huffingtonpost--2020-06-11--Nearly 300 Doctors In Delhi’s Municipal Hospitals Threaten Mass Resignations

Hindustan Times via Getty Images Not much has changed .
In this photo , municipal corporation employees including doctors , medical staff , teachers can be seen begging with bowls during a protest march against nonpayment of their salaries on February 2 , 2016 in New Delhi .
NEW DELHI—At least three hundred resident doctors working in two large public hospitals in Delhi , one of which provides services to patients suspected of suffering from COVID 19 and other serious ailments while the other caters to children and women , have threatened mass resignations if they are not paid their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ two separate letters to the authorities on Wednesday , the Resident Doctors ’ Associations ( RDA ) representing around 100 doctors from the Kasturba Hospital and about 200 doctors from the Hindurao Hospital conveyed their intention of tendering ‘ mass resignations ’ if their salaries , pending at least for the past three months , were not paid within a week .
“ We can not work without money .
Being the frontline workers , we should be paid our pending salaries as soon as possible and should be ensured a regular payout @ @ @ @ @ @ @ letter written by the RDA at Kasturba Hospital .
“ We are afraid that if we won ’ t be paid by 16th June 2020 , we will have to move for mass resignation.
” We can not work without money .
Being the frontline workers , we should be paid our pending salaries as soon as possible and should be ensured a regular payout .
Resident Doctors Association of Kasturba Hospital in a letter to the authorities .
Both hospitals are under the administrative jurisdiction of the North Delhi Municipal Corporation , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Party ( BJP ) , and doctors told this reporter that they have been given to understand by the hospital administration that funds have not been released by the municipal corporation which is causing the delay in payment of their salaries .
This could not be independently ascertained .
Corporation officials blamed the AAP government for not paying their dues according to recommendations of the fourth finance commission , while the latter denied that was the reason for failure of the corporations to pay salaries .
The Delhi High Court had to intervene @ @ @ @ @ @ @ recently , in April this year during the lockdown , municipal sanitation workers again complained about not being paid their salaries for the month of March .
In 2016 as well , doctors working for the municipal corporations protested over non-payment of salaries .
It was in May this year that doctors voiced these concerns again and wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi about it .
But the delay in payment of salaries has worsened and doctors have now threatened to register their protest by adopting the tactic of ‘ mass resignations ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ such attempt .
Resident doctors at the Hindurao hospital outlined similar concerns .
“ We would like to inform you that with every passing day , it ’ s getting very hard and tedious to get through the daily expenses of a lot of doctors .
Even it ’ s getting cumbersome to commute to work and earn basic livelihood , ” the RDA letter said .
This is particularly serious as it comes at a time when the Indian economy ’ s slide has been hastened by the coronavirus lockdown and economists @ @ @ @ @ @ @ see the worst recession since the 1970s .
The scale at which this will affect livelihoods adversely is hard to quantify and massive unemployment is anticipated .
“ We have been mentioning it as a key point in every letter but we feel our voices are unheard rather they are dismissed with acrimony and irrational reasons .
The prolonged wait is causing a lot of disharmony and agitation amongst the doctors and residents , ” warned the RDA at the Hindurao hospital in its letter .
In an interview with this reporter , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the RDA at Kasturba hospital , said when they took up their concerns with the administration , the doctors were told that their pending salaries will not be paid anytime in the next two-three months because the municipal corporation had not disbursed funds to the hospital .
He said it ’ s not just doctors but even other healthcare workers have not been paid all their salaries and on time at the hospital .

Hindustan Times via Getty Images Not much has changed. In this photo, municipal corporation employees including doctors, medical staff, teachers can be seen begging with bowls during a protest march against nonpayment of their salaries on February 2, 2016 in New Delhi.
NEW DELHI—At least three hundred resident doctors working in two large public hospitals in Delhi, one of which provides services to patients suspected of suffering from COVID 19 and other serious ailments while the other caters to children and women, have threatened mass resignations if they are not paid their pending salaries within a week.
In two separate letters to the authorities on Wednesday, the Resident Doctors’ Associations (RDA) representing around 100 doctors from the Kasturba Hospital and about 200 doctors from the Hindurao Hospital conveyed their intention of tendering ‘mass resignations’ if their salaries, pending at least for the past three months, were not paid within a week.
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“We cannot work without money. Being the frontline workers, we should be paid our pending salaries as soon as possible and should be ensured a regular payout,” said the doctors in the letter written by the RDA at Kasturba Hospital. “We are afraid that if we won’t be paid by 16th June 2020, we will have to move for mass resignation.”
“We cannot work without money. Being the frontline workers, we should be paid our pending salaries as soon as possible and should be ensured a regular payout.” - Resident Doctors Association of Kasturba Hospital in a letter to the authorities.
The letters were addressed to officials in the North Delhi Municipal Corporation, as it is their administrator, and the Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, among others.
Through their letter, the resident doctors at the Kasturba hospital also reminded the administration that they are “working in this pandemic COVID 19 situation continuously putting their and their families’ lives in danger.” Resident doctors at the Hindurao hospital feel similarly vulnerable.
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Both hospitals are under the administrative jurisdiction of the North Delhi Municipal Corporation, which is controlled by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and doctors told this reporter that they have been given to understand by the hospital administration that funds have not been released by the municipal corporation which is causing the delay in payment of their salaries. This could not be independently ascertained.
Lack of funds for workers employed by the BJP-led municipal corporations has been a recurring problem in recent years. It has also been cause for a political clash between the Aam Aadmi Party-led Delhi government and BJP-led municipal corporations.
In April, the BJP criticised Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal when he announced Rs 1 crore compensation for the family of Delhi government employees in case they die of coronavirus. Municipal workers were not covered under this order and the BJP leaders criticised CM Kejriwal for “discriminating” against municipal workers.
In 2018, sanitation workers employed by the east delhi municipal corporation went on a strike for non-payment of their salaries and refused to pick up garbage from the streets, causing mountains of trash to pile up for weeks.
Corporation officials blamed the AAP government for not paying their dues according to recommendations of the fourth finance commission, while the latter denied that was the reason for failure of the corporations to pay salaries. The Delhi High Court had to intervene to temporarily resolve the issue. More recently, in April this year during the lockdown, municipal sanitation workers again complained about not being paid their salaries for the month of March.
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In 2016 as well, doctors working for the municipal corporations protested over non-payment of salaries. It was in May this year that doctors voiced these concerns again and wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi about it. But the delay in payment of salaries has worsened and doctors have now threatened to register their protest by adopting the tactic of ‘mass resignations’, which appears to be the first such attempt.
HuffPost India has reached out to the North Delhi Municipal Corporation to understand the reason for the delay in payment of salaries and this report will be updated if the officials respond.
LIVELIHOODS AFFECTED
The concerns that doctors from both hospitals emphasised prominently in their letters were directly related to the adverse impact of non-payment of salaries on their livelihoods.
“...we are not being paid salaries making us unable to pay our house rents, huge travelling expenses and to buy essential commodities,” the letter by Kasturba Hospital RDA said.
Resident doctors at the Hindurao hospital outlined similar concerns. “We would like to inform you that with every passing day, it’s getting very hard and tedious to get through the daily expenses of a lot of doctors. Even it’s getting cumbersome to commute to work and earn basic livelihood,” the RDA letter said.
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This appears to be a rather peculiar set of concerns expressed by doctors working in a hospital located in the national capital.
HuffPost India has documented concerns expressed by doctors across India, especially those working in government hospitals, about lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) while they are involved in treatment of patients. But in this case, doctors say they have been provided with PPE and not salaries.
This is particularly serious as it comes at a time when the Indian economy’s slide has been hastened by the coronavirus lockdown and economists are predicting that this year India will see the worst recession since the 1970s. The scale at which this will affect livelihoods adversely is hard to quantify and massive unemployment is anticipated.
ADMINISTRATIVE APATHY, HELPLESS DOCTORS
What makes it worse is that, when doctors took their issues up with the respective managements of their hospitals, no resolution was promised to them for the near future.
“We have been mentioning it as a key point in every letter but we feel our voices are unheard rather they are dismissed with acrimony and irrational reasons. The prolonged wait is causing a lot of disharmony and agitation amongst the doctors and residents,” warned the RDA at the Hindurao hospital in its letter.
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It also stated that, being “helpless”, the doctors were choosing the ‘No Pay, No Work’ rule to ‘mark their agitation’ and, if the situation persists, they will go in for ‘mass resignations’. It requests the administration to release pending salaries by 18 June 2020.
“We have been mentioning it as a key point in every letter but we feel our voices are unheard rather they are dismissed with acrimony and irrational reasons.” - Resident Doctors Association of Hindurao Hospital in a letter to the authorities.
Dr Abhimanyu Sardana, President of the Resident Doctors Association at the Hindurao Hospital, told HuffPost India that the doctors were mulling about drafting an online petition to mobilise public opinion in favour of their cause. They get their salaries on the 15th of each month and the last received salary on February 15, which means they have not been paid salaries for four months.
In an interview with this reporter, Dr Abhiman, who is the spokesperson of the RDA at Kasturba hospital, said when they took up their concerns with the administration, the doctors were told that their pending salaries will not be paid anytime in the next two-three months because the municipal corporation had not disbursed funds to the hospital. He said it’s not just doctors but even other healthcare workers have not been paid all their salaries and on time at the hospital.
Both hospitals provide services to hundreds of patients everyday. According to Dr Arbhiman, the Hindurao hospital has specific provisions for patients suspected of COVID 19 and, till last week, doctors were sending about 100 samples everyday for testing. It does not have treatment facilities, however, and patients get referred to different COVID 19 hospitals which are treating patients affected by the disease. The Kasturba hospital refers most COVID 19 suspect patients to the LNJP hospital and its major focus area is children and women, especially those in need of post pregnancy care.


huffingtonpost--2020-05-05--The UK Has The Most Coronavirus Deaths In Europe. But Is It A Fair Comparison?

