We're following the science

@hjelle_brian This is the sort of thing we need '... rough guidelines for when a true endemic stage of COVID-19 has been reached: daily case rates below 30 per 100,000, ICUs below 80% of capacity, vaccination rates of at least 75%, and fewer than 100 COVID-19 deaths a day nationwide.'

@1goodtern @Prof_J_Lawton Thank you! My feed so far is mainly pictures of the moon or herons. And although both are nice, I'd rather read useful science and health posts...

@Prof_J_Lawton I'm going to keep posting here, and keep letting people know that I'm there. The site is very simple to use and there's a 'covid conscious' starter pack pinned to my profile for new arrivals. ❤️

come to the blue side / @ 1goodtern

“Boris Johnson’s government blocked a request to fund another 10,000 hospital beds at the height of the Covid pandemic.” When we bemoan the long waiting lists and missed routine treatments, remember that this is part of the reason. buff.ly/3CnXG1M

NEW: Queen Elizabeth II thought Boris Johnson "better suited to the stage" than politics and two days before her death, after he resigned, she told a senior courtier in jest: "At least that idiot won't be organising my funeral." 1/ thetimes.com/uk/politics/ar…

Four bears sacrificed themselves for the UK. I've got Paddington and Pooh, what were the other two?

6. But you hate this thing you don't know what it is because the guy who owns the newspaper said it was evil. You hate lots of things you don't understand or that has nothing to do with you, like other people's sex lives. So anyone who hates what you hate, you'll vote for.

It just now occurred to me that, if there ever fully was, there's not going to be any way to have healthy controls for studies anymore. Almost everyone's body will have been damaged from covid.

Happy Guy Fawkes Day America. May you be as successful ridding your country of treasonous plotters as we once were.

Don't Mention It!

@1goodtern Clean air, indoors, everywhere

What single mitigation would I like there to be in place to reduce Covid spread?

‘Dear NHS It’s airborne at home but not at work’ Bullshit force fed to all staff by the IPC Cell supported by CMOs, CNOs, PHE, NHSE, SAGE & NERVTAG Thank you @gallagher_rose @theRCN for doing all you could to counter this lie & thanks for giving @FreshAirNHS a mention today

This coming week at the Covid Inquiry could prove pretty interesting with Prof Dame Jenny (‘children are more likely to be hit by a bus than catch Covid’) Harries taking the stand on Wednesday AND Thursday. I wonder what she’ll have to say about the infection control debacle…?

Simple Ideas, Big Impacts 🧵 1. Mesh drains in Australia prevent water bodies pollution. Should be a worldwide standard.

Sir James Dyson owns 36,000 acres of farmland in the UK through his farming business. He's a tax-dodging parasite. Here are a few more... #r4today

my final prediction!!

@melindiscott @DanNeidle @triplesilk Have you looked at Dan's bio? I know who I'll listen to...

The Country Land and Business Association says the new £1m cap on agricultural inheritance tax relief will "harm 70,000 farms". That's 1/3 of all farms. What does the actual data show? Less than 500 farms/year will be pay more tax as a result of this change every year. Possibly as few as 100.

That could mean as few as 100 farms per year are affected. And the 20% tax is only on the excess over the threshold, so for most of the 100, the additional tax will be reasonably small. Insure against it when you're young(ish). Give some/all to your kids when you get older.

Look at this flipping graph. Look at it. Really look at it. Judging by this graph, when do you think the pandemic ended?

@Iainbking @dgpearce1000 @MartinSLewis @RachelReevesMP And no Saturday job?? Weird... I have a few gaps due to 7 years at uni....but it's too late to do anything about it 😕 having said that I do have 30 odd years so am on courseto get the full pension.

@dgpearce1000 @cyclemaxine @MartinSLewis @RachelReevesMP Yes - I’ve discovered payments were made while I was still at school (aged 15-18), even though I wasn’t earning then. Which means I’ve got 34 contributing years already (currently aged 53).

NEWS. I was pleased to get a call from @RachelReevesMP today to tell me, they're bringing in Buy Now Pay Later regulation, here's my official comment... "Buy Now, Pay Later is now ubiquitous at online checkouts, so the fact it’s never been regulated is a travesty I and others have long campaigned on. The last Chancellor promised to regulate, then the tumbleweed rolled as he went silent, so I am delighted the new Government has quickly restarted the process. "BNPL can be useful, allowing those who need to spread payments for a budgeted, necessary purchase like a plumber to do it interest-free. Yet it’s been sold as a lifestyle choice, not a debt, and pushed for instinct buys or even takeaways. Too many are in trouble with multiple BNPL repayments, leading to debt-chasing and credit file damage. Regulation will mean firms must be overt that it’s a debt, have proper affordability rules, and will crucially let people go to the ombudsman if things go wrong. Yet it’s not coming in until 2026, so people should still be very wary until then."

I've been involved in this study on hospital-acquired infection: tinyurl.com/paetb58d. Putting air filters on wards was associated with a 22% reduction in SARS-CoV-2 transmission. A larger study would be needed to confirm the result. @CVRinfo @MRC_BSU @CUH_NHS @rjbgoudie