutches and special heel gizmo before I get up!

  38. I hope the government is collecting and analyzing data on the medication for pre existing conditions experienced by those individuals who are seriously ill as a result of Covid-19.

    From this data it should be an easy matter to establish whether ACE and ARB medications such as Ramipril, Losartan, Lisinopril and Candesartan are involved in large numbers of cases which would go quite some way towards testing the hypothesis outlined in the British Medical Journal outlined here…..

    https://www.bmj.com/content/368/bmj.m810/rr-2

    ”We need rapid epidemiological and preclinical studies to clarify this relationship. If this were the case, we might be able to reduce the risk of fatal Covid-19 courses in many patients by temporarily replacing these drugs”.

    1. ” I hope the government is collecting and analyzing data”
      It is not for the Government. It is for the medical profession to do and then pass their conclusions to the government.

      Must go now and take my daily ramipril.

      1. The ultimate responsibility rests with the government. They are organizing, collating and analyzing everything, including data.

      2. The ultimate responsibility rests with the government. They are organizing, collating and analyzing everything, including data.

    2. No chance of that. PP.
      Let’s face it, most people over the age of 70 would be taking prescription drugs. It’s what keeps them alive.
      So the phrase “underling health issues” could really be attributed to the majority of even over 60s.
      It’s something that probably will not be explained.
      For all the good they are doing, the government might as well dish out hiviz jackets gloves and hard hats.
      With the virus in mind see the Mayor of Champagne Illinois has taken the opportunity to ban guns and alcohol.
      That’ll do the trick eh.

      1. She’s a Democrat.
        They’ll never let a crisis go to waste, and always use any opportunity to seize more power. It’s what they do.

      2. ”Most” is the key word because a majority is nowhere near all.

        If the analysis of the data showed anything like a 100% correlation then I think the hypothesis is pretty well proved.

  39. Daily Express front page headline;
    VIRUS WILL PUT 8M BRITONS IN HOSPITAL
    This is not very helpful.

    2. Spreading alarm & despondency. To jail with them. (Is gaol worse or better than jail? Discuss…)

    3. Makes a change from their usual nonsense weather-related predictions.

      Let’s hope the 8 million won’t all be admitted to hospital at the same time…

    4. Do Soros and other multi billionaires control the media ?

      As he’s a huge story but never now reviewed in the MSM, it rather looks that his placemen might be activated to keep things silent and secret.

      So if that’s true, does that explain media hysteria designed for an ulterior motive ?

      Such as cleaning up in the markets and stopping Brexit ?

      In a not completely dissimilar market manipulating fashion as alleged here by Peter Schweizer in relation to stock in Phoenix University and other publicly quoted organizations…….

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cIEYR0qFxOw

  42. For your delectation and delight. Here is a copy of an email that I sent to my MP yesterday:

    “I note the reports on the BBC about measures to be introduced to delay and minimise the spread of the Covid-19 virus.
    One of our daughters works in a business that has already made adjustments to working patterns.
    They have asked workers to work alternate days. This means that key workers with similar jobs will be less likely to directly infect each other, as they would not be at work at the same time.
    If this approach were to be followed nationally, over a 7 day week rather than a 5 day week, the impact on normal business would be minimised. That is, businesses could pretty well keep with what they do, whether factory production or financial services, and staff lay offs would be minimised. The number of working hours in a day could be adjusted appropriately.
    As large gatherings are to be discouraged, this is likely to adversely affect key areas such as Canary Wharf, where hundreds of people work in the same building, although not all in the same business but share facilities such as lifts.
    A rota system of access, would keep to a minimum the numbers in entrances and corridors.
    This could be facilitated by staggering start and finish times. The working day for some staff might be, Start 8:00AM, the next tranche 8:30AM… with Finish times being 4:00PM, then 4:30PM and so on.
    It would also assist in bringing about a least worst scenario on public transport.
    I am sure that this may have already been given consideration, although you might like to pass on this suggestion to your colleagues who are working on these difficulties.
    Kind Regards

    PS: Maybe have an “odd and even” policy for cars, as has been applied in Paris, Delhi and Lagos? Link to BBC:
    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-38236926“:

    The swift reply from my (Tory)MP:
    “Thanks .
    I know that the government are considering a number of options to reduce the transmission of the disease.
    We are living in a very challenging time.
    Kind regards”

    HoHum.

  43. Nicked from “British Armed Forces – We took the Oath” FB page:

    Has anybody else noticed that since everyone started washing their hands the peanuts in the pub don’t taste the same?

    2. 317159+ up ticks,
      Morning SB,
      We had a lad that use to return the sucked nuts to the container.

    2. I noticed on last night ITV news that a woman stated that ‘people should wear masks in households where someone has CV’. Correct me if I’m wrong, but shouldn’t the CV sufferer be the one wearing the mask and also be self-isolating?

    3. ‘Morning, Ogga.

      Typical Lefty with a faulty agenda to push – talk very loudly, interrupt and talk over any opposition.

      1. 317159+ up ticks,
        Morning NtN,
        I do agree,
        But I am firmly of the mindset that finds it difficult to see any opposition in-house regarding the governance parties.

    4. I would take great pleasure in inserting a bull-injector into that mad-lefty’s left buttock.

      BTW, keep her off our screens, period.

  45. Roy Hudd, actor and comic, dies aged 83

    Roy Hudd, who hosted BBC Radio 2’s The News Huddlines for 26 years and also starred in Coronation Street, has died at the age of 83, his agent confirmed.

    The all-round entertainer, who also fronted 1969’s The Roy Hudd Show, was renowned for his work with dramatist and screenwriter Dennis Potter.

  46. Bus route bidding plan to save services in Wales

    Councils could get the green light to run their own bus companies or force firms to bid for the right to run routes under plans to save services.

    Economy Minister Ken Skates said de-regulation of bus services in the 1980s had been “an abject failure”.

    The Welsh Government is planning a new law to reverse the free market reforms.

    But bus operators claimed that “simply focusing on the regulatory regime will not deliver the quicker journeys that will benefit passengers”.

    In Wales, passenger bus journeys have fallen from 125.3m in 2007-08 to 99.9m in 2017-18.

    “It’s clear that the free market model simply does not work,” Mr Skates said.

  47. Eastern Airways

    The following services will NOT be operating, and all other flights remain as scheduled;

    Monday 16th March:
    T3 7604 Leeds Bradford – Southampton transferred to T3 7606 at 1710hrs
    T3 7605 Southampton-Leeds Bradford transferred to T3 7607 at 1900hrs
    T3 7661 Aberdeen-Wick refunded
    T3 7662 Wick-Aberdeen refunded

    Tuesday 17th March:
    T3 7661 Aberdeen-Wick refunded
    T3 7662 Wick-Aberdeen refunded
    T3 7641 Aberdeen-Humberside transferred to T3 7645 at 1535hrs
    T3 7642 Humberside-Aberdeen transferred to T3 7640 at 0645hrs or T3 7646 at 1735hrs

    Wednesday 18th March:
    T3 7604 Leeds Bradford – Southampton transferred to T3 7606 at 1710hrs
    T3 7605 Southampton-Leeds Bradford transferred to T3 7607 at 1900hrs
    T3 7661 Aberdeen-Wick refunded
    T3 7662 Wick-Aberdeen refunded
    T3 7640 Humberside-Aberdeen transferred to T3 7642 at 1045hrs
    T3 7641 Aberdeen-Humberside transferred to T3 7645 at 1535hrs

    Thursday 19th March:
    T3 7661 Aberdeen-Wick refunded
    T3 7662 Wick-Aberdeen refunded

    Friday 20th March:
    T3 7661 Aberdeen-Wick refunded
    T3 7662 Wick-Aberdeen refunded

    Monday 16th to Sunday 22nd March:
    All our Aberdeen-Birmingham / Birmingham-Aberdeen services have been suspended with a revised start date now of Monday 23rd March. Passengers will be contacted regarding their options.

  48. The latest Enid Blyton ….

    ” Five test positive for Corunavirus at Valencia ” ………Al beeb.

    3. I thought the Beeb had banned anything Enid Blyton as racist and sexist…. and anti-anything they can think of. But perhaps you refer to the new version where the five is to be increased to about thirty so they can include all the new sexual and ethnic varieties they can……God knows, the poor old Fat controller met his end years ago in the Reverend thingy’s Thomas The Tank engine books…. he is now weight challenged or something? Or have they sharpened up their act these days?

      I hate to think what they would do with Magic Roundabout today….. OH, and did I hear there is a new Doctor? anyone know what sort of a he/she/it the Aristocratic Time Person (a problem inventing gender neutral or gender inclusive titles) nature will be?

  49. Ryanair said it expects to reduce seat capacity by 80 per cent until the end of May

    1. Are they removing the seats in order to transport coffins? (Other Government contracts are available.)

    2. I hope they do it before April 4th. Then i will get my flights refunded without argument.

  51. Have just spoken to Nagsman. She & Muppet are coming over for lunch at The Swan, Wilton (my new ‘local’), today. [Probably moules marinière and Muppet gets her choice of bikkies from the large jar on the bar].

    She tells me that she tweeted Boris yesterday to explain that she wouldn’t consider any change in her routine, let alone any form of self-isolation, until she had his personal commitment to come down to Wilts each evening to groom and feed her three hunters.

    2. That’s v sad. I’m surprised he was only eight three though. I thought he would have been much older

  55. British granddad, died ‘after contracting coronavirus from skier in restaurant’

    This testing seems to be not that reliable

    The friends of an 88-year-old church choir singer who died after contracting coronavirus say he got the illness at a restaurant after coming into contact with a skier returning from Italy.

    Darrell Blackley, from Middleton, Greater Manchester, died on Friday at North Manchester General Hospital after contracting COVID-19.

    He was admitted to hospital on 3 March with sepsis, but was placed in quarantine having earlier had contact in a restaurant with “a skier who had returned from Italy,” a statement from his local church said.

    It added that he initially tested negative for the virus, but a week later received a positive result, shortly before becoming “extremely poorly and died”.

  56. The figures on UK demographics suggest that there are 7.2 m people in the over-70 category. If we add the over-60s the figure doubles to 14m.
    If all the over-60s die then we are left with a much younger population profile and a much more relaxed NHS. House prices will fall and there will be lots of room for immigrants. Sounds good!

          1. The upper classes will be able to afford undertakers. The bodies of the proles will be sent to China to be sold on Wuhan market.

          5. Yes Ndovu, normal death rate in Britain is about 600,000 a year.

            An extra 21, or even 35, will not produce much of a problem.