Comparing the death toll in different countries has become a cornerstone of how the public measures the scale of the crisis , and the staggering figures are likely to bolster criticism of the government ’ s response – particularly because the UK has a younger population than Italy , and had more time to prepare for the outbreak .
In its first report of the epidemic ’ s impact on Italy ’ s mortality rate , covering 86 % of the population , ISTAT said that from February 21 , when the first coronavirus deaths occurred , until March 31 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ compared with the average of the previous five years .
The statistics bureau said it was reasonable to assume these people either died of Covid-19 without being tested or that the extra stress on the health system due to the epidemic meant they died of other causes for which they were not treated .
Up to 9,000 deaths at home still to be accounted for in France Due to the complexity of gathering the data , deaths at home in France are still not included in official figures .
Some doctors estimate that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 9,000 extra deaths , with lower estimates coming in at around 6,000 .
8,000 excess deaths in Spain not yet linked to Covid-19 But the fact that people dying at home or in care homes and hospices are less likely to have been tested for the virus means they are not yet being counted in Spain ’ s official statistics , and the true number of deaths remains to be fully established .
Who is missing from the UK ’ s death statistics ?

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The UK has now paid the highest price in Europe for coronavirus, overtaking Italy as the European nation with the highest number of fatalities.
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Comparing the death toll in different countries has become a cornerstone of how the public measures the scale of the crisis, and the staggering figures are likely to bolster criticism of the government’s response – particularly because the UK has a younger population than Italy, and had more time to prepare for the outbreak.
Government officials have argued, however, that different countries have tallied official coronavirus cases and deaths in different ways, making statistical comparisons challenging.
On Tuesday, the head of health analysis at the UK’s Office for National Statistics cautioned about making international comparisons, describing it as “incredibly difficult to do”.
In a Twitter thread, Nick Stripe said data on death registrations was the “fastest, most frequent and most in depth” method of reporting fatalities but that different countries report this data at different speeds, with the UK being the quickest.
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He added: “So please exercise extreme caution with international comparisons We can sadly see rising numbers of deaths in the UK. Comparable international data is not yet available.”
Lots of comment about the UK having the highest death toll in Europe. International comparisons are incredibly difficult to do and will be for some time to come.
UK death registrations data is the fastest, most frequent and most in depth than any other stats agency.
1/n — Nick Stripe (@NickStripe_ONS) May 5, 2020
Of course, no nation wants to admit they’re topping an entire continent’s death toll tally.
Still, it’s true that for many European countries, including the UK, the total number of coronavirus-related deaths remains unclear.
The UK now has the highest death toll in Europe. But what does that number actually tell us? Leon Neal via Getty Images
11,600 deaths in Italy unaccounted for
Italy’s daily death figures are announced each day at around 6pm by the nation’s Civil Protection Agency, which normally manages the response to natural disasters such as floods and earthquakes.
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Crucially, like the UK, these figures only include deaths that were registered after the patient tested positive for Covid-19.
ISTAT – Italy’s statistics agency – reported on excess deaths for the first time since the start of the crisis on Monday, pointing to the fact that thousands of deaths across the nation had never been officially linked to coronavirus.
In its first report of the epidemic’s impact on Italy’s mortality rate, covering 86% of the population, ISTAT said that from February 21, when the first coronavirus deaths occurred, until March 31, nationwide deaths were up 39% compared with the average of the previous five years.
Of the 25,354 “excess deaths”, the coronavirus was registered by the Civil Protection Agency as the official cause for 13,710, leaving around 11,600 deaths unaccounted for. These occurred overwhelmingly in the northern part of Italy most heavily hit by the virus.
The statistics bureau said it was reasonable to assume these people either died of Covid-19 without being tested or that the extra stress on the health system due to the epidemic meant they died of other causes for which they were not treated.
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Up to 9,000 deaths at home still to be accounted for in France
Some doctors estimate that up to 9,000 deaths could be missing from official statistics in France. JOEL SAGET via Getty Images
The death toll in France is announced daily at around 7pm, as it has been since the start of the nation’s epidemic toward the end of February.
Initially the only data being shared came from hospitals, but on April 2 health officials started to include the number of deaths coming from care homes and hospices.
Since March 1, France has reported almost 25,000 deaths, with 15,583 in hospitals and 9,312 in care homes and hospices.
Due to the complexity of gathering the data, deaths at home in France are still not included in official figures. Some doctors estimate that this figure could be as high as 9,000 extra deaths, with lower estimates coming in at around 6,000.
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Health minister Olivier Veran has said the number of deaths should be made public in June, when they will be added to the country’s total as a whole.
France’s National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (INSEE) also has also published data on excess deaths, in much the same way as the ONS does in the UK.
Current data, running up to April 20, shows that on April 1 – the peak of France’s daily death toll, there were upwards of 1,000 more deaths (2,776) than were recorded in 2019 (1,689).
8,000 excess deaths in Spain not yet linked to Covid-19
As of May 1, 29,034 more deaths had been recorded in Spain than would usually be expected, according to El País – an excess of 50%.
That figure includes 20,938 deaths confirmed to have been caused by Covid-19, but 8,096 are yet to be accounted for.
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The daily death toll includes everyone, no matter where they died and therefore, unlike France, includes deaths at home.
But the fact that people dying at home or in care homes and hospices are less likely to have been tested for the virus means they are not yet being counted in Spain’s official statistics, and the true number of deaths remains to be fully established.
Who is missing from the UK’s death statistics?
The ONS publishes weekly reports summarizing the number of deaths in England and Wales, which show how many more deaths have been recorded in a certain period, against the previous average.
One-third of all deaths were recorded in care homes in the week leading up to April 17. In that week, 22,351 total deaths were registered in England and Wales, according to the ONS, the highest figure since comparable records began in 1993. The average for the comparable week from 2015 to 2019 was 10,497.
In the week ending April 24, more than a fifth of all coronavirus-related deaths in England and Wales happened in care homes.
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These startling figures are thought to be far lower than the true death toll across the entire UK, however. Modelling carried out by the Financial Times suggests that as many as 41,000 people had died by April 21 as either a direct or indirect consequence of Covid-19.
At Sunday’s press conference, medical director of England’s health service, Stephen Powis, said it would be some time before international comparisons of excess deaths could be made.


huffingtonpost--2020-04-27--The UK Has Steered Clear Of Coronavirus Lockdown Protests. But Will That Continue?

“ It doesn ’ t mean we are servile in general , ” said Reicher .
“ In other ways and next to different authorities you could argue the British are more rebellious .
For instance , in the ’ 70s and ’ 80s , Britain was known for its trade unionism and its strikes and the like , so a historical and generalised claim that one country is more servile than another just misses the particular relations , the particular forms of authority .
What ’ s going on in the States is an anti-state rebellion – at least @ @ @ @ @ @ @ presented.
” Reicher says : “ In the end what I think was going on there was not that people were stupid and not that they didn ’ t want to socially distance , but that they ’ d been told they could go out , that going out is good for you , but there isn ’ t the space .
I mean , if there is limited space there are going to be bottlenecks .
So what is the answer ?
Is the answer to close the parks ?
To threaten @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to make more space available , for instance by making golf courses and private playing fields available .
”

