Penguin68

The ?official? numbers are not accurate, as far more people died in care homes than the Government has published. The 'official' figures are for those who have died in care homes where Covid-19 is mentioned on the death certificate. Many people do, sadly and naturally, die in care homes, of many other causes than Covid-19. Indeed of those who died with Covid-19 on their death certificates some, perhaps many, will have their deaths 'brought forward' by Covid-10, but not, perhaps by that many months. Care homes are frequently an end-of-life option. The figures are put together by the ONS - a body independent of government. And many people argue that social distancing and hand-washing - already urged before any lock-down was instituted, were already bringing down infections. The most likely places recently to catch Covid-19 have been hospitals and care homes, filled with elderly sick and infected by an NHS keen to clear bed-blockers to allow for an influx of novel Covid cases in hospitals. The mental health problems caused by lock-down and social isolation are considerable. If people stick to hand-washing and social distancing (some evidently weren't, to the latter, well before any relaxation) then a second wave can still be offset. And far from 'earning money for shareholders' you might consider a re-start of economic activity as earning money for taxation and reducing your (that is government's, but where do you think that's coming from) expenditure on mitigating hardship for those not able to work.

kiera - yes of course all males are stingless (and also you rarely come across them save during a mating flight or in a hive) - I meant stingless species, of which only females have stings (some of the stingless bees do however have painful bites, I believe)

Stingless bees are all tropical and subtropical. There are none in the UK. All UK bees can sting.

We were made aware of this theft and given an option to put a Catloc" on catalytic converter to protect it when we had MOT and service done in January, but opted out... There are reports that such locks (for some car types anyway) can be got round without too much trouble (just more damage to the car when doing it). I don't know if those reports are true - or exactly which types of lock (for which cars) may be more vulnerable - but I wouldn't beat myself up about not having one fitted. All security is about making it too costly/ difficult compared with what else is out there - no security is actually secure 100% if there is a thief out there who wants to steal. https://kit.honestjohn.co.uk/top-tens/top-10-ways-to-prevent-catalytic-converter-theft/

One post removed for being libellous, others may follow (without warning) Publishing a libel is something that must be proved in court, but defending such a case is/ can be extremely expensive, which is why publishers, like this forum, are careful to avoid such accusations. There are weasel words ('allegedly' etc.) which can sometimes get round this - in this case the alleged perpetrator has only been reported as saying what he has, this is not the same as he himself publishing this. So Admin was quite correct, and is protecting this forum for the rest of us.

Oxford University is undertaking a major study on psychological health (and lack of it) related to Covid 19. It will be in several stages to track progress and changes. They are looking to recruit volunteers. I have joined the study - the questionnaire is not difficult and it is quite interesting. I have no links with the study or its supporters. https://lm.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fpsychiatryoxford.qualtrics.com%2Fjfe%2Fform%2FSV_8owcGAKKo1dL1vD&h=AT2T007Uzb3sEZS-3iWXJoro3quCTsLbXBIvN6eupXvofS9Ukp3nGiIGbF40IKqO2HIOpys-oJSJ021yEoiIZhRpF2eSswLodr0SDHOKdRSYdZiiOGn9gMUxzgK0Ripsru7bnntiaZFVVYJBEw&s=1&extid=6GR2NBZbATRxQypJ

The cars at most risk are fairly modern hybrids - as their CATs will have been comparatively under-used so that the rare earth minerals etc. used in them will still be in abundance. Which makes them worth more on the scrap market. The older the car (and if they are full petrol) the less value the used CAT is. Which doesn't stop them being stolen, just makes them less desirable when others are available. There was a spate of this in ED pre-lock-down. I suspect the opening up of businesses has meant that the market (buyers) for scrap has also now revived.

I think the issue in a queue is that at one metre, if you stand back, or someone else does, you can make contact quite easily - Covid-19 doesn't transmit easily across space in the open, certainly (as also the virus is more likely to 'die' more quickly in the open) - but contact, either person to person or person to object to person is a much more likely transmission route - so maintaining 2 metres in a static queue is a good idea, even if someone passing you (without touching you) only a couple of feet away is probably quite safe. It also allows someone to pass through a queue (as can be necessary on retail streets) whilst still coming no closer than a metre during transit. And for one individual to nay-say another's very real fears is just rude.

> > @Penguin68 - is that official advice your giving ? Some of it,like handwashing and social distancing is taken from official advice, but no, of course not, I'm not an official and this is not an organ of government information. But, broadly, my advice is consistent with the medical science as currently promulgated. Meeting more than one person, in the open air and with distance etc. provisos is likely to be as safe as meeting only one. Which is what current official advice stipulates.