            However if that civil servant is right, and we have 8 million deaths this Summer, then we definitely need bulldozers.

        2. the 3% figure is flawed. The 3% is derived from the number tested against the number that have died

          WE have a very large and unknown number in Self Isolation. Some of these will have Corona Virus some will not. We have no real idea

          The indication is the death rate is probably a lot lower but without any data on ho many in Self isolation had Corona virus and simply recovered without medical help we simply do not know

          If would be very sensible to actually test a sample of those in self isolation to establish this data

      1. And the pension liabilities.
        And care home vacancies.
        What’s not for the government to like?

  57. UK: Trains to be suspended if outbreak worsens

    TRANSPORT Secretary Grant Shapps warned commuters that the rapidly declining number of passengers using rail travel may lead to the train lines being shut down because there is “no point running ghost trains

  59. Met Police vow to prosecute rapists even if victim is unwilling to testify in conviction rate shake-up. 15 March 2020 • 9:00pm

    A Scotland Yard chief has vowed to prosecute rapists even if victims are unwilling to testify as part of a radical shake-up to improve conviction rates.

    Detective chief superintendent Helen Lyons, the Met’s lead on rape investigations, said it showed prospective victims that the police took all sexual offences “extremely seriously” and would prosecute in the public interest amid concerns over falling conviction rates.

    Morning everyone. Another piece of meaningless drivel to convince you that the police perform some useful function other than intimidating the public on behalf of the government. All prosecutions are in the hands of the CPS! One notes that there are no comments allowed in case someone points out this salient but unwelcome detail!

    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/03/15/met-police-vow-prosecute-rapists-even-victim-unwilling-testify/

    1. Another numpty common purpose direct entry feminist

      Improve conviction rates?? With no evidence from the “victim”
      Yeah that’ll work out well !!
      ‘Morning Minty

      1. But if the judge is mandated to find every accused rapist guilty, problem solved.

    2. Sounds daft. Usually there are only two people involved and no witnesses so evidence is hard to come by so if the victim is unwilling to testify I cannot see it the cases going anywhere. How can it even be classed as rape if the victim does not wish to testify. It will make the case all but impossible to prove either way

    3. Good luck with that, DCS Lyons. Any half-able defence barrister should be able to rip such a case to pieces. And I doubt that any jury would be keen to convict, either. This sounds like another “credible and true” gaff, which I trust will come back to haunt her.

      ‘Morning, Minty.

      PS How does anyone reach such a rank when displaying such breathtaking ignorance?

    5. But only if the supposed rapist is white presumably. There is an interview with a grooming gang victim (I think it’s the one Sargon of Akkad did), who said the police refused to do anything if the victim wasn’t prepared to press charges and said the incident had to be recorded as consensual.

    6. Morning, Ararminta. Amended in line with both your and my observations. One lives in hope.

      A Scotland Yard chief has vowed to prosecute investigate all alleged rapists…

      1. But will that include all those peace loving people who have enriched our culture by graciously coming here to share their values with us? Or will the met only really apply this to celebrity alleged offenders where they can invite the BBC to come along and film their dawn raids and all on the say so, unquestioned, of some fantasist?

    7. Good luck with that, DCS Lyons. Any half-able defence barrister should be able to rip such a case to pieces. And I doubt that any jury would be keen to convict, either. This sounds like another “credible and true” gaff, which I trust will come back to haunt her.

      ‘Morning, Minty.

      PS How does anyone reach such a rank when displaying such breathtaking ignorance?

      2. But what do we make of the cases of false accusations ? Is she saying there is no such thing and if it didn’t actually happen this time, then it is a preventative measure because if they didn’t do it yet they surely would sooner or later?

    8. Well, Police Scotland do not bring cases to prosecute against rapists. It is up to the Procurators Fiscal to prosecute. Unless the suspects are muslim.

  60. Has anyone else noticed that to get back to the NOTTL page from a Tw@tter link now needs two clicks on the ‘back’ arrow?

  62. I heard on the news that the Labour Party is calling on the government in effect to commandeer the UK’s private hospitals as Flu repositories. Given routine NHS surgery will be curtailed, my own view is that where the Private hospitals have the appropriate facilities they should be used solely for urgent medical & surgical cases, freeing up most of NHS hospital beds for the expected influx of ‘flu’ patients requiring hospital care. Most if not all NHS hospital beds have piped oxygen available.

    1. The Labour party will use any excuse to grab private enterprise in order to destroy it..

    2. I heard from a source that some hospital bosses are thinking about having emergency medical staff quartered on hospital premises for 14 days at a time should the outbreak worsen. No going home and working shifts on this fortnightly rota.

      1. What happens when all the medical staff become ill – either from the virus or overwork burnout?

        1. That really is a good question.
          If Johnson & Co had stopped, or severely restricted, travel from around the World and especially infected places we might not be in this potential mess now. After the pandemic dies down and an inquiry is initiated then we’ll get some answers. Maybe, maybe not. Arse covering will become a science rather than an art.

          1. Stopping all travel would only have worked if it was done before we had cases here. Otherwise, the genie is out of the bottle and it’s too late.

    3. Planned surgery which can be delayed will be stopped and this should happen, when we need it to happen in private as well as NHS hospitals. Not too soon i.e. not yet. Private hospitals could also take over planned therapies that can’t be stopped e.g. chemo.

      1. If not now, when? Cases in Britain are spiking and will continue to balloon, especially in high people density areas, where proper “social distancing” is very hard to achieve in practice. Maybe slightly simpler here with regard to things like chemo and radiation therapy, which are typically not done in hospitals but in separate facilities.

        1. Radiotherapy is difficult to move because the treatment regime is based, in part, on the type of linac used. Chemo is much easier to deliver elsewhere.

        2. It’s the UV levels that are supposed to count, because they shorten the life of any virus in the air, on people or other contaminated surfaces. The same reason that the usual flu viruses travel round the earth by season, so our flu jabs are based on the one that has been prevalent in Aussie.

  64. Right! Sneaking down divers pathways to avoid the Age Police and Pensioner Sniffer dogs I’m off to the Supermarket for Bread and Milk! Soon there will be a £10 reward for children who report wrinklies evading the curfew. The penalties for such will probably be summary arrest, electric shock interrogation and deportation to Rockall!

    Such have we become!

    1. Good luck on your mission, Minty. I do hope you find more than Sweet Rockall at the supermarket.

    2. I’m going to volunteer as a “trusty” to act as curfew and containment warden for my oblast. I expect special privileges, nice uniform with shiny boots, and an extra ration of gruel.

    4. We did our shop today…. stocked up on anti-wrinkle cream and dog food…. I hate going shopping with sig other…. and i get very little time to browse the Parkside hardware…. they (Lydl) had a nice band saw on offer today but I have learned to be wary of some of their tools….. the quality sometimes leaves a great deal to be desired even for DIY grade stuff, so perhaps just as well…..we are on Rhodes and the Greek government has decreed all shops, bars, cafes, restaurants will shut except supermarkets, bakeries and pharmacies…….
      Last night was our last take away meal…. its now all self catering…..
      so we went to the new big Lydl (replaces the Little Lydl…. doesn’t sound so good in German…..) and far more enjoyable than usual. I don’t know if the low turnout was because this was its first day open (the other Big Lydl is about 10 minutes away, we are not short of supermarkets here) or because people were staying home. I seriously doubt this latter possibility since Greeks seem disposed to ignore the government and its decrees when it suits them…
      But this time plenty of parking spaces but a queue to get in the door. Not a long queue and at the front a security bloke handing out numbered tickets and admitting new shoppers only when someone exited with their shopping. They also handed out disposable plastic gloves…..
      And when it was our turn it was glorious….. all those isles pretty much empty….. (and some of the meat fridges too, sadly). But best of all they had more than the usual token number of checkouts operating and paying was a breeze….. if only it was like this every time…..every cloud has a silver lining, like those terrorists who have helped ensure that when you fly there is now a better than decent chance you will be reunited with your luggage at the destination…… and not like that old take on the BA advert…. “Breakfast in London, Dinner in New York, luggage in Bermuda.”.
      Now at the original Big Lydl the “Svengalis” would be busy trying to sell you new windscreen wipers while you shop (a one size fits all so far as I can tell) but the children have a task too…. they follow you to your car and offer to take your trolley back…. so they can claim the 50cents or 1 Euro coin you needed to insert to free the trolley. One nice young girl has done very well out of me, so cheerful and polite…..but at the new Big Lydl (it is much closer to the “svengali” shanty town by the careenage which has been there for decades) we were plagued by obnoxious boys who royally upset sig other and me too…… their response was to lean close and cough. repeatedly till security got on their toes and chased them off.

  65. Now that world government has flexed it’s muscles will we be doing this every year or so

  66. Has Soros instructed his political placemen to create chaos so he can clean up in the markets ?

  67. BBC Breakfast TV
    Guy in motorhome live from South of France reports escaping from Italy after shutdown and only only realising he had crosssed the French border when the road signs changed to French.
    Stocked supermarkets still open with people hugging and kissing as normal in true Gallic style.
    He’s nevertheless making due haste to the Channel Tunnel.
    C’est la vie!

    1. Back in the eighties I used to commute regularly from Italy to France and Monaco. I never had to show my passport; I was just waved through.

  68. Yo All

    Good morning from Stalag Marjal, Catral, Alicante, Spain

    We are on lockdown

    The site bar will only serve drinks with food, so tapas and a pint it is.

    You can only leave the site to get food and medication/health service

    All communal activities stopped ie Boule, mini golf, gym, swimming pool,

    Shop is on reduced hours, which is silly as we need them evem more than ever

    Cars must not carry passemgers…. big fine

    Removing any Barrier tape preventing entry to anywhere big fine

    All bars and restruarants closed

    All shops apart from food ones and Chemists closed

    But the weather has been lovely

    Inmates making run to Bilboa, undercover of darkness with their tin tents

    Rumours running riot that surviving Brittany Ferry crossing from Bilboa to Portsmith will be stopped TFN

    Happy days….

  69. ‘Morning, Peeps.

    Did anyone else hear Sister Geraldine Smyth on R4’s Prayer for the Day refer to “…Mothering Sunday yesterday…”? Poor old dear confused, or the wrong recording broadcast?

  70. Virgin group chairman calls for £7.5bn bailout of UK airlines. 15 March 2020.

    Peter Norris plans to send a letter early this week to the prime minister, chancellor and transport secretary warning them that the entire aviation sector — airlines and airport operators — faces pressing financing issues, according to an industry source.