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The headlines would have you believe Britain is a nation of rule-flouting “Covidiots”.
But the UK’s compliance with lockdown measures has been predominantly positive, with concern about the virus at the forefront of most people’s minds in the weeks since it began.
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Two studies totalling more than 100,000 people suggest the public are steeling themselves for more of the same. That may be just as well – Boris Johnson on Monday emerged from his own period of ill health to warn that we could not afford to lift the social distancing rules that have brought our way of life, and large parts of Britain’s economy, to a halt.
One piece of research saw 75,000 responses collected from 34,444 health and wellbeing app users and shared with the NHS and data scientists at the universities of Liverpool and Manchester. It showed growing compliance with, and acceptance of, lockdown rules.
And a University College London study of 75,000 people shows consistently high compliance with in the government guidelines.
Some people even feel the lockdown could be stricter. Parents say they could continue homeschooling their children if they feel schools are reopened too early.
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The Sun front page The Sun
There are exceptions. People are still being fined and arrested for breaching the restrictions and for acts such as spitting at frontline workers. Lambeth Council’s response to 3,000 people amassing on Brockwell Park with many sunbathing or in large groups over a weekend was to (temporarily) close the green space.
Even government officials have been publicly named and shamed for breaking the rules with South Wales Police hitting out at MP Stephen Kinnock for visiting his father, former Labour leader Neil Kinnock, on his birthday. Meanwhile, the Derbyshire force dyed the Blue Lagoon in Buxton black to deter groups of people from gathering at the beauty spot. (This has been a longterm tactic due to the toxicity of the water.)
Despite clear advice, over 3000 people spent today in Brockwell Park, many of them sunbathing or in large groups. This is unacceptable. Unfortunately, the actions of a minority now means that, following police advice, Brockwell Park will be closed tomorrow. #StayHome — Lambeth Council (@lambeth_council) April 4, 2020
But a more dramatic picture is unfolding across the pond, with protesters gathering to demand the lockdown measures are lifted, and dismissing the reasons behind it as hype. Last week Melissa Ackison defied the lockdown to attend a protest in Ohio with her 10-year-old son, telling reporters: “It enrages something inside of you.” She added she had “no fear whatsoever” of contracting the virus.
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In places like Oklahoma, Texas and Virginia, small-government groups, supporters of president Donald Trump, anti-vaccine advocates, gun rights backers and supporters of right-wing causes have united behind a deep suspicion of efforts to shut down daily life to slow the spread of the coronavirus. As their frustration with life under lockdown grows, they’ve defied social distancing rules in an effort to pressure governors into lifting them.
Though a recent survey from the Associated Press notes that most Americans do not believe it is safe to ease the restrictions any time soon, sporadic outbursts continue to occur across the country. On Wednesday, a few dozen protesters took to the streets of New York, with one heard yelling: “You want to stay at home, stay home, the rest of us want to go back to work.”
An individual is questioned on Brighton seafront PA
In Texas, several hundred people rallied in the capital chanting: “Let us work.” Many demanded an immediate lifting of restrictions in a state where more than a million have filed for unemployment since the crisis began.
France, too, has seen rioting amid lockdown tensions, and in Italy organised looting of supermarkets has taken place by protesters claiming they have been left unable to feed their families.
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Professor Stephen Reicher of the St Andrew’s University school of psychology and neuroscience is studying these differences between nations’ responses to lockdown
The Bishop Wardlaw Professor believes the differences between the UK and USA public reactions are rooted in ideological, material and political factors.
Reicher points out that the two countries’ attitudes towards the central state differ vastly. He said: “The US was born was born in a revolution against the central state – it was born out of suspicion of state power and it was organised very strongly to avoid too much centralised state power.
“Britain does not have an anti-state revolutionary tradition in the way that Europe has, in the way that countries born out of anti-colonial revolutions have either in the US or in other countries, say, in Africa.
“In Europe [including the UK], the state on the whole is seen as reasonably progressive and redistributive. In the States it’s seen as tyrannical.”
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This, he says, is the reason Brits struggle to understand the American attitude toward guns – that guns somehow represent freedom against a domineering state – or towards the NHS: that free, nationalised, taxation-funded healthcare that makes choices about people’s treatment could be a bad thing.
Professor Stephen Reicher Supplied
“It doesn’t mean we are servile in general,” said Reicher. “In other ways and next to different authorities you could argue the British are more rebellious. For instance, in the ’70s and ’80s, Britain was known for its trade unionism and its strikes and the like, so a historical and generalised claim that one country is more servile than another just misses the particular relations, the particular forms of authority. What’s going on in the States is an anti-state rebellion – at least that’s how it’s presented.”
This UK compliance with state rhetoric appears to be confirmed so far in an ongoing Covid-19 social study being conducted by University College London. It is collecting data on the psychological and social experiences of adults in the UK and the US during the outbreak. The study, led by Dr Daisy Fancourt, has so far collated five weeks of data from the UK, and has just launched in the US.
Thus far, of the more than 75,000 people are currently participating in the study by completing weekly online surveys about their experiences and behaviours, the UK data appear to show people have retained high levels of confidence in the government guidelines, and a high degree of compliance with the rules.
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Week 3: Compliance with government advice has increased since lockdown was announced. It has been lower in younger adults and highest in those aged 60+. Over 98% of respondents report overall compliance; only 0.1% report ignoring guidelines complete. Confidence in government has increased since the lockdown was announced, and has stayed relatively stable since March Network
Week 4: Compliance with government advice remains very high. Younger adults (aged 18-29) report adhering to the guidelines but less rigorously than adults aged 30+. Confidence in government remains relatively stable, although there has been a slight decrease from levels a week ago March Network
Week 5: Compliance with government advice remains very high. There are signs of a slight decrease in “complete” adherence amongst adults aged 30-59, but the numbers showing overall high adherence remain unchanged. Confidence in government remains relatively stable, although there has been a slight decrease from levels two weeks ago. March Network
Fancourt told HuffPost UK: “Our data suggest that people’s adherence to guidelines is still very high, but a few people may be starting to be slightly less strict in their behaviours. It’s vital that people continue to follow the advice closely.
“The slight increases we see in life satisfaction are promising, but average wellbeing levels are still substantially lower than usually reported, suggesting that people have not recovered from the shock caused by Covid-19 in early March.
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“We are collecting data from the US now to compare experiences and it remains to be seen whether people are having different psychological experiences depending on factors such as the presence of stay-at-home orders and the trajectory of virus cases.”
The findings also support Reicher’s second theory as to the behavioural differences visible so far between the two nations.
He said: “In Britain, there is not a political leadership of any significance which is arguing against lockdown. If anything, the arguments are about ‘the government didn’t go far enough and fast enough in terms of lockdown’, whereas of course in the US Donald Trump leads and argues forcefully against the lockdown – and of course that means that those who support Trump are more likely to listen to it.”
LIBERATE VIRGINIA, and save your great 2nd Amendment. It is under siege! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 17, 2020
LIBERATE MINNESOTA! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 17, 2020
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LIBERATE MICHIGAN! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 17, 2020
“LIBERATE MINNESOTA!” “LIBERATE MICHIGAN!” “LIBERATE VIRGINIA,” Trump demanded in a tweet-storm that saw him back the protests against his own government.
The US president is pushing to relax the US lockdown by May 1, a plan that hinges partly on more testing. He is currently facing a backlash over his extraordinary suggestion it would be “interesting to check” whether injecting disinfectants could help combat coronavirus. Under “no circumstance” should disinfectants be injected or consumed, the company which makes Dettol has warned.
Reicher continued: “There is such a strong polarisation that people just do not believe evidence that comes from those who are on the other side, to the extent that if doctors are on the other side to Trump, people do not believe it.
“Now, I don’t think that’s because people are irrational – it’s always been true that you assess information on the basis of who gives it to you and whether you can trust that they are giving you that information in your interests or in their interests.
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“All that’s changed is the understanding of who is on our side and who isn’t.
“Trumpism, like many autocracies, is organised around the notion that Trump alone represents the nation and anybody that disagrees with him is not only anti-Trump but they’re anti-American. They’re anti- the group as a whole.”
Of course there will also be those joining such protests not out of a sense of an ideological commitment but because they are literally unable to feed themselves or their families without economic support.
Steve Polet holds a sign during a protest at the State Capitol in Michigan last week ASSOCIATED PRESS
Protesters rally against stay-at-home orders related to the coronavirus pandemic at Capitol Square in Richmond, Virginia RYAN M. KELLY via Getty Images
That, says Reicher, is perhaps the most striking reason for comparatively strong levels of compliance in the UK and a lot of Europe: the availability of material support, both from the government and from the community coming together to fight the pandemic.
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He said: “For all the factors that people have talked about – panic buying, people violating lockdown – the overwhelming headline is that of compliance, and part of the reason why that’s possible is that it is being seen by the public as ideologically being done for the good of the community.
“The lockdown isn’t being done for individuals – it’s being done specifically for the vulnerable in the community. It seems legitimate and it’s also seen as equitable.
“Part of the reason why is that the government has made some fairly large economic decisions to support those who have been forced into lockdown.”
Reicher personally believes the UK government should have delivered a universal minimum income for the period of the lockdown.
But he reckons measures taken to support the unemployed, sick pay, and providing wages to those who have been forced to stay at home have made a significant difference.
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“At least enough action has been taken such that people are feeling: ‘Look, we are being enabled to do what is asked of us,’” he said.
“It is hard for a lot of people. It’s hard for the poor. But in the States, there hasn’t been that support, with the consequence that telling people to lock down and stay at home when they can’t put food on the table leads to a profound sense of inequity, a profound sense of injustice.
“It’s because of that sense of inequity that those people can be recruited to a cause, even if they don’t necessarily go along with the ideology.”
Dr Daisy Fancourt is leading a study collecting data on the psychological and social experiences of adults in the UK and the US during the Covid-19 outbreak Supplied
He added: “There have been riots in Italy and France which is what begins to happen when you are put in a position where you are told to lock down; you’re not given the material resources to make that possible; when you go out, you are sanctioned – you are harassed by the police – so you begin to get forms of conflict, forms of disorder, forms of rioting.
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“That could happen in the UK if that sense of inequity arises, if things change such that new regulations are seen to be unequal, unfair, supporting some sections of the population over others, and if we don’t give the material support to people in order for them to go along with those things. So it’s not that the potential for disorder isn’t there, it is, but to date there is a strong sense both of necessity and of sufficient equity.”
Naturally, some of the government measures are being seen as unfair and the current balance is fragile, but for Reicher the factors to foment protests and riots – leading to a cycle of negative interactions with the authorities as they try to enforce laws that are seen as unjust – are not fully ripe.
Easing out of lockdown will require a delicate balancing act to maintain this, he stresses. As discussions about how to ease the lockdown take place, keeping the peace relies on people feeling the measures and mitigations are fair to all sections of society.
“There is and will continue to be some non-compliance, but it tends not to be that people don’t believe in it – it’s that it’s a practical issue.
“I’d argue strongly that the response shouldn’t be to presuppose people of ill will if they don’t comply and threaten them with sanctions. Rather it should be to presuppose they are of good will, which by and large they are, and to support them.
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“You need a facilitative state which asks: ‘What are the issues? What are the problems with abiding by lockdown and how do we help people?’”
But what of the “Covidiots” and the virulent naming and shaming as both newspapers and individuals scramble to point out those people who are congregating in parks or not socially distancing?
Reicher says: “In the end what I think was going on there was not that people were stupid and not that they didn’t want to socially distance, but that they’d been told they could go out, that going out is good for you, but there isn’t the space. I mean, if there is limited space there are going to be bottlenecks. So what is the answer? Is the answer to close the parks? To threaten people with sanctions? Or is it to make more space available, for instance by making golf courses and private playing fields available.”
The stats should ask not how to stop people breaking the rules, but how to help people follow them, he said.
But for lockdown to work, people need to feel that the state is not taking away freedoms but rather giving them the means to collectively help tackle an illness.
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huffingtonpost--2020-04-29--What Life Will Look Like As Canada Returns To A New 'Normal’