If you feel ill with flu like symptoms you should self isolate, for 7-14 days. If you feel fine, and meet people outside, then following the underlying 'rules' - maintain a 2 metre distance, don't share e.g. food and wash hands thoroughly (avoiding touching your face) and you and the people you meet will actually be OK - however many you 'meet' with. The difficulty is remembering the basics, which is why the government's advice is overly cautious. But the number of new infections in London is very low - so your chances of being infected in London are also low. And for the vast majority of those infected - 80% - infection is not that bad - no worse than mild flu (or no symptoms at all). A further 10% will suffer, in effect, a very bad dose of flu, but not bad enough to go to hospital, but the remaining 10% may well be so seriously ill that their life is threatened. But if you 'relax' whilst following the basic advice, then things should be OK. And not 'relaxing' may in itself lead to mental strains which are or could be equally damaging. If you're living OK with lockdown, then continue it; if not then follow the underlying 'rules' and stay alert. And avoid FONMO (Fear of NOT missing out).

Just to point out that the home tests have a very poor record of accuracy - not because there is a problem with the testing kit itself, but because the actual sampling process (swabbing, effectively, the tonsils and then the back of the nose) is very difficult to do, particular on yourself, invasive and quite uncomfortable. So the samples taken are frequently of poor quality. In hospitals and testing centre the testers are more experienced, and frankly more brutal in getting their samples.

It's a shame Sainsbury's couldn't fit a WiFi CCTV camera up that we could log into. Perhaps at the entrance looking out towards the nursery. Possible to judge then what the queue 'looked' like and whether it was worth going out or not.

What the council should not be doing, James, is pursuing its CPZ agenda helter-skelter using Covid-19 as a screen. That's frankly, disgusting. The Melbourne Grove proposals are a clear stalking horse for more CPZs. If I didn't know that councillors were incapable of shame...

My point is quite clearly that the BAME community is worse off across all socioeconomic markers. The health of these groups is far worse as a result. This is well known and widely documented. Inequality. If you weight for deprivation etc. (i.e. weight to remove this as a variable) then you still find a disproportionate mortality from Covid-19 amongst BAME groups. (A recent Horizon or Panorama, I forget which, published these figures). Mortality goes up with age, with (some) ethnicities, with co-morbidities and with sex - men being almost twice as vulnerable as women. (The chances of infection go up in multiple people households and amongst groups more likely to meet others in a close contact context - which is a social deprivation link as it reflects work-type). Co-incidentally (or not) Vitamin D deficiency is also a key marker (but correlation does not imply causation) for suffering badly from Covid-19 infection - something frequently seen amongst both the elderly and in BAME populations in Northern climates, though not, I would have thought, within any one group, sex-linked. For once referring out to race, and specifically to skin colour in a UK context if there is a Vitamin D link, is not wholly unreasonable when discussing violation of the behaviour norms of social distancing urged by HMG. This does not excuse an unthinking and casual reference out to race, of course. Had there been one. Scientific evidence suggests that in the case of Covid-19 'race' is not a lazy shorthand for 'social deprivation' as regards mortality rates. These figures are all based around serious/ fatal infections. I have no idea whether BAME individuals (once deprivation is weighted out) are more or less likely initially to contract the virus, in any given contact context.

The US Centre for Disease Control (CDC) had detailed advice on how you might manage a reduction in lock-down which Trump has refused to release - but it's been leaked https://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/CDC-Business-Plans.pdf Some at least of what they say is relevant to the UK position, and may be of interest. Trump squashed it apparently because advice for New York should be different, because of different circumstances, from up-state Tennessee. The CDC wasn't that specific (but it's 17 pages with much more detail than has yet been offered us).

It was considered a cheap place to get fruit and veg - as shops were much dearer. Exactly - markets are driven by their economies - the current NX market is anything but cheap - it is high-end specialist - nothing wrong with that but it can't be compared with other more traditional markets - which were either 'good value' or catered to specialist (regional) dietary needs, or both.

This is a great idea. The previous ?rules? about low footfall in the week don?t stand with hugely increased home working. More frequent markets but with a lower density of stalls could provide better social distancing. In addition, having variety in the market on different days would encourage more frequent trips The 'rules' were one of economy. If there is sufficient custom/ demand, the market may be able to extend its opening times - but you cannot force suppliers to supply where they don't want to; where demand is insufficient. We may have a new normal where street markets are more compelling - although working from home may not be sufficient to drive demand.

James Barber has already made the point that traders didn't want/ wouldn't have paid for space in, a 7 day market. Southwark did 'build a market' and nobody came (except on Saturdays). A market requires customers, with needs, and an ability to pay, coming together with suppliers who have goods and services to meet those needs, which can be supplied profitably. As it turned out, this was only true of Saturdays - and not even then to the extent that had been hoped for. A socially distanced Saturday market will be a joy to behold.