    The letter will warn that even large airlines could run dangerously low on cash because of the plummeting demand and travel bans, which has seen carriers around the world cancel tens of thousands of flights, withdraw earnings guidance and implement austerity measures.

    Why should the taxpayer fund those who pocket the profits in good times?

    https://www.ft.com/content/2ed2caa6-664f-11ea-a3c9-1fe6fedcca75

    1. Michael O’Leary said though they may have to ground the fleet, they have 4 billion in cash reserves and so should manage.

      Why haven’t Virgin and BA done the same?

      2. Good afternoon, Phizzee.

        ‘Why haven’t Virgin and BA done the same?’

        1) R. Branson has always been a chancer?
        2) BA is not British, and hasn’t been for at least 10 years?

        1. 1) Correct.
          2) Correct

          Note: Answer 2) is correct because the UK Government could not be bothered to protect UK strategic assets.

      3. MIA (Muslim International Airlnes) have suspended all flights by their 72 Virgin Airlines, as a result of lack of passengers attributed to reduced jihadist activity caused by coronavirus.

    2. They suddenly want to be nationalised ? Typical. When times are good, keep the cash. When times are bad, the taxpayer should give them money.

    3. How co-incidental that RB handed over his control
      of Virgin when he did.

      Good afternoon Minty.

      PS. I have been told a most strange conspiracy theory.
      I need to gather the theory together before I repeat it,
      suffice to say it involves a face-book page – now taken down,
      the Chinese, 5G, the Japan to USA cruise liner…….

    4. I take it all their bosses will be taking a pay cut an forgoing their bonuses ?

  73. Looks like panic and chaos is being deliberately induced.

    That Brexit will be cancelled looks a given.

    Soros rules !

    1. Certainly I think that this outbreak was designed to disrupt Brexit and put it on the back burner indefinitely until it fell out of sight. It just took rather longer to get going, break free and go wild than they were expecting. I wonder what Merkel’s visit to China in November was really all about, ostensibly in connection with Huawei.

  74. 317159+ up ticks,
    Morning Each,
    Tommy Robinson received his establishment suit e at Belmarsh after the stitching up was complete, that was a prototype.
    You can bet your last bog roll that a politico has the franchise for the mass production of the button to the chin tunics the only exceptions being those
    under the umbrella of Appeasement, PCism ie burkas.
    You WILL conform.
    Common sense dictates that if you feel unwell you will stay in with no wish
    or need in most cases to go out or to spread this malady if it is such, any further.
    £1000 fines & incarceration plus compulsory property issues smacks of
    herd control in the extreme.
    What should worry peoples is the scarcity of common sense not toilet tissues within the herd, as shown via the ballot booth.
    Were we prepared before hand to handle a catastrophe, war gamed etc
    were we buggery, no way hosay.
    In most cases individuals are their own safety man, do a risk assessment / common sense, and act accordingly.

  75. ‘Toady’ 8.21am Grant Shapps – over 70’s in isolation.

    …it’s ok you can walk the dog.

    PS If you don’t have a dog…..get one!

    1. People can hire our dog for exchange of 3 toilet rolls a box of tissues and a packet of hand wipes.

  76. All bally daft. This afternoon I am going shopping. I need loo roll, so will be buying that. I will not be panic buying. If our building boots us out, I will WFH. It’s a nasty flu. Not the black death.

    1. It makes sense for countries like Nepal, where there has only been one case, and they recovered, or Kenya, where there have only been three – and fortunately our holiday was unaffected. But for the rest, it’s shutting the stable door.

      1. It will be interesting to see if the numbers come down in Italy. It will be at least a week before we know

      2. Precisely. Gov’t actions need to be led by the science not public opinion.

        1. It also makes sense for countries as those mentioned above, whose health systems would not be able to cope with a major outbreak.

          1. That would include most Western countries. Italy is already choosing not to treat the very old due to lack of resources – the NHS will end up that way, and the French are warning that they could not cope if the current spread rate contunes, so people need to take government warnings seriously.

          2. While in the USA only the insured will get treatment. The “deplorables” will die.

  78. 317159+ up ticks,
    The same war time spirit is shown now as in the blitz according to an
    historian on the vine show, jewellery was stolen from the dead and looting
    was in evidence.
    Maybe so in isolated cases methinks, and what there was could never ,in no way be compared to what is occurring now, IN PEACETIME.
    Also one instance where there is little comparison is the queue, peoples formed queues today you could get seriously injured if caught in front of a stampede……. for bog rolls.

    1. Yo Ogga

      One thing we know that will be very strong will be the BAME market.

      Sale of kniveswill rocket

    2. Wartime was different. Apart from anything else, certain kinds of profiteering could get you hung.

      1. 317159+ up ticks,
        Afternoon Jtl,
        As we have witnessed on certain issues, now currently in the UK, the bigger the crime the greater the reward.
        Failure pays very well, and treachery still gets support / votes.

        1. One of the few American “English” uses where proper English actually has more syllables – usually it’s the other way round.

  79. “Europe, faced with a fantastic opportunity to cull the infirm and unfit and reduce its massive and unsustainable social care and old-age pensions burden, instead chose to close down much of its private sector. It thus ensured a return of the mutated virus in the autumn of 2020 with devastating results. The undefended borders of southern Europe thus saw a mass invasion of many tens of millions of muslims from North Africa, the Middle East, and Afghanistan. In truth, the pickings were not so good and a consensus among the “refugees” was that many aspects of Europe reminded them of Syria, Iran, and Afghanistan. It quickly became dangerous for females to go outdoors unaccompanied and also not to be wearing a burka. Even Mark Steyn was astonished by the speed with which Europe transmogrified into Eurabia. President Joe Biden (‘Granpa Joe) seemed to have difficulty developing sensible foreign and domestic policies …. rumours circulated that he had trouble recognizing his wife and remembering her name. Vice-President Chelsea Clinton stood ready to take the Oath of Office”.

    1. From Tony Hall…

      “I want you to know that the Board met yesterday and we decided that this is not the time to be delivering changes to licence fees for people over 75. We’re putting that on hold until August and, of course, we’ll be keeping it under review”.

      2. Given that Lord Hall apparently said that the package that the BBC got in return for funding the over 75s licence, which they have now unilaterally decided they won’t do, was “a good deal” perhaps he ought to give back all the goodies the government gave him (including licence fee rises), and then shut up!

  81. Coronavirus: Brexit Party group leader Mark Reckless self-isolates

    Brexit Party Senedd leader Mark Reckless has decided to self-isolate, saying he has symptoms “potentially consistent” with coronavirus.

    He is the first member of the Welsh Assembly known to be doing so.

    It comes as a senior Conservative assembly member called for the Senedd to “cease standard business” and focus entirely on coronavirus.

    Andrew RT Davies said: “Anything else in the current climate is an unnecessary distraction.”

    Brexit Party AM Caroline Jones will deputise for Mr Reckless at First Minister’s Questions on Tuesday.

    1. They should be taxed and licensed and made to pay appropriate insurance premiums and be forbidden to blame anyone else if they are involved in an accident.

      1. Confined to Cycle lanes I would say. They are dangerous on the pavement and roads

        These started of in the states. They are so dangerous that many places in the states have now banned them

    2. What wrong with these? More pedestrian friendly than bicycles I would say. I’d like to get one.

  83. Shares suspended in Primark owner AB Foods

    Shares in the owner of Primark were suspended for an hour on Monday, after it released a bruising report into the effects of coronavirus on its business.

    The London Stock Exchange said that trading in Associated British Foods (AB Foods) was halted at about 9am after the company’s shares inexplicably fell by 100% to 0.01p.

      1. 317159+ up ticks,
        AC,
        Being a politico of integrity seeking the honesty of the issue.

          2. by luring assorted followers away from Dodgy Robinson to the sunny uplands of ex-UKIP prejudice?

            In fact, I enjoy GB’s provocative remarks, but all that stuff needs quantities of salt.

    2. I don’t personally know anyone who has the virus, or perhaps I do but they don’t know.

    3. Yes, but at one remove. One person abroad, public sector employee, now apparently recovered. Caught it in Italy.
      One person in London area, whose father recently died in hospital (but no one knows if the father had covid-19, or not).
      The widow is awaiting her test results.

      1. 317159+ up ticks,
        Afternoon JM,
        I posted I did not know of any, then on reading your post jogged the memory and turned up two friends who were poorly in Feb, but put it down to the usual flu type bug.

      2. I had a persistent cough which started mid-January, and lasted about three or four weeks.

        1. Mine was in February. When I was talking to one of my neighbours today, she mentioned that she’d had something very Covid-19esque just before Christmas.

    5. Since the number of recorded cases in my county of 300,000 is still zero, the odds are against it.

      There are a handful of cases in Tyne and Wear and one in County Durham, so about nine cases in a population of about one and a quarter million.

  85. Right. Wish me luck.
    I’m off to get the bus up to the Smoke to go to the theatre tonight.
    Spending the night at the VSC then home tomorrow. Perhaps instead of nicking the towels, I’ll nick the loo rolls.

    1. I hope you enjoy it.
      Didn’t Phizzee go to the same show and he is still rolling round with laughter?
      [And didn’t he stay at the same address?]

      1. If BSK’s is going to see upstart Crow then yes and yes. She is going to have a fun night.

        I knew she was going to the VSC but i didn’t know the theatre was involved. I would have mentioned that if you go round the side of the theatre after the show you get to meet the cast as they come out the stage door. Gemma Whelan was an absolute sweety.

        Mark Heap is extremely funny in his role.

      2. I think the last time I went to the theatre in London it was to see James Stewart reprise his role in that one with the rabbit thingy…. Harvey…. excellent. Oh, wait, we did go to see the revival of Hair but walked out of the half empty theatre halfway through which left the raincoat man a row in front with his liquid refreshment in a brown paper bag… that show was really dated…. and yes, we went to see Evita….. I still think Julie Covington (on the LP that was released prior to the stage show) was the better signer and she ought to have had the stage role too…. but it was excellent… actually Madonna wasn’t bad in the film, come to that and Jimmy Nail wasn’t bad either. Can’t remember who was in the stage roles it was a long time ago. .

  86. Good Moaning.
    HipDate16032020.
    Have conscientiously done exercises; the late Ada Foster would be proud of one of her most unpromising pupils.
    Gone off food; not the fault of the hospital, more to do with sitting around rather a lot. Amazed how some people seem to have telly on all the time.
    Will see if brain has recovered enough to tackle crossword.