Jonathan Hayward/THE CANADIAN PRESS A man wearing a protective face mask walks past a mural of heath care workers painted @ @ @ @ @ in downtown Vancouver on April 27 , 2020 .
“ I know the curve shown @ @ @ @ @ have left the impression that the virus will go away over the summer .
That @ @ @ @ @ ” Alberta chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw said last week .
“ @ @ @ @ @ will be with us for many months to come .
And the relatively low case @ @ @ @ @ most of the province are the results of our collective efforts and sacrifices .
COVID-19 @ @ @ @ @ it spreads rapidly through social interactions .
”

Jonathan Hayward/THE CANADIAN PRESS A man wearing a protective face mask walks past a mural of heath care workers painted on a boarded up restaurant in downtown Vancouver on April 27, 2020.
When will the quarantine end in Canada?
It’s a question on a lot of peoples’ minds as we tread through the second month of rigorous social distancing due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
While measures across Canada aren’t technically a quarantine — that’s a technical term — it certainly feels like it to many Canadians. We’re stuck at home without many services and activities we’re used to. Grocery stores have become sites of mask-wearing and anxiety. And parks and playgrounds are roped off just as the summer months approach.
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On Monday, Canada’s chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam echoed the sentiment.
“These past weeks have made the words of millions of kids ring true as they shout from the back seat, ‘Are we there yet?’” Tam said. “I think I speak for all of us when I say we have never felt more like that kid ... we can’t let go of the wheel yet.”
Still, many provinces have experienced enough of a “flattening of the curve” to start thinking forward.
“We’re now making plans to ease restrictions with understanding of what might come and what we might face,” B.C. chief medical officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said Monday.
Last week, Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe rolled out the province’s five-step plan to “reopen” and B.C. officials have been teasing lifting restrictions for weeks. New Brunswick even suggested golf courses could reopen and on Monday, Quebec announced that elementary schools would start to reopen there on May 11.
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How fast our society can return to a semblance of normal depends on a few things, including the ultimate goal: a vaccine. Different provinces are also setting out different parameters that show we can reopen things in a relatively safe way before a vaccine is developed.
WATCH: Saskatchewan unveils plan to reopen economy. Story continues below.
On April 17, B.C. released new modelling data suggesting that COVID-19 hospitalizations there could remain relatively stable if B.C. went to between 40 and 60 per cent of “normal” life when it comes to interpersonal contacts. Anything above that 60 per cent “normal” could spur a new outbreak.
“We must find a healthy way forward for the next 12 to 18 months … a healthy new normal that sustains us and keeps us safe,” B.C. Health Minister Adrian Dix said.
“We need to find a way forward that allows us to socialize. Whatever actions we take, we know there’s a significant human cost if we get it wrong. The situation is complex, and it is without precedent in our lifetimes.”
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But some things may never go back to the way they were before.
Adrian Wyld/THE CANADIAN PRESS Chief Public Health Officer Theresa Tam responds to a question during a news conference on the COVID-19 virus in Ottawa, March 23, 2020.
During an interview Monday with CBC, Tam said we won’t return to a society exactly the same.
“The new normal, when we get there, is not the one that is the same as before,” Tam said. “It is one that might see our society function in different ways.”
Here are some things that will change back to normal in the coming months — and some that will never be the same.
Services and work
How quickly various businesses and services come back will depend on what was closed in the first place, and which are deemed most essential. Public health officials across Canada have said restrictions will be lifted as the daily increase in COVID-19 cases continues to stabilize or even go down.
“We need to be at that point where our numbers are coming down,” Henry said of B.C. “We’re getting to that place.”
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“The new normal, when we get there, is not the one that is the same as before.” - Dr. Theresa Tam
In Saskatchewan, which has seen few or no new cases of COVID-19 for the past few weeks, Premier Scott Moe has proposed a five-step plan. In the first stage, in the coming weeks, non-essential medical services such as dentists and chiropractors will be allowed to reopen. Then, non-essential businesses will begin staggered reopenings May 19.
“Over the next several weeks, restrictions will be gradually lifted by adding more types of businesses to the allowable businesses list, meaning that they can re-open if they so choose,” Moe said.
But it’s different for each province, because they approached closing businesses differently. In B.C., Henry pointed out that the province did not order the closure of many non-essential businesses, so they’re already a step ahead in certain regards.
Darryl Dyck/THE CANADIAN PRESS British Columbia provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry speaks during a news conference regarding the novel coronavirus COVID-19, in Vancouver on March 14, 2020.
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Health officials are also stressing there needs to be a framework for keeping not only customers safe, but employees, too, before a business can reopen.
“To ease restrictions, we need to know businesses are looking after your teams as well,” Henry said Monday. “Simply put, protecting your employees protects your business and protects all of us.”
That includes allowing for social distancing in businesses, and ensuring employees are not penalized for staying home when they’re sick.
So expect reopening restaurants to have tables more spaced out, or limited reservations. Hair and nail salons could be subject to extended health and safety guidelines. And many of the same limitations we see in businesses that are still open — such as plexiglass dividers for cashiers or denoted lines to maintain social distancing — will likely come into play in reopening businesses.
“To ease restrictions, we need to know businesses are looking after your teams as well.” - B.C. chief medical officer Dr. Bonnie Henry.
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And, ideally, expect businesses to implement for structured sick leave policies and protocols should an employee contract COVID-19. Officials have suggested contact tracing — where you trace and test the contacts of someone who’s tested positive for the virus — will become the new normal in the coming months and years.
Potentially, a business may reopen but then be shut down and subject to rigorous contact tracing if a staff member tests positive. The business would have to pass certain protocols and timelines in order to reopen after that point.
Some of these changes could be permanent, or at least in place until a sustainable vaccine or treatment for COVID-19 is developed.
The office workplace could see similar shifts and keep a lot of operations remote in the coming months and years.
WATCH: Welcome to the age of coronavirus haircuts. Story continues below.
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“Workplaces who have gone remote during this time and have had to turn to technology for online learning, meetings, work etc. may also find working from home is a priority to foster both worker productivity and for lowering costs of maintaining large office spaces,” McGill university professor Mindy Carter told HuffPost Canada.
The pandemic has revealed which businesses can function remotely, and many might opt to save rent and limit physical spaces in the coming months.
Schools
But as these businesses reopen, schools and daycares reopening will have to coincide so workers’ kids have somewhere to go. That’s why you’ll likely see elementary schools open up first, followed by high schools and universities.
When schools do reopen, some provinces are considering phased or partial reopenings.
In Quebec, elementary schools and daycares outside of the Montreal area will reopen May 11. But vulnerable kids and immunocompromised kids won’t have to return right away.
“The probable timeline of this illness will change the way we do things in the education network for some time to come,” Quebec English School Boards Association president Dan Lamoureux said in a statement Monday. “We may not be able, even in the medium term, to return to full class sizes in crowded, bustling schools.”
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Mayur Kakade via Getty Images Despite some schools reopening, distance learning will still be the reality for many students in the coming months.
Other provinces have not released detailed plans on schools reopening. New Brunswick will maintain home learning, opting to close schools for the rest of the school year and Ontario announced that schools will remain closed there until at least May 31.
B.C. has not released concrete plans for schools, though last week Henry hinted if schools return this year, it could be in half-days or partial classes with remote learning in order to avoid as much physical contact as possible between kids.
Mass gatherings
But don’t expect everything to come back soon. Large events with lots of people are still off the table for now, simply because of how quickly the virus can spread and a new outbreak can occur.
So don’t hope to pack into a crowded movie theatre for the latest blockbuster premiere this summer or go partying at a busy nightclub.
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“We’re not going to go back to having lots of people together in enclosed spaces,” Henry said.
Jeff McIntosh/THE CANADIAN PRESS Crowds flock to the midway at the Calgary Stampede in Calgary on July 7, 2019. The Calgary Stampede has been cancelled this year because of COVID-19.
While specific numbers on how big a group can be vary across Canada — some provinces say 10, some say 15, others say 20 — we’ve already seen that reality reflected in the cancellation of events across Canada like Toronto Pride and the Calgary Stampede. Big events all the way into the fall are starting to get cancelled in anticipation of continued restrictions.
Many officials have suggested that big conventions and gatherings may not be possible until a vaccine or credible treatment is developed.
“I know the curve shown in our modelling work may have left the impression that the virus will go away over the summer. That is not the case,” Alberta chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw said last week. “The virus that causes COVID-19 will be with us for many months to come. And the relatively low case numbers we are seeing in most of the province are the results of our collective efforts and sacrifices. COVID-19 is still with us and it spreads rapidly through social interactions.”
“I know the curve shown in our modelling work may have left the impression that the virus will go away over the summer. That is not the case.” - Alberta chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw
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But still, provinces are starting to ease restrictions on small gatherings and outdoor spaces. Golf courses, parks, and camping grounds are scheduled to reopen in Saskatchewan between May 15 and June 1, and Henry said similar plans are coming for B.C. soon.
If professional sports return, they’ll return without crowds. The NHL has floated the idea of having specific cities act as “hub” cities to host multiple teams and games that will be televised without an audience — and Edmonton’s leading the list for Canada. Even if that’s the case, it will be dependent on provincial and federal regulation and borders.
Our cities
University of British Columbia professor Patrick Condon says the pandemic has already shifted how we interact with the space around us in our cities — and that may be permanent.
“Suddenly the sidewalk seems very much too small,” he told HuffPost. “And every one that we meet might be lethal to us. Things that seemed normal, like a narrow sidewalk in the past, now seem ridiculous.”
He said the pandemic is forcing society to contend with where and how essential workers live.
Vancouver Park Board Cyclists take advantage of a closed road in Vancouver's Stanley Park.
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“This pandemic really reveals the structural problems with the way our major cities are organized,” Condon said. “We’ve basically boxed ourselves into a situation where the people with [essential] jobs [like grocery clerks, nurses, garbage collectors] usually are not able to live close to their jobs because they can’t afford to.”
He said the pandemic will likely influence how people decide where to live and what is important in their neighbourhood. He said a long commute on a packed train car is something that could seem dangerous.
“The obvious immediate effect will be people won’t be taking transit in the numbers that they have them for quite a while,” he said. “But also, it’s going to shift the way people make decisions about where they’re going to live in the region.”
Condon says he hopes some changes are permanent — like the move to open up streets to pedestrians and close them off to cars.
“I would like to see a city like Vancouver dedicate a certain number of streets in every neighbourhood as walkable green streets not only for ecological purposes, but to provide the breathing space for walking, biking, and in some cases transit vehicles,” he said.
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Travel
On Monday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau indicated there weren’t any immediate plans to close provincial borders as some provinces reopen and others stay partially locked down.
But many travel restrictions will still be in place. Don’t expect the Canada-U.S. border to reopen right away, and when it does there will likely be strict screening in both directions.
d3sign via Getty Images Non-essential international air travel likely won't return in full force for a while.
It will take airlines some time to restart international flight schedules and recover from the economic blow of the pandemic and other countries start to reopen their borders. And even when you do fly, it’ll likely be a very different experience.
Earlier this month, Transport Canada announced requirements that all air passengers wear a mask or face covering while flying. Don’t expect that restriction to go away any time soon.
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In fact, some think it could be permanent. Security restrictions following the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, like removing shoes or not carrying liquids, were thought to be temporary, but have now become an everyday part of travel.
Face masks could very well follow the same path, especially in the months waiting for a vaccine.


