Scrutable

They've skipped Plan C and moved straight to Plan D.

Which stands for Plan Dither.

They are dithering very decisively and won't rush into any different level of dithering.

It's OK, we don't need to do anything.

To be fair, Johnson announced they reserve the right to procrastinate.

Jesus f.cking Christ...

Wes Streeting just gave him a verbal pummelling on Radio 4's PM just now.

What the f.ck are they doing?

It'll be too little, too late, with extra chaos, all thoroughly unnecessary.

What a hopeless bunch of piss-for-brains spineless dumbos.

I can normally think of at least a highly cynical explanation for what these c.nts are up to, but this seems to be spraying sh.t through 360°. Businesses f.cked. Families isolated. Vulnerable folk in hospital. Politicians looking weak and stupid.

Coo-ee boner? as the classically educated amongst us like to ask.

Behind the wizards curtain it's just a drunken moron who's shat his pants.

I think they are trying to prove they actually are willing to let the bodies pile up.

Seriously considering not coming back to the UK for a bit after Christmas.

Today was the point of no return. Any action from now on is too late.

How bad it will be depends on how strong the voluntary lockdown will be. Which is unknowable.

Incredibly unlucky with the timing - the year's great inter-generational mixing is upon as at the peak of the crisis. It's already spread from the early adopters of Omicron, the 20-30s, into the older generations, but pretty modestly. The coming weekend lies at a peak of under 50s infections and guarantees over 50s will be the cases of 31 Dec and the hospitalisations of 7-14th Jan. Peak hospital occupancy maybe 21 Jan.

Any formal lockdown measures on 27 Dec are too late. Any measures 4 Jan are too late.

We're going to take it on the chin. There's a chance we'll get away with it, but not a particularly good chance.

The good news is that most countries are a couple of weeks behind us. Watching the UK and seeing what you can get away with, or more likely can't get away with, will save lives in other countries.

It's ok, Johnson is reserving the right to think about having a meeting about whether to do anything, except he'll not go to the meeting because it won't be in the f.cking garden with wine and f.cking cheese.

Ester McVey welcomes the stand against "lockdown fanatics".

That'll be Public Health officials

Bird on a Fire wrote: Mon Dec 20, 2021 5:36 pm It'll be too little, too late, with extra chaos, all thoroughly unnecessary.

What a hopeless bunch of piss-for-brains spineless dumbos.

I can normally think of at least a highly cynical explanation for what these c.nts are up to, but this seems to be spraying sh.t through 360°. Businesses f.cked. Families isolated. Vulnerable folk in hospital. Politicians looking weak and stupid.

Coo-ee boner? as the classically educated amongst us like to ask.

My best guess is that any action will require substantial financial support and Sunak's priority is to start saving for 2023's pre-election spending giveaway. Presumably he has calculated that the cost of trashing various sectors of the economy will somehow be less that the cost of keeping them alive.

Treasury 'double' Covid funding to £440m for Scottish Government

And to Wales and NI.

It's just English businesses that don't need support then. Because they're still free to open so they must be ok. Not at all empty because all their punters are staying home.