    1. Well done Anne and KBO.
      When is your expected release from incarceration? 😂

      1. It is being discussed today. I’m just waiting for Xray and consultant to come to a decision.
        I’m not worried. Another day would be perfectly bearable and give MB an extra 24 hours grace.
        It’s in the lap of the gods.

      2. Probably 4 months, Alf. I’m hazarding a guess that Anne is in or near our crumbly category though she wears it well.

          1. The late Ian Mclagan on Hammond. Went too early, just as the reunion was being planned. Who knows, we may all be joining him!

        2. I’m afraid I’ll be shot if I nip down to Crouch Street to settle up the paper bill.

      3. Good morning Anne. So all went well? Now comes the hard work to get back to normal. Them physio terrorists are evil, aren’t they. We heard this from a friend who had a replacement knee recently – said she hated her surgeon afterwards for a while!

        As Alf says KBO and hope you have a steady supply of books.

    2. Those of us who have had replacement hips ought to form a clique amongst the Nottlers. We could either call ourselves the Heavy Metal Hippies or The Artificial Hipsters.

    4. Well you could have s four month recovery period lined up for you. I hope that you have written down the physio instructions so that you can remember them all.

      My brother has been waiting for his knee replacement surgery and has planned his retirement around it – three months sick leave before a final month paid leave before retiring. I guess that he will need to change his plans if non essential surgery is cancelled.

    5. Good morning Anne

      Great to hear you are mending nicely .

      Peace and quiet is an excellent healer so is a good book.. TV is producing anxious moments .

      Prunes and Allbran help !

        1. Beetroot can work, but it demands rapid progress towards the bathroom. I also find coffee a booster in the No.2 rocket department …

          1. An apple a day keeps the doctor away.
            Chambers a Guildford company, that supplies portaloos has a slogan “No. 1 in No. 2s”.

        2. It’s one of those holders that dispenses one sheet at a time; or six sheets as we know it!

    6. Yes this “telly always on in the background” often used to drive me bonkers when I stayed with my mother, especially as with her deafness and in her small bungalow there was no escape from the noise (she’d have misplaced any headphones at least 6 times per day).

    7. See vouvray’s answer to you that she sent to me instead. She could have just turned her head and told me. 🙂

    8. Good morning Anne. So all went well? Now comes the hard work to get back to normal. Them physio terrorists are evil, aren’t they. We heard this from a friend who had a replacement knee recently – said she hated her surgeon afterwards for a while!

      As Alf says KBO and hope you have a steady supply of books. (I’m having one of those days – posted this to Alf instead of you! Ah well …

    9. Ah! the dreaded NHS……. Hospital radio, internet, TV etc….. try a Greek hospital with none of these things and a system that relies to a significant extent on family members helping out.
      And while the Greeks may have gifted us with democracy they also must take the blame for bureaucracy and all the damn paperwork that goes with it……. even as a patient I had to make countless trips between the ward and the admissions office to sort out all the necessary forms to get in and to get out again….. never have anything that requires you are sequestered on the fourth floor and the office on the ground floor and only one lift working……

      I was in hospital for a week at the end of last month. When I was admitted to the ward (6 bed) most of the visitor’s chairs had been commandeered by one lady to sleep on next to her husband who was the patient. Most seem to pack as if they are going on holiday to somewhere with strange diets and would bring a mass of food and drink and visitors could be there most of the day chatting and just about avoiding turning it into a party.

      I had neither food nor drink the entire time apart from the last day when they allowed me some hospital noodle soup (I was on intravenous for meds, liquids and sustenance…. and when I tried the soup I was glad of the IV…… you think airline food is bad? try hospital food…. (sorry, the last time i was in hospital in the UK was about 50 or 60 years ago when they had matrons and proper staff who could speak English. Actually, my Greek Nurses spoke better English than some I saw when visiting my mother in the NHS hospitals….After such a long period since then without needing any sort of hospital treatment any hospital stay is if course going to be a novelty…..in any country).

      Incidentally, if on an all inclusive holiday where you can eat and drink as much as you like and even get packed lunches for day trips and all on about 5Euro per person per day and while not the best cuisine or recognised brands of drink, it still seems infinitely better than the PVC and cholesterol meals airlines serve up……. and, on Easy Jet etc, want to charge you a small fortune for despite having coughed up bags of cash for the ticket (and why did Our two dogs cost double our fares to travel in the hold and not get air miles?)….. I wonder how much per head this food actually costs them?

      OH, and the inbuilt phone system in the TVs for the patients to receive incoming calls…. every time My mother went in they would move her from ward to ward as her treatment progressed and that meant I had to find out the telephone number for her bed each time and email the information to my sisters overseas…. and usually they would ring the wrong number…and if they did get through the nurses would have to intervene to help out…. at 92 my mum had some trouble associating the phone and the TV…. she was never happy with skype…. and with some reason. And yes, her hearing was bad and she would keep losing her expensive hearing aids and at home the house would be heated to Kew Gardens Tropical house levels……

      Anyway, I am awaiting the call to go back in for an operation… a bit of keyhole surgery….. and no idea how this virus problem is going to affect that….I think I can manage 3 days of no food or drink, no internet, I just need to get some new books….. getting English language books on Rhodes is not easy or cheap. There are some in the supermarkets and Public…(electronics store) but the prices are enough to wipe out the monthly pension cheques…. the alternative is to browse the bars and hotels where thoughtful tourists leave their beach/flight books behind….. of course these are in all languages and, for some reason, mostly “chic lit” beach books…..

  88. Norwegian warns situation escalating ‘by the hour’

    Norwegian Air Shuttle is temporarily laying off nearly all its workers and cutting 85 per cent of its flights as the embattled low-cost airline warned the coronavirus-inspired crisis was escalating by the hour. 90 per cent of its workforce will be laid off temporarily, or 7,300 workers from pilots and cabin crew to administrative staff.

    The Norwegian airline has cancelled all long-distance flights except those from Scandinavia to Thailand and most European flights save between Norway and Nordic capitals.

    1. Morning Belle. To hear these people talking about patriotism is truly sickening!

        1. They didn’t know about racism or socialism in those days, otherwise is would be:

          Racism is the first refuge of the Socialist.

        2. 317159+ up ticks,
          Morning R,
          If that were the case then I would like to see a great deal more scoundrels of the
          Gerard Batten, Richard Braine, Tommy Robinson calibre.

          1. I think this well-known quotation has often been misinterpreted.

            It does not, I think, mean that all those who are patriotic are scoundrels but that a scoundrel turns to patriotism in order to sound plausible when all other excuses have failed.

            So, just because Batten, Braine and Robinson are patriots does not imply that they are scoundrels!

    2. Morning Belle. To hear these people talking about patriotism is truly sickening!

    3. Why are people still buying bog rolls? Don’t they know, the football season has been suspended?

        1. I wonder if, when the panic subsides and life returns to normal, there will be a boom in the sale of bidets and those sophisticated Japanese lavatories which squirt, soap, wash, dry, powder and scent you after your visit to the ‘comfort station.’

  91. Does anyone know if the sceptered House of very elderly cronies is closed, just in case ?

      1. Black day for Black Rod.

        He’ll have to click on an image of the door to the HoC.

  93. Right made it! Just! No toilet rolls or baked beans in Morrisons and I had to leg it when a gang of seven years olds spotted me and started throwing bricks and broken bottles!

      1. Over 70s have to wear a yellow star for identification purposes, otherwise their state pension is forfeited. Permanently.

        1. We were discussing this last night; we thought a silver star as a reference to being venerable.

          3. Venerable. Very few over 70s are vulnerable. They’ve had a few character building experiences.

  94. Iceland store to open early for older shoppers

    An Iceland store in Northern Ireland is opening one hour early to allow older shoppers to buy food when it is quieter amid the coronavirus outbreak.

    Iceland said it was not a company policy, but it was allowing individual stores to decide how best to meet the needs of shoppers in their local areas.

    The move comes as supermarkets continue to try and stop customers stockpiling.

    Several supermarkets have limited the sales of certain products to avoid them selling out completely.

    Iceland’s Kennedy Centre store in West Belfast will let older customers shop on their own between 08:00 and 09:00 every day from Tuesday.

  95. I hope that at this moment Matt Hancock, having being told to come via the back entrance, is waiting uneasily in a sideroom at No.10 Downing Street and being kept waiting to see the Prime Minister and Dominic Cummings.

  96. 1543 cases now, up 171. no mention of deaths. TV licence fee for over 75s delayed until 1 August. Both items from the Independent

    2. Good news for us – MOH turns 75 in May, so we get an extra couple of months’ free viewing.

  97. The wild plums have started flowering in the west hedge. Beautiful in the sunshine.

    1. Is this some kind of code, along the lines of “Blessent mon coeur d’une langueur monotone”?

      1. Uncaring, too; or is it just so large and top heavy that it is incapable of reacting in time to events?

    3. Interesting observation that the loverly Ursula wants to keep the Schengen borders open. So dogma first and sod any common sense and simple measures of control.

      2. In the article there is a statement from the EU and the first point’s focus is on maintaining the integrity of the Single Market, for goodness sake.

  99. As of 9am on 16 March 2020, 44,105 people have been tested in the UK, of which 42,562 were confirmed negative and 1,543 were confirmed as positive.

    1. And what about the the non binaries, don’t want any judgemental assumptions made at this sensitive time.

  100. Cunard ends its three world cruises

    Cunard has ended its three round-the-world voyages in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

    Passengers from its three ships are being flown home – the ships will then sail back to Southampton empty.

    Queen Mary 2 and Queen Elizabeth are sailing back from Australia, Queen Victoria will return from Florida.

    Other lines which use Southampton, including Princess Cruises, Saga and Fred Olsen, have already cancelled all cruises.

    The Southampton-based cruise line, which is part of the Carnival group, said the decision had been taken “in light of the COVID-19 situation and the increasing restrictions imposed on global travel”.

    On Thursday the government advised against cruise ship travel for people aged over 70, and those with pre-existing health conditions.

  101. Good afternoon all.

    In amongst the gloom and doom via the MSM and al-beeb, it’s been a crap few days here for me. Midday Friday my beautiful Minnie was promoed to glory. She exited just a few minutes before the vet arrived to see her. LK and myself were so tearful, he must have witnessed similar, I’m sure.

    Now this empty house forces a new routine but I still check below the wheels as I trundle around. A chunk of my heart has been ripped away and now, the Rainbow Bridge awaits.