huffingtonpost--2020-04-07--UK Says Boris Johnson Awake, Breathing And In 'Good Spirits'

Coronavirus has changed everything .
Make sense of it all with the Waugh Zone , our evening politics briefing .
Sign up now .
Boris Johnson is breathing without a ventilator and is in “ good spirits ” while being treated in intensive care for coronavirus symptoms , Downing Street has said .
On Tuesday afternoon , his official spokesperson said : “ The prime minister has been stable overnight and remains in good spirits .
He is receiving standard oxygen treatment and is breathing without any other treatment .
No.10 said Johnson has not been diagnosed with pneumonia , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has been moved to intensive care “ as a precautionary step in the event that he were to need ventilation.
” The spokesman refused to say whether the PM was able to sit up and talk or use his phone to communicate with officials , who are working from No.10 , or his pregnant fiancee Carrie Symonds .
Johnson has sent Raab a message saying he wanted him to assume some of the PM ’ s responsibilities “ where appropriate ” .
They last spoke on Saturday .
Downing Street confirmed that if @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Sunak would step into the role at the top of government according to the “ established order of precedent ” .
Foreign secretary Dominic Raab , who is taking charge of the government 's response to the coronavirus crisis after Boris Johnson was admitted to intensive care Monday , arrives at 10 Downing Street , London .
The pressure on the government was underlined this morning when it emerged that Michael Gove – one of the senior ministers leading the government ’ s response to the crisis – had been forced to self-isolate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Johnson ’ s top aide Dominic Cummings also went into self isolation last week and has not returned to No.10 since , the spokesman said .
Raab is continuing to work from the Foreign Office and is being supported by officials from across Whitehall .
He will chair the national security council if required while the PM is in hospital and has the responsibility along with the rest of the cabinet to authorise actions to protect the UK .
“ The UK has a robust national security architecture , including the national security @ @ @ @ @ @ @ resilient and able to operate effectively under different circumstances.
” Downing Street said at the time that the move was a “ precautionary step ” as his symptoms of a cough and high temperature were continuing to persist after 10 days in self-isolation .
Initially he was said to have been continuing to work from his hospital bed and was receiving his ministerial red boxes .
But by 7pm on Monday , the decision was made to transfer him to intensive care so that a ventilator was close at hand if required .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ the move was made public in an announcement by No 10 shortly after 8pm .

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Boris Johnson is breathing without a ventilator and is in “good spirits” while being treated in intensive care for coronavirus symptoms, Downing Street has said.
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The prime minister was transferred to the intensive care unit at St Thomas’ Hospital in London on Monday evening as his condition worsened.
On Tuesday afternoon, his official spokesperson said: “The prime minister has been stable overnight and remains in good spirits. He is receiving standard oxygen treatment and is breathing without any other treatment.
“He has not required mechanical ventilation or non-invasive respiratory support.”
No.10 said Johnson has not been diagnosed with pneumonia, which affects some Covid-19 patients, but has been moved to intensive care “as a precautionary step in the event that he were to need ventilation.”
The spokesman refused to say whether the PM was able to sit up and talk or use his phone to communicate with officials, who are working from No.10, or his pregnant fiancee Carrie Symonds.
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Dominic Raab, the foreign secretary and first secretary of state, is currently standing in for the prime minister.
Johnson has sent Raab a message saying he wanted him to assume some of the PM’s responsibilities “where appropriate”. They last spoke on Saturday.
Downing Street confirmed that if Raab is also incapacitated, chancellor Rishi Sunak would step into the role at the top of government according to the “established order of precedent”.
Foreign secretary Dominic Raab, who is taking charge of the government's response to the coronavirus crisis after Boris Johnson was admitted to intensive care Monday, arrives at 10 Downing Street, London. PA
The pressure on the government was underlined this morning when it emerged that Michael Gove – one of the senior ministers leading the government’s response to the crisis – had been forced to self-isolate after a family member displayed symptoms.
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Johnson’s top aide Dominic Cummings also went into self isolation last week and has not returned to No.10 since, the spokesman said.
Cabinet secretary Mark Sedwill is however working as usual.
Raab is continuing to work from the Foreign Office and is being supported by officials from across Whitehall.
He will chair the national security council if required while the PM is in hospital and has the responsibility along with the rest of the cabinet to authorise actions to protect the UK.
“The first secretary of state and cabinet have the authority and ability to respond in the prime minister’s absence.
“The UK has a robust national security architecture, including the national security council, which is designed to be resilient and able to operate effectively under different circumstances.”
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Johnson was admitted to hospital on Sunday evening, 10 days after being diagnosed with Covid-19.
Downing Street said at the time that the move was a “precautionary step” as his symptoms of a cough and high temperature were continuing to persist after 10 days in self-isolation.
Initially he was said to have been continuing to work from his hospital bed and was receiving his ministerial red boxes.
But by 7pm on Monday, the decision was made to transfer him to intensive care so that a ventilator was close at hand if required.
The cabinet was informed shortly afterwards and the move was made public in an announcement by No 10 shortly after 8pm.
Gove this morning said Johnson was receiving the “very, very best care” and insisted that the government machine is continuing to function.
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The PM has also received good wishes from leaders from around the world.
But Downing Street appeared to snub Donald Trump’s offer to approach US pharmaceutical companies to ask them to offer the PM experimental coronavirus drugs.
“We are grateful for all the warm wishes the prime minister has received overnight, we are confident that the prime minister is receiving the best possible care from the National Health Service,” the spokesman said.


huffingtonpost--2020-04-13--How The Coronavirus Pandemic Is Crippling UK's Seaside Towns

“ The tower is 125 years old now , and for that long we ’ ve been entertaining people here .
It stayed open through two world wars , offering people the chance to escape everyday life and stress and have some fun with loved ones .
“ Now that ’ s not an option and it ’ s killing me , to be honest .
It ’ s my job to make people smile , and we haven ’ t got any people .
We ’ ve got no money coming in and obviously that is making everyone extremely @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” “ I made a few phone calls to see how we could help , and now we ’ re open as a place where people and businesses can drop off food donations , which we sort and send on to the food bank , or to people who are preparing meals to drop off to vulnerable people .
“ I have 12 donkeys in total , seven of which work and the rest are retired .
In theory the working ones pay for the retired ones , but obviously not at the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to move them from the paddock they were in , because people were going out to see them and feed them .
Now they ’ re sadly not seeing anyone .
“ I ’ ve probably got enough money in reserve to last me until the end of the month , but after that I don ’ t know what I ’ m going to do .
“ I ’ m waiting to hear if I ’ ll be able to claim some sort of grant for businesses from the council , but @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at the moment , I don ’ t know if I ’ ll be eligible.
” “ We hope then that people will want to get out and about , away from where they ’ ve been confined at home , to spend time with family and friends who they may have only seen on a screen for months .
“ At this stage , it ’ s still planned for them to go ahead , but we just don ’ t know if that will be the case .