I'm sorry, but that's a completely mad suggestion, not least because of the level of inconvenience to those living in Melbourne Grove, and any adjacent streets (to it a LL), of which there are very many. Far from 'solving the problem of rat running' you would be diverting 100% of the traffic going one way down Melbourne. So far from being a 'rush hour' rat run it would become a 24 hour rat run. It is quite likely that traffic flows will be different in a post Covid 'normal' - making any plans or bold moves before that makes no sense at all. It will simply be a waste of money, time and effort. See what develops and stabilises, and plan round that.

They are probably not 'fake' anything, but one of many styles of bricks and colours. I'm afraid typically salts do come out of these, they can be removed by power hosing, but they will weather out. https://www.hitchcockandking.co.uk/bricks/

I think its time to wear masks when outside just to protect our self and other people around use. Anything other than 'proper' PPE masks (with a tight seal around the face) will do little to protect you - although most face coverings will partially at least protect others from you should you be an asymptomless carrier. Probably you only need to be 1 metre away from someone you are just passing (in the open air) to remain reasonably safe, two metres is even better. Washing your hands thoroughly when you can if you've been out and touched anything you didn't bring with you is very important, however. Wearing a mask is more about reassuring others than protecting yourself; it's a courtesy, particularly to those, like bus drivers who have a job to do which can expose them to risk. Social distancing (and hand washing) still seem to be the key - get those right and the R0 will continue to stay down.

This is 100% wrong. You don't wait until the whole house is ablaze before calling the fire brigade. Actually, pollution currently is down, traffic is way down, the house is precisely not on fire at the moment, and when it does catch light again we don't yet know where the fire will break out. If I called the fire brigade out to your house now and they started randomly pumping water at it, on the off chance that fire might start where they're pumping, you'd probably be pretty p**sed off.

Most posters seem to have leaped straight into solution mode - often riding familiar hobby horses - but partly my point was that solutions are only valid in the light of the problems they are solving. I am suggesting that the post 2020 traffic and travel picture in ED, once stabilised, is very likely not be be the one that planners assessed in 2019 when confirming their road and transport plans. Some suggest rushing forward, and indeed extending, existing plans - but does that make sense when we don't, any longer, know what problems we are solving, or the priorities in solving them? Air quality is important, but so is the ability for the elderly and infirm (and i.e. families that want to travel together) to be able to move round. If public transport is much truncated, and if it is no longer sustainable 'at the price' when it can only operate at 30% loading, for instance, then a policy which offers bike or public transport only will lock-up swathes of the population in their homes - when that public transport is either not available, or too pricey - unable to move further than they can walk? Is this socially acceptable? [i can't imagine Freedom Passes lasting longer than TfL's bankruptcy]. But whatever solutions we do come up with, and whatever hard choices have to be made, let's at least do so knowing what we are actually facing, rather than committing expenditure now on favoured 2019 solutions.

I?m trying to coalesce some thoughts I?ve had on a number of threads, so apologies if not all this appears novel. It is clear that right now, ED traffic and traffic patterns bear no resemblance to anything recently measured in planning future alteration to the area?s roads. Vehicle traffic is down across the area, by 60-80% if government averages are to be believed, and usage of public transport has fallen off a cliff. It is very likely that it will take some time ? perhaps up to 18 months ? before we reach a ?new normal?. Although this might be the old normal, I personally think this is most unlikely. I suspect that the volume of working from home for former office workers will stay high, and that those who do travel into work will not be travelling all at the same time (staggered working hours) and far fewer will be risking public transport. This will have the effect of reducing congestion and concomitant pollution. [And if it was true that people were driving in to ED to commute through to the centre, I doubt whether this will still be true, or to the same extent]. Although the council would, I am sure, be pleased if we all moved to bicycles, it must be remembered that ED and surrounds are hilly and quite far away from the Centre (City & West End) ? and indeed that ED residents are not all spring chickens, leading me to guess that a reliance on private cars (particularly as these are seen as very much more ?Covid-19 safe? than using public transport) ? especially amongst the elderly or otherwise frail ? will increase; meaning that Southwark?s war on private cars does need to be reconsidered. And certainly undertaking road change schemes before a ?new normal? develops and is acknowledged would be at best a waste of money, and at worst an attack on residents. ?Bicycle or use public transport? cannot now be the Council?s go-to solution, nor is locking cars out of areas any longer acceptable. But what do others think?

In general a healthy car battery should not discharge over just a few weeks - this tends to happen when (a) the battery is old (4 years or over) or (b) if there is something draining the battery - I had a problem when a boot light didn't go off when the boot was closed. Couldn't see it of course. In very cold weather, additionally (which we haven't been having) batteries may be sluggish first thing - it's often the first warning you get of age overtaking it. Modern batteries do tend to fail dramatically, when they do, rather then give you a struggling warning. When garages are back I'd get yours to check the battery over to make sure it's still underlyingly healthy, and that there isn't an unusual drain on it. Certainly before next winter.