    2. So sorry to hear your loss of a dear friend and companion.
      I’m dreading that day….

      1. Thank you, PT. I hope that Maude is with you for many more years.

        ps, neighbours have finally replaced their lovely, old, lab with a pair of miniture dachs

        2. Oh dachs….. a long term favourite of our family….. and when the inevitable happened it was never long before new dachs were found……at least they died of old age….. far too many cats met their end under some speed merchant’s wheels… and this in a country road.

    4. Always such a sad time. Keep your chin up and get another. Not to replace but to help take away the pain.

    5. They give so much love and joy – it’s so hard when they go……… it never gets any better, but we still eventually get a new pet, knowing we’ll go through the pain again. We lost little Suzie in April last year, and gave Lily a home in August. She’s a golden oldie.

    7. Oh dear. I suspect many NOTTLers have been through that heartache.
      All our thoughts are with you.

    8. I’m sorry, Issy. That’s hard. But you had a wonderful companion.
      It took over a year for us to not automatically look for Magnificat on the shoe warmer every time we came in the door. Still miss that cat.

      1. Maybe we should take elephants as pets or tortoises, that way they have a chance to outlive us and we are spared seeing our fur babies die….my mother’s garden is a veritable cemetery of dead and sadly missed pets….all fondly remembered long after….. and for her and us the only solution was to accept the next stray to wander in….. cats somehow seem to sense when a vacancy opens up …. for dogs you have to make a conscious decision to go and get one……or two….. (I said to my significant other “No cats, no dogs.” and we now have two kokoni…. little white dogs…. the little buggers, who take me for walks two three times a day and more often if they can persuade me….. not sure why the sig other only ever takes them on an occasional shopping. trip….. and, incidentally. on our visit to the supermarket to stock up for the corona virus lock down we seem to have stocked up on anti-wrinkle face cream…… and dog food. Of course, they give me the excuse not to lock the doors and wait our the plague….I gate to admit how much they mean to me.)

    9. So sorry to hear this. Not only does the house feel empty, but the outside too. Many of us here will understand the place our furry four-legged take in our hearts. In due course perhaps another will arrive to run alongside the one that has fallen asleep in your heart.

    11. Sorry to hear that issyagain – words aren’t sufficient. I know how you feel. I still remember Claudius every day.

    12. So sorry for you. One of my friends has just lost their dog through cancer. I keep looking at my 16-year-old and reminding myself to make the most of him as he’s on borrowed time.

  104. The over-70s have been told they are allowed to go out for walks when their period of staying at home begins.

          1. And crying out unclean ,. stay away

            Now perhaps I could knock up a little invention. That sound an alarm if anyone comes withing 1 Metre

    2. I also hope they will allow cycling and driving to a favourite walking/cycling place with no passengers. Boris is on BBC Radio4 at 4pm to explain the immediate consequences for the over 70s. For the future I wish he would allow us to use our commonsense to keep ourselves out of too much Covid-19 risk.

      1. Let us use commonsense? Are you mad? They can’t allow people to think for themselves and make their own decisions!

    1. You will need dispensation from the govt not to hold the annual meeting in May as it’s a statutory requirement. So far I haven’t heard that our next meeting is cancelled. Watch this space.

  106. Is it positive or negative?

    Possible errors in COVID-19 test kits:

    False negative results may be caused by unsuitable collection, handling and/or storage of samples,
    failure to follow published procedures and unauthorised extraction of samples.

    False positive results may be caused by: unsuitable handling of samples containing high concentration of COVID-19 or reference sample, unsuitable handling of amplified product and inappropriate interpretation by non-medical professionals.

    The test cannot rule out diseases caused by other pathogens.

    A negative result for any test does not conclusively rule out the possibility of COVID-19 infection.

    1. I saw a report that one person died of COVID 19 because he was in isolation and hi other underling conditions could not be treated. To me that sounds as if COVID 19 was not the underling cause of the death but that his other conditions were not being treated

      I dont really understand it as there is no specific treatment for COVID 19 so why could they not continue to treat his other conditions ?

      3. They had no facilities to treat him as he was lying on the floor in the entrance hall?

      4. We’ve had our first death in Shrewsbury and ditto in Wrexham. Both were in their sixties with underlying medical conditions.

  108. Went to the chemist counter in our local supermarket and asked if they had any parecetamol. She said NO in a loud voice and then sold me my 2 packs.

      1. yes of course. She knows her customers and those that are hording and those that are not.

  109. Coronavirus: Broadband firms say no issue with extra demand

    UK broadband companies say they can cope with increased demand as many more people stay at home during the coronavirus crisis.

    Internet service providers (ISPs) say they have contingency plans in place and that the network can deal with extra daytime demand.

    Video calls and other work applications should have little impact.

    But some traffic-heavy services, like gaming, are seeing a surge in use around the world, as people stay home.

  110. Old people have been hit with a double whammy, not only are they expected to sit in and vegetate for four months, they now want them to watch the BBC, where will this mental torture all end? all they will need now is free copies of the Guardian and that will do for most of them.

    1. I’ll sit and watch my print of the National Gallery painting – ” Priti Patel Expelling the Immigrants “

  111. Amazon bans sale of most editions of Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf. Mon 16 Mar 2020 15.14 GMT.

    Amazon has banned the sale of most editions of Hitler’s Mein Kampf and other Nazi propaganda books from its store following decades of campaigning by Holocaust charities.

    Booksellers were informed in recent days that they would no longer be allowed to sell a number of Nazi-authored books on the website including Hitler’s autobiographical screed and children’s books designed to spread antisemitic ideas among children.

    The ironies of history! Yesterday’s victim ever becomes today’s oppressor!

    https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/mar/16/amazon-bans-sale-of-most-editions-of-adolf-hitlers-mein-kampf

      1. As Amazon did a kindle edition it is out there. They can stop selling it but the Internet has it forever.

    2. I have read it. It’s as crap as his paintings. Lucky he was a good shot though, albeit at close range.

    3. Those who have worked in schools – and especially boarding schools – will know that children who are bullied can go two ways: they either become very nasty bullies themselves or they become vigorously determined to stop others bullying those who are as vulnerable as they used to be themselves.

    4. I saw an announcement online yesterday that Auschwitz has been closed to visitors because of Covid-19. A bizarre twist?

      1. Even worserer…The Dingle distillery have ceased all tours !

        Dingle Gin…buy now…gold medal winner 2019 worldwide.

        Something has to replenish my shares portfolio…. :o(

        1. Most distilleries have ceased to welcome visitors. Some have arranged for staff to work alternate days, so that production can continue uninterrupted. Business will take care of business. Politicians need not concern themselves.

    5. Didn’t you-know-who ban books he didn’t like? What next, a ban on “decadent art”?

    2. Update.
      It appears that despite our best efforts, the EU still insist we are good Europeans and we are allowed in.
      What have we to do to get them to accept Brexit?

      1. Just received my new passport. Burgundy, but no mention of the EU.
        Excellent service, I must say.

  115. UK supermarkets may cut services to stay open as coronavirus spreads

    Britain’s major supermarkets are working on plans to streamline their operations by cutting cafes, counters and other services to enable a depleted workforce to maintain basic provisions during the coronavirus outbreak, industry sources told Reuters.

    The country’s supermarket sector, including market leader Tesco , Sainsbury’s , Asda and Morrisons , has struggled for over a week to keep shelves stocked as shoppers panic buy items like dried pasta, canned food, flour, toilet rolls and hand sanitiser.

    They may also reduce opening times. Closing at quieter times to keep in order to keep the stores fully staffed at busy times

  116. on Monday Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said people over the age of 70 would be asked to self-isolate “as and when the moment is right” – but that they would still be able to go outside and “walk the dog”.

    2. Throo rocking chairs! So the elderish may leave the confiles of self-immolation for necessibold walkage with their woofit ‘n’ yaploders, all snuffly through the wild woodage and undergrove, trickly-how and fallolop with cockit leglopper on treeboles or squatly there. Deep joy!

      Oh yes!

    3. I will walk with the wife.as and when we please. Where we walk we never see another person.

    4. Well, that’s a relief! In other words, the moment is right to self isolate when you feel unwell – I suspect most over 70s would do that as a matter of course. It’s the snowflake generation that needs to have its decisions made for it.

      1. Today they have decided the time is right and are desperately trying to make out it is not a U turn

  117. Into town to get the glasses fixed,seemed a little quieter than usual,then a pub lunch and a couple of pints at ‘Spoons,medium busy,large group of old fellas putting the world to rights and giving the MSM a slap and scornful comments about isolation,they would fit right in here
    The silent tv tuned to SLY-DOOM news and its ignorant talking heads ignored by all

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/11b4351509f9d8f0f3b760966927dfaba2d2ce5a7e37c45dc75d191e821b3733.jpg

  118. Alex Salmond trial: Rotas ‘changed’ after women made complaints

    The civil service took steps to prevent women having to work alone with Alex Salmond at night, his trial has been told.

    Chris Birt, a Scottish government civil servant, said new rotas were drawn up after two female colleagues told him about alleged incidents involving Mr Salmond.

    But he said the new policy was never formally written down.

    Mr Salmond denies 13 charges of sexual assault against nine women.

    The alleged offences are all said to have happened when Mr Salmond was serving as Scotland’s first minister and the leader of the SNP.

    Mr Salmond was cleared of a further charge of sexual assault against a 10th woman after it was dropped by the Crown when the prosecution case ended on Monday afternoon.

  120. Government has contingency plans to introduce rationing should food supplies become critical

  122. The whole of the EU is now in Lock-down

    EU to suspend all non-essential foreign arrivals to halt pandemic spread

    The EU is banning the “non-essential” entry of all foreign nationals, in the most dramatic crackdown yet to try to curb the continent’s coronavirus pandemic.

    Only residents, family members and essential staff – healthcare workers and medical experts – will be exempt from the measures, to be imposed for 30 days initially.

    Announcing the radical steps, Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission president, said they were necessary to slowdown the spread of the outbreak.

    “We need to do more to reduce huge pressure on our healthcare system,” she said, emerging from a tele-conference with G7 leaders.

    “We know that everything that reduces social interaction also reduces the spread of the virus. The less travel, the more we can contain the virus.”

    1. Do you want to copy my link Bill, it is further down the page for all your viewers?

    2. “We know that everything that reduces social interaction also reduces the spread of the virus. The less travel, the more we can contain the virus.”

      She’s cattle rustling! These decisions have already been made by the leaders of the nation states within Europe!