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For the UK’s seaside towns and the businesses who depend on them, a sunny Easter weekend is the perfect start to the summer season.
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But 2020 is different. The coronavirus pandemic has left beaches deserted, amusement arcades bolted shut and food kiosks empty.
With no end to the lockdown in sight, seasonal traders are facing an uncertain future – with many fearing this could mean the end of their businesses.
Kate Shane is head of Blackpool’s Merlin Entertainment, which runs the Lancashire town’s iconic tower, Madame Tussauds and other main attractions.
A deserted Blackpool, with the tower in the background. OLI SCARFF via Getty Images
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“For Blackpool, it’s all about Easter. Last Saturday would have been the first day of the 2020 summer season for us,” she told HuffPost UK.
“But now there are no attractions and everything is closed – it’s a really strange time for anyone in the leisure industry, and in Blackpool that’s a large proportion of our workforce.
“The tower is 125 years old now, and for that long we’ve been entertaining people here. It stayed open through two world wars, offering people the chance to escape everyday life and stress and have some fun with loved ones.
“Now that’s not an option and it’s killing me, to be honest. It’s my job to make people smile, and we haven’t got any people. We’ve got no money coming in and obviously that is making everyone extremely anxious. This is totally uncharted territory.”
Blackpool tower lit up in support of NHS workers last month. OLI SCARFF via Getty Images
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But Blackpool Tower’s history of helping the town in its hour of need is continuing despite its closure, with the landmark temporarily transformed into a food donation hub.
“When the government set letters out to 1.5m especially vulnerable people, we found that 27,000 of those are in Blackpool. Our population is only 147,000, so it’s a big chunk,” Shane said.
“I made a few phone calls to see how we could help, and now we’re open as a place where people and businesses can drop off food donations, which we sort and send on to the food bank, or to people who are preparing meals to drop off to vulnerable people.
“We only started last week and the response has already been brilliant – we’ve had people dropping off food parcels, including baby food and pet food, and the football club has donated loads of Easter eggs from their club shop.”
The picture is similar in east Sussex, where the Visit 1066 Country tourist board says the industry is “at a standstill”. Normally, it supports 15,000 jobs and brings in £664m a year.
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“It’s devastating, and if this lasts for five or six months we’ve lost the whole summer season,” said manager Kevin Boorman.
“Nearly all of our guesthouses are closed, except those with residents – restaurants, cafes, all of the sea-front shops.
“I’ve lived here all my life, for more than 60 years, and for the first time last week we found ourselves putting out a press release telling people: ‘We don’t want you here.’ It’s just unheard of.”
A Merlin volunteer at the Blackpool Tower food donation hub Merlin
Uncertainty around how long the UK’s lockdown restrictions will last mean many smaller traders fear they will have no choice but to wind up their operations completely.
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Matt Taylor, who runs County Castles in the Somerset town of Clevedon, relies on his 12-strong team of donkeys for summer income.
“It’s disastrous, really, because there is absolutely no business. Normally we are kicking off our season now and there’s nothing,” he told HuffPost.
“I have 12 donkeys in total, seven of which work and the rest are retired. In theory the working ones pay for the retired ones, but obviously not at the moment. I’ve also had to move them from the paddock they were in, because people were going out to see them and feed them. Now they’re sadly not seeing anyone.
“I’ve probably got enough money in reserve to last me until the end of the month, but after that I don’t know what I’m going to do.
“Our donkeys are friends – I look after them until the end of their lives, and I hope to God I won’t have to give them away.”
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Taylor, who has been providing beach donkey rides for 30 years, also runs a business hiring out bouncy castles for parties, but all bookings have had to be cancelled.
“I’m trying to save money where I can, so the vehicles I use to transport the donkeys are all off the road,” he added.
“I’ve also got my state pension, which is having to stretch a very long way at the moment.
“I’m waiting to hear if I’ll be able to claim some sort of grant for businesses from the council, but everything is so up in the air at the moment, I don’t know if I’ll be eligible.”
Clevedon Pier in Somerset Ben Birchall - PA Images via Getty Images
Shane, who has had to place all but six of her 350-strong workforce on furlough, is hopeful the situation will change before the start of the traditional summer holiday period.
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Blackpool Pride of Place, a coalition of local government, business and community groups, is also lobbying the government for funding to “turbo-charge the economy, create jobs and tackle deprivation” in the town.
“I’m a positive person, so I’m really hopeful that the 12 weeks the government mentioned on lockdown really are 12 weeks, and at the end of June the restrictions can start to be lifted,” Shane said.
“We hope then that people will want to get out and about, away from where they’ve been confined at home, to spend time with family and friends who they may have only seen on a screen for months.
“Clean air, clean beaches, the sea – hopefully we will see large volumes coming in, then we can then start to make a plan on how to move forward.”
But Boorman fears an absence of exit strategy and precedent will mean the effects of lockdown will be felt for much longer.
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“I’ve spoken to tourism managers across the region and the problem is we can’t plan ahead because we have no idea what will happen.
“Much of our industry is reliant on big events – our bonfire in October attracts 50,000 people, and we have a big food festival in September.
“At this stage, it’s still planned for them to go ahead, but we just don’t know if that will be the case.


huffingtonpost--2020-04-28--This Is What Could Happen If The Coronavirus Lockdown Was Lifted Tomorrow

The restrictions are up for review on May 7 .
As things stand , the lockdown will be lifted incrementally , though no one is sure when .
Foreign secretary Dominic Raab has said the reopening of schools – thought to be one of the first institutions likely to come out of hibernation – would be “ inconceivable ” without some further measures in place .
On April 2 , health secretary Matt Hancock set a target of 100,000 Covid-19 tests every day by the end of the month , but with just three days to go that ambition looks @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tests were carried out , the vast majority in hospitals .
New testing services were supposed to remedy this but home testing kits were listed as “ unavailable ” on the site an hour after it opened at 9am , and drive-through regional testing sites in England and Northern Ireland were inundated .
“ Because at the moment we ’ re mostly testing people at the point where they ’ re ill enough to be in hospital , that puts us about two weeks behind on being able to trace these trends , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ these in place it is almost certain the death toll would be even higher .
Early in the crisis , as Britain got to grips with what was unfolding , it was suggested in one model that as many as half a million Brits could die , a scenario that seems a whole lot more likely without any mitigation in place .
Any easing of the lockdown – in full or otherwise – will almost certainly lead to an increase of cases , but the timing is crucial .
The government ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t necessarily about reducing the numbers of people who contract a fatal case of Covid-19 so much as reducing the flow of cases so the NHS can handle them .
Lifting the lockdown in one go could cause the NHS to be overwhelmed , meaning doctors would have to choose who lives and who dies .
The idea that allowing enough of the population to become infected , recover and then become immune from coronavirus due to the antibodies they produce has been touted since the beginning of the crisis .
But @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Herd immunity would not be achieved towards the end of the year or even later than that , if it was allowed to happen , ” says Heuser .
“ Even in Sweden [ which has resisted full lockdown measures ] it ’ s still only a small percentage of the population that has had the infection and survived it .
“ Herd immunity would mean deaths at the rate of hundreds of thousands just in the UK.
” The second issue is that herd immunity is based on the assumption that once @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they are , actually , immune .
Currently it is just that – an assumption .
Over the weekend , the World Health Organisation said there is currently no evidence that people who have recovered from Covid-19 and have antibodies are protected against a second infection .

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In some parts of the world, people are gradually emerging from their homes as coronavirus-related restrictions begin to ease and springtime temperatures climb.
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But in the UK, the lockdown remains in place.
On Thursday, Boris Johnson confirmed the UK is “past the peak” of the coronavirus outbreak and said the government would reveal plans for lifting the lockdown in the coming week.
The restrictions are up for review on Thursday and as things stand, the lockdown will be lifted incrementally, though no one is sure when.
A man exercises along Trocadero Square, close to the Eiffel Tower, Saturday. ASSOCIATED PRESS
As the crisis wears on, and the number of patients in hospital with Covid-19 begins to show signs of dropping, Brits may be growing weary of the restrictions – especially when, outside of hospitals and care homes, coronavirus is an invisible enemy. Another weekend of warm weather will only compound the frustration of being largely stuck indoors.
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So, for argument’s sake, we asked some scientists what would happen if the UK government announced a full and total lifting of the coronavirus lockdown tomorrow.
Day 1
It’s 9am on April 28. After 36 days of being largely confined to their houses, the population of Britain tentatively steps outside and tries, as best they can, to pick up where they left off on March 23.
“When we lift off restrictions people are likely to celebrate like the end of the war when there were mass parties,” Professor Keith Neal, emeritus professor in the epidemiology of infectious diseases at the University of Nottingham, told HuffPost UK.
Even without restrictions, there are still a number of things that can’t yet happen.
No one will be boarding a plane for a summer holiday while other countries still have restrictions in place. Even in the UK, pubs, hotels and other leisure destinations will need a few days to get back on their feet.
But the weather is nice and April has regularly seen temperatures of over 20 degrees in parts of the country so, as would normally be the case, everyone heads to the park.
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People sunbathing at the mixed bathing pond on Hampstead Heath in 2018. PA
At the daily government press briefing, Dominic Raab announces the lowest number of daily coronavirus related deaths and infections since the beginning of the month.
Day 2
After being caught unawares, Britain’s pubs have caught up with the news, reopened their doors and seen record numbers of revellers.
During the day, four million furloughed workers pass the time visiting friends and family and in the evening they’re joined by those lucky enough to have kept their jobs.
At the daily government press briefing, it’s Michael Gove’s turn to announce the lowest number of daily coronavirus related deaths and infections for four weeks.
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And so it continues until day 14.
Day 14
With the novelty of our rediscovered freedom wearing off, life is settling into the new post-lockdown routine.
There’s still no chance of a foreign holiday any time soon but most people are content with two weeks of socialising with friends and family and the ability to book tickets for that festival that had to be postponed until June.
Two weeks of declining deaths and new coronavirus infections appear to vindicate the decision to lift the lockdown.
But with hindsight, this two-week period will be remembered as the prelude to a second and quite possibly far bigger coronavirus wave.
Dr Freya Jephcott, research fellow at Cambridge University, told HuffPost UK: “The increase would be quite subtle at first. But as we’ve seen with the first wave, it escalates very quickly.”
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There is currently no effective way of tracing coronavirus in real time and the current method of testing in the UK means there is a lag of about two weeks between when it begins to spread due to an easing of the lockdown and when we actually detect these new infections.
A drive-in coronavirus testing centre at Brighton & Hove Albion's American Express Community Stadium in Falmer. EMPICS Entertainment
Hospital admissions and deaths lag even further behind and we wouldn’t see the inevitable increase associated with more infections until nearly a month after the lockdown was lifted.
Testing On April 2, health secretary Matt Hancock set a target of 100,000 Covid-19 tests every day by the end of the month, but with just three days to go that ambition looks increasingly unrealistic. On Sunday, 29,058 tests were carried out, the vast majority in hospitals. New testing services were supposed to remedy this but home testing kits were listed as “unavailable” on the site an hour after it opened at 9am, and drive-through regional testing sites in England and Northern Ireland were inundated. “Because at the moment we’re mostly testing people at the point where they’re ill enough to be in hospital, that puts us about two weeks behind on being able to trace these trends,” says Jephcott.
Day 21
Any argument that the lockdown should be lifted in full to save the economy is snuffed out as hundreds of thousands of workers call in sick.
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It’s a double blow for UK businesses, as the government’s furlough scheme ended when restrictions were eased.
Day 28
It’s impossible to predict just how bad a second peak would be, but without any social distancing at all it’s likely to be worse than the middle of April when nearly 1,000 deaths were being reported each day.
“It would probably be worse than we were at the worst of the peak,” says Neal.
“It would double every two and half days.”
Student paramedics during a training exercise at the Louisa Jordan Hospital in Glasgow earlier this month. PA
The report from Imperial College London that initially spurred the government into action projected 250,000 deaths even with “home isolation of cases, home quarantine and social distancing of those over 70 years”.
With none of these in place it is almost certain the death toll would be even higher. Early in the crisis, as Britain got to grips with what was unfolding, it was suggested in one model that as many as half a million Brits could die, a scenario that seems a whole lot more likely without any mitigation in place.
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The second peak Any easing of the lockdown – in full or otherwise – will almost certainly lead to an increase of cases, but the timing is crucial. The government’s “flatten the curve” approach isn’t necessarily about reducing the numbers of people who contract a fatal case of Covid-19 so much as reducing the flow of cases so the NHS can handle them. Lifting the lockdown in one go could cause the NHS to be overwhelmed, meaning doctors would have to choose who lives and who dies.
Professor Beatrice Heuser, chair in international relations at the University of Glasgow, told HuffPost UK: “We’re also talking about young people dying – it’s not just people near the end of their lives anyway.
“You’d have people suddenly disappearing from society – not just people locked up in care homes, but people who are normal members of households.
“And that’s where I think everybody else’s pain threshold would suddenly go down because they’d suddenly be more aware of these people.”
The increase in deaths and infections wouldn’t be equally spread out around the country but would be particularly concentrated in those areas where people gathered in the largest numbers when the lockdown was lifted.
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“Areas with a greater population density or older populations are probably the ones most susceptible to a large number of severely ill people,” says Jephcott.
With the death and infection rates rapidly on the rise again, the government has two options – let the virus rip through the country or reintroduce lockdown.
Herd immunity The idea that allowing enough of the population to become infected, recover and then become immune from coronavirus due to the antibodies they produce has been touted since the beginning of the crisis. But there are two fundamental problems. “Herd immunity would not be achieved towards the end of the year or even later than that, if it was allowed to happen,” says Heuser. “Even in Sweden [which has resisted full lockdown measures] it’s still only a small percentage of the population that has had the infection and survived it. “Herd immunity would mean deaths at the rate of hundreds of thousands just in the UK.” The second issue is that herd immunity is based on the assumption that once someone catches and then recovers from Covid-19 they are, actually, immune. Currently it is just that – an assumption. Over the weekend, the World Health Organisation said there is currently no evidence that people who have recovered from Covid-19 and have antibodies are protected against a second infection.
Day 35
With the death toll surging to record highs and still no evidence that herd immunity can work, the government is forced to reintroduce the lockdown. But whether this would be partial or full is yet another difficult decision with no certain answers.
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“It’s useful to look at other countries that have lifted lockdowns – places like Singapore and Japan,” says Jephcott.
“They had to bring that back quite quickly when case numbers shot back up again, and that will probably be the case here.”
The Japanese island of Hokkaido was quick off the mark to introduce a three-week lockdown but was hit by a second, far larger peak when it was lifted.
Dr Kiyoshi Nagase, chair of the Hokkaido Medical Association, told Time Magazine: “Now I regret it. We should not have lifted the first state of emergency.”
Coronavirus measures in Japan. Carl Court via Getty Images
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But a second UK lockdown could be more nuanced than the full and total measures introduced on March 23.
“We know lockdown measures have worked,” says Neal.
“Disease rates have stopped increasing and every country that has gone for social distancing in some form or other has slowed the rate of spread.”
“The difficulty is knowing which bit of the social distancing has worked.”
Crowded pubs in inner cities and mass gatherings such as that festival that was postponed would almost certainly be helping the spread of the virus, says Neal.
On a more positive note, he adds: “Garden centres could be opened up quite easily because they’re massive and open air and it’s a much lower risk in the open air.”
Lessons from other countries The UK’s coronavirus crisis lags slightly behind other European countries that have so far been similarly hit, so the government will be able to watch how these countries lift their own lockdowns to see what helps limit the spread of the virus. On April 26 Italian prime minister Giuseppe Conte announced “public parks and gardens will be re-opened and people will be able to visit relatives, if they live in the same region”. He added that if all goes well, retail shops will be able to reopen later in May, while restaurants, cafes, coiffeurs and barber shops on June 1. Schools would stay closed until the start of the new term in September.
Day 42
Six weeks after the lockdown was lifted, the UK is reminded that coronavirus is not the only crisis it has recently faced.
Dr Gianluca Pescaroli from University College London’s Institute for Risk and Disaster Reduction, told HuffPost UK: “We are focusing our attention on Covid-19 right now and that’s totally legitimate. The problem is we’re forgetting that other things are going on.”
Pescaroli points to last summer when heatwaves, floods so bad entire towns had to be evacuated and power cuts all occurred. All made headline news at the time and all required huge efforts to fix.
An RAF Chinook helicopter flying in sandbags to help repair the dam at Toddbrook reservoir near the village of Whaley Bridge in Derbyshire after it was damaged by heavy rainfall last year. PA
“We need to start to prepare for this kind of event,” he says.
“We need to prepare to have something else going on and be sure that our emergency services are not bogged down. We need to plan, prepare and understand which resources we need to mobilise.
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Day 365
One year after lifting lockdown would represent the best case scenario for the holy grail in tackling coronavirus – a vaccine.
“The lockdown was never meant to fundamentally fix or change anything,” says Dr Jephcott.
“It was just meant to slow transmission down enough so we could gather enough information and put enough capacity in place and develop a longer-term strategy.”
Until a vaccine is found – or if it turns out to be unobtainable – this longer-term strategy is likely to be a future where the lifting and then reimposition of some lockdown measures become a normal part of life.