      2. Over 4k cases, I believe. We’ve been telling them for ages that open borders weren’t a good thing!

    4. “We know that everything that reduces social interaction also reduces the spread of the virus. The less travel, the more we can contain the virus.”

      She’s cattle rustling! These decisions have already been made by the leaders of the nation states within Europe!

  123. Boris’s daily Briefing is due to start shortly. It may or may not clarify things a bit

    2. “This is the five o’clock news and it’s Boris Johnson reading it”. Shades of Alvar Lidell.

  125. Coronavirus: Man in Japan tests positive again after recovering from illness. Kate Ng. 29 minutes ago

    The man, in his 70s, was a passenger on the Diamond Princess cruise ship and first tested positive for the virus on 14 February while onboard the then-quarantined vessel.

    He was put in further quarantine and treated at the medical facility in Tokyo and tested negative on 2 March, reported Japanese news agency NHK.
    But after returning to his home in the Mie Prefecture, within the Kansai region, he began exhibiting symptoms of the virus again and developed a fever of 39C on Thursday.

    The following day, he went to a hospital to be re-tested, and reportedly was confirmed to be infected again on Saturday.

    This is just the sort of news you don’t need! If true it would mean that CV was endemic until vaccination became available. The death toll under such circumstances is unforeseeable!

    https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/japan-coronavirus-test-positive-recover-a9404056.html

    1. Would vaccination do any good if the original bug itself does not produce the required antibodies. Or is it a case of mutant zombies.

      1. 1. Vaccinate everyone.
        2. If the virus returns, say it’s something else, like a new strain of flu.
        3. If anyone dies, bury them.

    2. Meanwhile, down on the farm –

      “In a recent ruling, an Iranian cleric
      decided that Muslims would be able to use a cure for coronavirus even
      if one is created by Israelis.”

      1. As the vaccine is handed over to them it should be just mentioned the positive input that pigs had in its development.

        1. You mean he’s not being kosher, AO’E? I am surprised all halal hasn’t broken out over his statement.

      3. Not sure the Israelis would give them the chance, given the clerics’ constant calls for Israel to be wiped off the face of the earth.

        1. The Israelis are daft enough to help them. They even give hospital tratment to the Gaza terrorist rulers. Not that they get any credit for it.

      1. Maybe Oberst but I would have thought they would have been particularly careful with such an important test. We shall have to wait and see if anyone else becomes reinfected!

    4. It will be years before there is a vaccine. Once they develop one the clinical trial take a very long time unless there is some read across to shorten the process

  126. I’ve just had an email from a company that I’ve used many times when I’ve gone abroad.

    ‘It’s not too late to get 14% off airport parking’.

    Do you think I should tell them?

  127. The cut-off mark for imposed self-isolation was set at age 70 and over because these are people who are not working. At some point that mark may be lowered to 65 and then 60. This will benefit the NHS in not having to treat them. It will benefit financial business in not having to pay annuities and pensions.
    Wait for it…

  129. Government issues drastic new coronavirus advice: Avoid pubs, work from home, abandon travel plans

    Britons have been told to stop “all unnecessary travel” and stay away from pubs and clubs, as the number of coronavirus victims escalates.

    And people with the “most serious health conditions” must avoid almost all social contact for 12 weeks, from this weekend.

    In London – a virus hotspot – the crackdown goes even further, with everyone urged to reduce social contacts.

    Addressing the nation, Boris Johnson said: “Even if you don’t have symptoms, and no-one in your households has symptoms, there is more we need you to do now.

    “Now is the time for everyone to stop non-essential contact with others, and to stop all unnecessary travel.

    “We need people to start working from home when they can. You should avoid pubs, clubs, theatres and other such venues.”

    2. We need people to start working from home when they can.

      Does this mean I have to get a job?

    3. The virus hot spot in South East England is Brighton.

      Keep away from there and you’re pretty safe.

  130. Alex Salmond trial: Woman tells court it ‘felt like wrestling with an octopus’

    Woman B, a former civil servant in the Scottish Government, accuses Mr Salmond of indecently assaulting her.

    The first witness on day six of the trial is Woman B, a former civil servant in the Scottish Government.

    Mr Salmond is accused of indecently assaulting her, repeatedly seizing her by the wrists, pulling her towards him and trying to kiss her in 2010.

    Woman B told the court she was with Mr.Salmond in Bute House when he said he wanted to “recreate the pose” in a Jack Vettriano painting which had been proposed as the illustration for his official Christmas card. The painting showed a man and woman about to kiss.

    Woman B said: “He grabbed my wrists and pulled me towards him. I was shocked.”

    he said she used her hands to try to get his hands off her. But she said: “I felt like I was wrestling with an octopus. It felt as if there was always another hand coming to my wrist.”

        1. As the expression goes.

          As with most people…the eye is in the beholder.

          Or in this case…getting ready for work.

  132. London at centre of UK coronavirus outbreak with hundreds of cases as hospitals brace for more patients

    Hospitals in the capital are braced for a wave of cases within weeks as a sharp rise in the number of deaths — to 35 yesterday — suggested it is a fast-developing situation. All of the top 12 areas with the highest number of Covid-19 cases are in the capital or in commuter-belt counties.

    As of yesterday, out of 1,099 confirmed cases in England, 407 were in the London NHS region and 175 in the South East. Combined, this is more than half the total.

    The local authority area with the highest number of cases is Hampshire on 53, followed by Kensington and Chelsea on 40, Westminster on 35, Hertfordshire on 32, Southwark 30, Lambeth 26, Barnet 25, Oxfordshire 24, Surrey 23, Camden 22. Brent and Ealing are both on 2

      1. Not sure what happened there. I tried to post a FB link ut when I licked back on it it took me to a completely different page so I deleted it.

  135. Army likely to embed medics in NHS hospitals to help fight coronavirus

    The armed forces are preparing to send thousands of military medics to assist in NHS hospitals in the coming weeks as part of Operation Broadshare – the Ministry of Defence’s response to the coronavirus outbreak.

    Planners believe the most efficient way to assist the stretched health service is to embed medical personnel within existing hospitals rather than build field facilities, which it is feared could drain resources away from the NHS.

    Military medics have not yet been called up because the NHS has not formally requested help, but plans are being drawn up to allow the 11,200 trained members of the Defence Medical Service to assist as the emergency unfolds.

      1. Music – The Essence of Life.
        For most people music is an enjoyable, although momentary form of entertainment. … Music was the key that helped Albert Einstein become one of the smartest men who has ever lived. Einstein himself says that the reason he was so smart is because he played the violin.

  137. Virgin Atlantic asks staff to take eight weeks of unpaid leave as it cuts 80% of flights

    Virgin Atlantic plans to ground 75 per cent of its fleet by the end of the month and will ask staff to take eight weeks unpaid leave during the next three months.

    In a statement, the airline said it had reduced its flight schedule and will prioritise “core routes based on customer demand”.

  139. I posted this a few days ago, but …”The lamps are going out all over Europe, we shall not see them lit again in our life-time”
    It’s a worry. Off to open mic later. The turnout will be interesting. It’s not at a pub, I’m calling it an inn as from now.

          2. As the evening wears on, “Whose round is it?” does crop up, as Tony mentions below.

          3. Just use the beer mat system. Each time you buy a round you mark the mat. Watch for cheaters !

  140. Carmaker PSA to close all European factories

    France’s PSA is to shut all factories across Europe as it struggles to cope with the impact of the coronavirus outbreak, More than a dozen sites in countries including Germany, Britain and France.will close

    The closures will be phased this week, with every site closed until at least March 27

    • March 16: Mulhouse (France), Madrid (Spain)

    • March 17: Poissy, Rennes, Sochaux (France), Zaragoza (Spain), Eisenach, Rüsselsheim (Germany), Ellesmere Port (United Kingdom), Gliwice (Poland)

    • March 18: Hordain (France), Vigo (Spain), Mangualde (Portugal)

    • March 19: Luton (United Kingdom), Trnava (Slovakia)

  141. Signs spread slowing in Italy

    Early days yet but the indications are the lock down is staring to work It looks as if the UK government got it badly wrong

    It will probably need at least a week to see if the downward trend in Italy continues

    The leader of the Italian region that has been worst-hit by the coronavirus has said he is seeing some early signs of the the outbreak slowing.

    Attilio Fontana, president of the northern region of Lombardy where almost half of Italy’s active cases are located, told Italian radio on Monday that the rate of increase in cases could be falling.

    “Let us hope it is the start of a reversal of the trend. I am saying it in a whisper, that this could be the start of a reversal,” he said.

      1. Very small world. We’re not in the village centre as your sister is and she’s closer to the Red Lion.

    2. I see the menu includes “Connisbee’s Free-Range Sausages”.

      What a delightful picture that conjures up. Free-range sausages, grazing contentedly in lush pastures under the watchful eye of the sausage-herd and guarded by his faithful sausage-dog – traditional English farming at its best.

      1. There are a number of pubs in the group, 8 I think, and they all use as local a butcher as they can. The Red Lion Horsell uses Prince & Sons sausages. The butchers shop is less than 100 yards from the pub.

      2. Unlike haggis beasties if you scare them they don’t fall over when they run the other way around the hillside.

        1. Quite so. BTW, I think Bach composed a cantata in praise of free-range sausages:

          “Würstchen können sicher weiden”

        1. OK now. Looks good. We have a Red Lion near us,but if I said it was as good as yours, I’d be lion.

  144. Went into town today. Farsands of elderly people making the most of their freedom…

    1. Just back from a jog. Elderly dog walkers and a few joggers, its wonderful, I might just like the regime. Returning to a slow pace of life. How about shutting shops on a Sunday, now, there’s a novel idea.

  145. BREAKING NEWS

    Reports are coming in from Silicon Valley, California, that the founder of the eponymous computer security software company, John McAfee, has tested positive for a malignant virus.

    1. What? did they discover he is now a republican? Did he not get his daily ingestion of CNN? This is the trouble with these campaigns against vaccination…. sooner or later someone pays the price….

      2. What Graham?
        Then he’d have been at risk of catching an entirely different virus.

  146. After observing panic buyers and hoarders and seen the results these last few days, I would like to see this headline.

    Government to use the army to give powers to issue summary executions to those found with excessive quantities of the following in their shopping trolleys: eggs, paracetomol, toilet rolls, bread

    As an alternative shops/supermarkets could enforce quantity limits.

    (January 2021: the UK government issued ration books …. this was tough for the million+ undocumented people living here.