huffingtonpost--2020-05-08--Black People Four Times More Likely To Die From Coronavirus Than White People

The Office for National Statistics ( ONS ) has used data on death registrations up to April 17 , combined with 2011 Census records , to model the impact Covid-19 is having on different ethnic groups , finding Black women and girls are 4.3 times more likely to die than their white counterparts , and black men and boys 4.2 times more likely than white men and boys .
The figures , which have been adjusted for age , suggest that men and women from all ethnic minority groups – except females with Chinese ethnicity – are at greater risk @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of white ethnicity .
The ONS analysis also suggests that , accounting for age , males of Bangladeshi/Pakistani ethnicity are 3.6 times more likely to die from a Covid-19-related cause than white males , while the equivalent figure for Bangladeshi/Pakistani females is 3.4 .
Males of Indian ethnicity are 2.4 times more likely to die from Covid-19 than white males .
The figure for females of Indian ethnicity is slightly higher , at 2.7 .
For the Chinese ethnic group , the ONS found a raised risk among males but not females .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ die from Covid-19 , while the figure for females is 1.2 .
He tweeted : “ It is urgent the causes of this disproportionality are investigated .
Action must be taken to protect black men and women – as well as people from all backgrounds – from the virus.
” The ONS said the results suggest that the difference is partly due to socio-economic disadvantage and other circumstances , but some of the reasons remain unexplained .
After taking account of other factors , such as health and disability , Black men and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to die from Covid-19 than those of white ethnicity .
The ONS acknowledged that because its analysis of population characteristics is linked to the 2011 Census , it may not accurately reflect the current circumstances in 2020 .
The differences in the risk of dying from Covid-19 could be driven by factors not included in its model , the ONS said .
Some ethnic groups may be over-represented in public-facing occupations and could be more likely to be infected by Covid-19 .
For example , individuals in the Bangladeshi and Pakistani ethnic group @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ We ’ re aware that this virus has sadly appeared to have a disproportionate effect on people from BAME backgrounds .
It is critical we find out which groups are most at risk so we can take the right steps to protect them and minimise their risk .

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Black people are four times more likely to die from a coronavirus-related cause than white people, new analysis suggests.
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The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has used data on death registrations up to April 17, combined with 2011 Census records, to model the impact Covid-19 is having on different ethnic groups, finding Black women and girls are 4.3 times more likely to die than their white counterparts, and black men and boys 4.2 times more likely than white men and boys.
Black males are 4.2 times more likely to die of coronavirus-related illnesses than white males (file picture) SIPA USA/PA Images
The figures, which have been adjusted for age, suggest that men and women from all ethnic minority groups – except females with Chinese ethnicity – are at greater risk of dying from Covid-19 compared with those of white ethnicity.
The ONS analysis also suggests that, accounting for age, males of Bangladeshi/Pakistani ethnicity are 3.6 times more likely to die from a Covid-19-related cause than white males, while the equivalent figure for Bangladeshi/Pakistani females is 3.4.
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Males of Indian ethnicity are 2.4 times more likely to die from Covid-19 than white males. The figure for females of Indian ethnicity is slightly higher, at 2.7.
For the Chinese ethnic group, the ONS found a raised risk among males but not females. Males are 1.9 times more likely to die from Covid-19, while the figure for females is 1.2.
After adjusting for socio-demographic characteristics – including deprivation – and self-reported health and disability at the 2011 Census, males of Black ethnicity still have a #COVID19 mortality risk that is 1.9 times higher than those of White ethnicity https://t.co/922GvXeCph pic.twitter.com/cKjRrvrcXG — Office for National Statistics (ONS) (@ONS) May 7, 2020
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Shadow justice secretary David Lammy said the figures showing black people and other ethnic minority groups were at greater risk of death from Covid-19 were “appalling”.
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He tweeted: “It is urgent the causes of this disproportionality are investigated. Action must be taken to protect black men and women – as well as people from all backgrounds – from the virus.”
The analysis looked at how coronavirus has affected different ethnic groups from March 2 to April 10, registered by April 17.
As ethnicity is not recorded on death certificates, the ONS linked these to the 2011 Census, which includes self-reported ethnicity.
The ONS said the results suggest that the difference is partly due to socio-economic disadvantage and other circumstances, but some of the reasons remain unexplained.
After taking account of other factors, such as health and disability, Black men and women were still 1.9 times more likely to die from Covid-19 than those of white ethnicity.
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The ONS acknowledged that because its analysis of population characteristics is linked to the 2011 Census, it may not accurately reflect the current circumstances in 2020.
The differences in the risk of dying from Covid-19 could be driven by factors not included in its model, the ONS said.
Some ethnic groups may be over-represented in public-facing occupations and could be more likely to be infected by Covid-19. For example, individuals in the Bangladeshi and Pakistani ethnic group are overrepresented in the transport industry.
The ONS said it plans to conduct further work to identify occupations that are particularly at risk.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “Any death from this virus is a tragedy and we are working incredibly hard to protect the nation’s public health.
“We’re aware that this virus has sadly appeared to have a disproportionate effect on people from BAME backgrounds. It is critical we find out which groups are most at risk so we can take the right steps to protect them and minimise their risk.
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huffingtonpost--2020-05-19--UK To Get 30m Coronavirus Vaccine Doses By September If Oxford Trials Succeed

Coronavirus has changed everything .
Make sense of it all with the Waugh Zone , our evening politics briefing .
Sign up now .
The UK will be first in line for 30m doses of Oxford University ’ s coronavirus vaccine by September if it passes trials , the business secretary has said .
Alok Sharma said that a deal struck between the university and AstraZeneca means the pharmaceutical giant will work to make 30m doses available by September for the UK , as part of an agreement to deliver 100m doses in total , if ongoing trials succeed .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ world ’ s “ frontrunners ” in the race for a vaccine , with clinical trials “ progressing well ” and all phase one participants receiving their vaccine dose on schedule earlier this week .
Sharma said Imperial College London was also “ making good progress ” and would look to move into clinical trials for a vaccine by mid-June , with larger scale trials in October .
He said so far the government had invested £47 million in the Oxford and Imperial vaccine programmes , and announced a further £84 million in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ work ” .
He said : “ This new money will help mass-produce the Oxford vaccine so that if current trials are successful we have dosages to start vaccinating the UK population straight away.
” The business secretary , who earlier announced £93m for a new vaccines manufacturing innovation centre to open in summer 2021 , said the government has now committed more than a quarter of a billion pounds towards developing a vaccine in the UK .
But he warned that there are no certainties and it is possible trials may not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ So we also need to look at other drug treatments and therapeutics for those who get the virus , ” he said .
He said the government is working with scientists in the collaborative UK programme Accord to find a drug that can be used to treat Covid-19 .
Sharma also revealed that the UK has held discussions with France about exempting those travelling between the countries from quarantine .
Businesses in the UK have expressed concerns over government plans to force all arrivals into 14-day quarantine to combat the spread of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ would say is what is important to realise , the reason we are going to be introducing quarantine measures with some limited exceptions , is precisely because we want to protect the UK population now they have made sacrifices and managed to get the R rate below one .
”

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Coronavirus has changed everything. Make sense of it all with the Waugh Zone, our evening politics briefing. Sign up now.
The UK will be first in line for 30m doses of Oxford University’s coronavirus vaccine by September if it passes trials, the business secretary has said.
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Alok Sharma said that a deal struck between the university and AstraZeneca means the pharmaceutical giant will work to make 30m doses available by September for the UK, as part of an agreement to deliver 100m doses in total, if ongoing trials succeed.
“The UK will be first to get access,” Sharma told the Downing Street daily Covid-19 briefing.
Sharma said Oxford was one of the world’s “frontrunners” in the race for a vaccine, with clinical trials “progressing well” and all phase one participants receiving their vaccine dose on schedule earlier this week.
The participants will now be monitored closely by Oxford’s team.
Sharma said Imperial College London was also “making good progress” and would look to move into clinical trials for a vaccine by mid-June, with larger scale trials in October.
He said so far the government had invested £47 million in the Oxford and Imperial vaccine programmes, and announced a further £84 million in new funding “to help accelerate their work”.
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He said: “This new money will help mass-produce the Oxford vaccine so that if current trials are successful we have dosages to start vaccinating the UK population straight away.”
The business secretary, who earlier announced £93m for a new vaccines manufacturing innovation centre to open in summer 2021, said the government has now committed more than a quarter of a billion pounds towards developing a vaccine in the UK.
But he warned that there are no certainties and it is possible trials may not lead to a successful coronavirus vaccine.
“So we also need to look at other drug treatments and therapeutics for those who get the virus,” he said.
He said the government is working with scientists in the collaborative UK programme Accord to find a drug that can be used to treat Covid-19.
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“Today I can report six drugs have entered initial live clinical trials,” he said.
“If positive results are seen they will advance to larger scale trials.”
Sharma also revealed that the UK has held discussions with France about exempting those travelling between the countries from quarantine.
Businesses in the UK have expressed concerns over government plans to force all arrivals into 14-day quarantine to combat the spread of the virus.
Sharma said: “There have been discussions between the prime minister and president Macron, when details become available we will set them out.