    2. The hospital couldn’t give me any paracetamol when they discharged me this afternoon.
      Being one of those annoying, hyper-organised Annes, I had been stocking up one box at a time for several weeks – long before all the current frenzy kicked off.

      1. When i was being discharged with meds on several occasions it took several hours to get them from the hospital pharmacy.

        When i went private the meds were waiting at reception.

      2. Being a typical (ex) squaddie, I have always been in the habit of having spare everything. During my many years of overseas travel in Gas and Oil, I always went prepared by taking loads of over-the-counter medicines so I was already well stocked up. I had a quick count up the other day and was surprised to learn that I had 20 x 6 packets of Immodium due to bitter memories of Nigeria.

      3. I usually keep a small supply of essential items, too. This time I was caught out as I’d been using up my paracetamol (bad arthritis) and before I could restock, the gannets swooped. I found some in Sainsbury’s, so everything’s back to normal now.

  147. I have just wiped down all door knobs, buttons, light switches, handles and touchable surfaces in my home.

    I have 2 liters of Dettol left.

    Who would like to open the bidding at £500 not inc delivery of £2000 with armed guard?

    1. Just like the rest of the free world, not sure what for but i don’t suppose we will have long to wait.
      I wonder what the Russians are doing?

    2. If the economy does come to a standstill, then presumably man-made CO2 production will also fall. It will be interesting if it has an impact on global CO2 levels. If it doesn’t, then it belies the climate change hypothesis. I bet St Greta is biting her fingernails…

    3. Shutting down the economy is well underway what with advice not to go out or meet with groups and cut contact with others. George Soros must be rubbing his hands with glee, as will other million/billionaires. A few “select” people will make billions out of the stock exchanges.

    4. £200,000 has been wiped out of my investments as of today. I am not
      really worried because the FTSE will bounce back when this nonsense is
      over. As it always does.

          2. No. Business as usual as they say. I’m off to to Garsons tomorrow for Pelargonium. If they have decided to shut down i will nip over the fence.

          1. You said youve lost £200k from your portfolio. Some of us have never had anywhere near that amount to begin with.

      4. We have been here before, for a different reason but the result is the same. And I suspect Soros will be making a killing soon.

      1. You weren’t looking hard enough. Plum is a pragmatist…..well…er…certainly before she thumps you… :o(

  150. This is just a taster of what life would be like if XR and St Greta gets their way.

    1. I asume that Greta is totally mystified as to why the world is collapsing and it has nothing to do with Climate Change.

      1. I’m sure her handlers will feed her the appropriate bullshit to enable her to continue her preaching.

  151. Whatever else happens debt remains to be repaid…

    “Companies with negative profits have no value other than the cash on hand and the near-zero auction value of other assets. Subtract their immense debts and they have negative net worth, and therefore the market value of their stock is zero.”

    Looks like a lot of folk are about to be Fupt!

    1. Not so. Any respectable plc can make up a deficiency with a black hole and a suitable fee to a Big Six auditor.
      So life goes on.

    2. Trump’s Davos mates are already assembling loads of money to buy up these “worthless” assets (only rendered such by corrupt insider market forces) and run them at a tidy profit, once shorn of their debts. The ruined entrepreneurs who lived on beans, hope and goodwill to set them up can flip burgers on zero hours for all they care.

      This is global free market capitalism that creates wealth for those that count.

  152. France to be locked down from Tuesday

    France will go into enforced lockdown from Tuesday midday, French President Emmanuel Macron has said in a national address from the Elysee Palace.

    All residents have been ordered to stay at home, and can only leave for essential reasons.

    Movements will be very severely limited, he said,

    “We are at war,” the president said numerous times.

      1. Let us now hope the yellow vests storm the palace and shove a decree up his arse….with extreme prejudice.

    2. “We are at war,” the president said…
      Closely followed by “Where is the white flag?”

    1. What if enough people don’t succumb to the boogy woogy flu? It would be a dead loss.

      1. Indeed.

        It’s all a plot to create a grave situation and drive all the undertaking businesses underground.

        2. When I lived in London in the seventies and early eighties most of the violence, apart from the activities of the ‘chocs’ in Brixton, was between rival North and South Funeral directors.

          Similar hostilities existed between rival North and South ice cream vendors.

    1. 317159+ up ticks,
      Evening Mib,
      As the situation is currently failure & anti UK actions
      receive rewards so………

    2. When he goes bust we should pick up the assets and landing slots for a penny in the pound,then we could have a British owned flag carrier again

    1. No Phiz. Turned away at the door, I was.
      I”ve been checking the theatre website every day, I phoned this morning to check, but when I got to the theatre they were handing out refund notices.

      Theres an odd atmosphere in London – quiet, and those that are here are wandering round looking confused.

    1. Looks like a classic Walmart.

      What makes you think he put those jog pants on today?

  160. I have a request for anyone with a persistent cough or running a fever to go to the nearest HS2 contractor site, anywhere on the route, and shower the site with used tissues. If 10% of contractors die of virus, then so be it. If they don’t want to die, then they shouldn’t go to work.

    All work and payment on this white elephant should be suspended for as long as people are losing livelihoods because of this emergency, or people are losing lives because emergency money is being diverted to keep paying for HS2.

    1. It’s simpler than that. The country is going smash, and the only consolition is that the EU are ten times worse off. Despite the lovely Budget with massive spending plans, belts with have to be tightened. And not mine or yours. The country can no longer afford HS2, or 5G or fraud by directors of big companies. All three must end, now.

  161. Evening, all. I trust you are well and not showing signs of succumbing to the plague. I shall be climbing the walls if I am CB for three months. I have been able to spend some time out in the garden, at least (and, presumably, will be on gardening leave for the foreseeable future if the govt has its way). MOH (who looks forwards to going out) and I went to the local cafe. They will close if all over 70s have to stay away!

    1. Pretend you’re 65 dahlink….

      It’s the irony…..for years they tell us the elderly are a bluddy nuisance, bed blockers and a drain on the economy.

      Now they are ralllying round to save the old codgers…

  163. When the world has been saved and the virus conquered, when nobody has any capital and the state owns everything it would be a good time for world communism to kick in.

    1. You try telling that sort of stuff to the millennial’s and the snowflakes.
      They’ll find out.

    2. A world without newspapers, textbooks. or writing paper. The entire world’s supply gone as toilet tissue.

      1. Fortunately, I have a good stock of books and writing materials. I don’t read the dead tree press.

  164. Daily Briefing on Now. The U turn has been made

    Now Everyone to avoid going out if at all possible. Work from home if possible. Dont go to Pubs, clubs, cinemas and Gyms Restaurants etc. All mass gatherings of people to cease

    London is a problem particular measure for London

      1. StorminaDcup has just arrived there. Should we arrange a rescue mission do you think or just ignore all the bollocks?

  166. How to argue with a racist: Five myths debunked
    A BBC article (obviously). As a dyed in the wool unapologetic racist I accept very little of what Dr Rutherford says. He presents statements but without references. Not least because genetics are not the only determining factor.
    This is the article (a puff for his book.)
    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-51914782
    This is the man
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Rutherford

    In my varied experivnce I have noted that some people can be very persuasive, articulate, passionate, compelling, plausible, affable and completely wrong.

    1. Not too put too fine a point on it, this Dr. Rutherford sounds like a dickhead. From the article:

      The British Isles, for instance, have become home to migrants since they separated from the continent around 7,500 years ago.

      Before the French took over in 1066, that part of the world had been invaded by Vikings, Angles, Saxons, Huns

      Must have missed that bit of history. I’m damned if I remember reading of an invasion of Britain by Attila and his Hunnish Horde. His incursions into Western Europe were stopped when the Romans and Visigoths took the jam out of his doughnut at the Battle of Troyes.

      1. It’s from the Michael Wood school of history. Wood told us in one of his TV programmes that the brief presence of African and Arab traders at the time of the Romans in what is now the north-east of England showed that Britain has always been a multi-racial, multi-cultural island. B*lls, Mr Wood.

        I don’t think many who object to the current insane levels of immigration peddle Rutherford’s myths. He writes of “the assumption that East Asian students are inherently better at maths” but only hints at the long geographical isolation that gave rise to distinctive cultural and physical groups.

      2. It’s from the Michael Wood school of history. Wood told us in one of his TV programmes that the brief presence of African and Arab traders at the time of the Romans in what is now the north-east of England showed that Britain has always been a multi-racial, multi-cultural island. B*lls, Mr Wood.

        I don’t think many who object to the current insane levels of immigration peddle Rutherford’s myths. He writes of “the assumption that East Asian students are inherently better at maths” but only hints at the long geographical isolation that gave rise to distinctive cultural and physical groups.

      3. Er the French took over in 1066? It was the Normans who are “Norsemen”, not Gauls or Franks……, though as perhaps the only example of a succesful invasion from France perhaps the French would like to claim them as true French

  167. Modern Life
    I am making judicious contingency preparations.
    You are panic-buying.
    He is an anti-social hoarder.

    1. I am not buying anything.
      Because all three of you have beaten me to the shops and there is nothing to buy.

  169. The Great UK Shutdown commences

    Most West End Theatres will shut from Monday. UK Theatre controlled theatres will also close from Monday

    So far Boris has said they should close but has not said they must close

    1. Forthcoming events I have been personally involved with (some clashing):

      21st March – Elgar School of Music students’ concert of opera and song – Cancelled
      21st March – Public meeting to debate tax policies – Cancelled.

      27th March – Village Funeral – Still on as far as I know (but imperilled if church services are banned)

      28th March – Elgar Chorale Spring Concert – Still on as far as I know (but could be cancelled at Wednesday’s rehearsal)

      29th March – Village Community Choir Evening Service – Cancelled, Choir activity suspended.
      27th-29th March – Freaks in the Peaks morris dance weekend – Cancelled
      4th April – Powick Community Choir Spring Concert – Cancelled. Choir will continue to rehearse for now.
      4th April – Elgar Baroque Singers Spring Concert – Cancelled. Choir activity suspended.
      The Fold, Bransford – all forthcoming events cancelled for now.

      How are we going to build this lot back up once we get back to sanity?

  173. It’s like none of us can get our heads round what is happening, One after another another big countries closing their borders, isolating their citizens, closing their businesses, without really saying why they are doing this for a virus with an apparent very low percentage mortality rate.
    Uncertainty kills. There must be more in this than the official stories. On the face of it, we are all doomed, yet there seems to have been no wild reaction anywhere.

    Am I paranoid ?

          2. I expect all those survivalists with their bunkers, stockpiled guns and ammo, purified water and MREs are positively chortling to themselves….

    2. it just has to run its course. Our polititions today are just not that good. few have had any experiance of the real world. All their measures are to save the NHS not the people because they can’t. just do what YOU think is the right thing to do.

      1. The policy is to preserve NHS capacity to treat and save as many at risk people as possible by flattening the inevitable demand curve. Do what the experts tell you to do, not what you with your total lack of knowledge about infectious disease, think is best. Doing otherwise puts others at risk as well as yourself.

    3. Yes.

      Isolation stops the spread of the virus

      I am under lock down

      Very little movement of people

      All bars, non-food shops, cafes, schools etc. shut

      Limited movement of people

      Boris should have done it ages ago for UK

    4. This is my view as I cannot remember such a drastic response to any of the previous 9 viruses since 1967….. the CDR (Critical death rate) for this one is stated as 3.2% (or perhaps 5% in Italy) whereas Marburg had a CDR of 80% and the rest somewhere in between but all in double figures. I suspect there is a far greater risk taking a stroll in broad daylight in Sher Khan’s London than of contracting this disease……
      I suspect it is all about politics and money…..but maybe I am cynical and paranoid.

        1. Thank goodness i have managed to stockpile 300 Tramadol.

          At least i would be able to cope with it on toast.

          2. So kind of you as always but my post was not entirely serious. (speaking to the Bear)

            And yes i do know what it can do.

        1. I know. I was asking if you’d tried Buttercup Syrup. The only cough medicine that actually tasted good.

          1. Nope , not tried it..

            What a mess this virus is .. terrifying .

            France’s health ministry has suggested that popular anti-inflammatory painkillers such as ibuprofen could worsen the effects of the coronavirus, raising questions over which over-the-counter drugs people should be taking to treat the symptoms of the disease.

            Health Minister Olivier Veran, who has also worked as a neurologist, tweeted on Saturday that “taking anti-inflammatory drugs (ibuprofen, cortisone…) could be an aggravating factor of the infection. If you have a fever, take paracetamol. If you are already on anti-inflammatory drugs or in doubt, ask your doctor for advice.”
            His suggestion was criticized by some health experts, who cited the lack of publicly available evidence suggesting a link between ibuprofen and adverse effects of the coronavirus.

            Veran’s recommendation came on the same day that the French government reported that “grave adverse effects” linked to the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID) — the family of drugs that includes ibuprofen — have “been identified with patients affected by COVID-19, in potential or confirmed cases.”
            “We repeat that the treatment of a fever or of pain linked to COVID-19 or to any other respiratory viral disease should be paracetamol,” the ministry’s new guidelines added. Paracetamol is typically known in the US as acetaminophen.

          2. Is the correlation causal, or is it that people with underlying health conditions happen to take Iboprofen?

          3. I stopped taking NSAIDs more than a year ago. I find that my new dietary régime obviates the need for medication.

      1. And don’t forget Lily the Pink’s Medicinal Compound, which proved most efficacious in every case.

  175. If this is some globalist plot then only the yanks will survive it because they have guns.
    I note they have been disarming most Western countries for decades now on the back of unexplained shootings.

    1. 317159+ up ticks,
      Evening B3,
      there are more ways to skin a cat, & keep in mind them there bloody arrows hurt.

    2. It has been said, albeit in jest, that Americans are queueing for ammunition not loo rolls. See a zombie, shoot it.

  180. The government have urged people on Merseyside to self-isolate and
    remain indoors for the next 14 days.

    Nothing to do with Coronavirus, but
    just an attempt to reduce the crime rate.

    Good night… :o)

    1. What’s new in that? George Harrison’s Natural Law Party once fought an election on the accurate assumption that if everyone in his home town went in for “yogic flying” (sitting in lotus position while bouncing up and down) then there would be no crime.

  181. 1. Letter
    After collecting my grandson from school, we had a nice walk home past the Cadbury factory. Arriving at my daughter’s, I read hard copy of Friday’s Telegraph (which my wife bought last Friday). It contained the following letter:


    SIR – As a 90-year-old doctor who qualified in 1953, I have been reflecting on how we would have reacted to a coronavirus epidemic in those days. The answer is not at all, for three main reasons.

    The Covid-19 virus could not have been identified rapidly enough, if at all. Most cases would have been too mild to attract attention in this season of coughs and sneezes. And the small proportion of deaths among elderly people with chronic respiratory disease would have remained much as usual for the time of year.

    It follows that there would have been no alarm or countermeasures. International trade and travel would have carried on as usual. World stock markets would not have collapsed. And governments would not have needed to get involved.

    As it is today, we know too much about the coronavirus for our own good, but almost nothing about treating its victims or preventing its spread.

    Dr George Birdwood
    Shipton Moyne, Gloucestershire

    I recall 1953. A popular Radio soap on every weekday was ‘Mrs Dale’s Diary’. Mrs Dale was a doctor’s wife. She was often “worried about Jim”.

    1. I read that letter 😊
      But just like Mrs Dales Diary,
      The Archer’s use to be “an everyday story of country folk”.
      And now you couldn’t make most of it up.
      But someone does.

    2. In those days the population was much less, travel – especially foreign travel – was much less and the number of elderly was much less. Oh, we were much healthier and there was no internet and social media to scare people.

  182. 2. Article
    After collecting my grandson from school, we had a nice walk home past the Cadbury factory. Arriving at my daughter’s, I read hard copy of Friday’s Telegraph (which my wife bought last Friday). It contained the following article:

    I went to the Tutankhamun exhibition yesterday. It was a blockbuster with no queues, no jostling to catch a glimpse of the treasures of Ancient Egypt. Quiet as the boy-pharaoh’s grave. “Like the country’s on a war footing,” someone said behind me. And indeed, as we left, there was an elderly chap on the way in, complete with gasmask.

    Which war, though, is this? What kind of enemy is the coronavirus? For in the experience of most Britons alive today, war is something that happens elsewhere, and then is over quickly. Ousting the Taliban in Afghanistan in 2001 took just over two months. Removing Saddam about half that. All it took was overwhelming firepower and a swift declaration of “Mission Accomplished”. Easy.

    We are being disabused of the first part of this comforting delusion now. Coronavirus was always coming to these shores in a big way. And yet, until this week, we couldn’t quite take it seriously. These things happen abroad don’t they? It even says so on the tin: Mers, the last coronavirus to scare the living daylights out of health authorities, stood for Middle East respiratory syndrome. When this one was thriving close by in Italy, I still heard it said, and am sure you did too: “Well, that’s Italian organisation for you.” Such careless talk will have cost lives here.

    Nonetheless, somehow we are still clinging to part two of our contemporary conflict gospel: that this war will be quick.

    It is easy to see why. From China come pictures of business not quite as usual but not far off, the number of new cases dipping towards zero even as ours spikes. Italy has meanwhile clasped the disease in an iron grip. From Milan to Palermo there will be many now looking at our approach and shaking their own heads with scorn: “The British! Doing nothing. E Incredibile!!”

    We can beat this virus, the news from beyond the Channel proclaims. The right measures, draconian as they may seem, can put this genie back in its bottle.

    Well, that may well be right, for we must admit that every nation is experimenting. Every nation is seeking to deliver the best outcome for its citizens. But delivering the best is not the same as hoping for the best.

    And as it stands, acting as though the coronavirus will somehow be a one-off episode, like an air-raid which we can wait out in our bunkers, is indeed hoping for the best.

    Far more likely is that coronavirus will be with us for years, perhaps forever, and that consequently the best way of dealing with it is to build up increasing levels of resistance in the population.

    In this theory, herding everyone into isolation is not dealing with the problem so much as storing it up for another day – until it emerges to strike a people who have lost their fear of the disease without acquiring immunity to it.

    This, surely, is the nightmare scenario, where shock and awe only superficially does the job, where Mission Accomplished means nothing of the sort, and subsequent, understandable, complacency leads to catastrophe.

    On the battlefield, that was the case in Afghanistan after 2001, and Iraq in 2003. Indeed, as the mourning relatives of Lance Corporal Brodie Gillon, killed north of Baghdad on Thursday, would remind us, those swift wars of two decades ago are still claiming lives today.

    No. As Graham Medley, from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine told Newsnight this week, it is the Blitz spirit that is required. A spirit of endurance, and one that comes from the top. An attitude which, more than three years – years! – after the declaration of the Second World War, saw Churchill declare “not the end… not even the beginning of the end. But, perhaps, the end of the beginning.”

    How best prepare for such a long haul? How should the Government best nudge our behaviour from the short-termism of today to the long-termism of old? It will not be easy. Because though the long campaign will be gentler – easier on the NHS and on supply chains while resistance gradually builds among the population – it will be more grating, more morale-sapping.

    What we all, around the world, secretly want to hear is that life will shortly return to normal. Nothing will be as telling as whether or not governments give into that desire.

    It is their job not to.

    Those Beijing authorities now confidently claiming corona is beaten are the same which hid the outbreak in the first place. Doubtless Tehran will declare the virus crushed while the secretly-dug mass graves are still fresh.

    The alternative attitude, of professional realism to foster herd immunity, seems to be that of the British Government. It does not offer a quick, satisfying, fix, or even the prospect of a quick fix. And that can feel gloomy. But it would be a mistake to confuse gloomy with half-witted. And half-witted not to see that promises of the quick fix are the gloomiest promises of all.

    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/03/13/long-term-approach-will-defeat-terrible-disease/

    2. I have read that Bill Gates and the Clinton Foundation were funding the Wuhan Institute of Virology (or whatever the laboratory was called). Sorry no links, it is just something I tucked away at the back of my mind as ‘hmmmm, interesting’.

        2. Interesting that China should be on the verge of producing a cure in the same country as the source of the virus ….. this is top protein food for conspiracy theorists…… one would be less sceptical if Bill Gates and Georgie $oro$ had invested in a US company working with the CDC in Georgia……. but China? The stamping ground of $oro$’ old mate Maurice Strong is at least curious.
          This comes a week after Chinese researchers at the Wuhan Institute of
          Virology filed an application to patent Gilead’s drug Remdesivir to
          treat the new coronavirus, a bid that would give China leverage over the
          global use of the therapy to fight the outbreak
          Isn’t Wuhan the region where this virus originated?
          If you smell a rat then there possibly is a rat somewhere near.
          Named George?
          He appears to be the owner of Gilead…….
          Yes, this does seem like a plot straight out of Hollywood……… so is this life imitating art?

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