To Some, Australia Seems To Be The Country To Look Up To In Controlling The Virus

[dave50]

They would even seem to have eradicated it by doing among other things closing the borders completely. If that is the case, how can they possibly ever open up to the world again without being contaminated unless the whole world is free of the virus, which is extremely unlikely? Is it unrealistic for a whole country to expect to remain covid free?

[brainiac]

Australia, with a population of about 40% of the UK, has had a total of under 1,000 Covid deaths. Yes, a total death toll of under 1,000. We have over that every day. They were prepared to close their borders very early on - nobody but Australian citizens allowed in (save a few tennis players/officials, under severe restrictions), and serious attention paid to those having to quarantine, and a lockdown in Melbourne that really was a lockdown, not like the present one here.

Currently there are about 21,000 people a day arriving in the UK, free to get on public transport to continue their onward journey. And we wonder why cases are not falling?

[drmorgans]

Has to Australian government explained how, whether, I suppose, they will open up the country to nationals returning to the country and to visitors, tourists etc.?

[Zacs-Master]

We all face that dilemma.

[BAKERS DOZEN]

New Zealand seem to be doing it right as well as they have only had 25 deaths since the first outbreak and only 41 new cases this year.

[sunny-dave]

They will vaccinate their population over the next few months - then require Covid vaccination proof from all people entering - as well as the currently required negative PCR tests.

[Sunk]

^ Agree with Sunny Dave.

[bobbinwales]

Even in normal times Australia and New Zealand dont get anything like the numbers flying in that we get. Whereas people can nip over to uk from mainland Europe and be here in under 2 hours it's not the same there in aus/nz.

[teacake44]

Its been said many times, you can't really compare to other countries. What I do believe to be one of the main problems we are seeing between 900 and 1500 lives lost on a daily basis in England, although it appears to be coming down now, is that the NHS can't cope, and that's been the situation from the very beginning. Why can't they cope is what the government want you to forget, 40 thousand staff shortages, and that's just nurses, nurses do the caring and the treating, lack of nurses can only result in not being able to give the time that every patient may need, and that can lead to increased death numbers. The evidence is there to be seen, with unused Nightingale hospitals, ( no staff). A underfunded NHS by the cons has without doubt added to the massive death rate.

The government have a nerve running their present TV add, asking the public if we can look them in the face ( including nurses) And tell them we are doing all we can to stop the spread, I wonder if Boris and his government can look them in the face and say yes?

[mushroom25]

// then require Covid vaccination proof from all people entering //

is there any point in such a requirement? the scientists say that all the vaccine does is stop you getting sick. it doesn't stop you getting the virus, it doesn't stop you being infectious, it doesn't stop you being a spreader.

[ichkeria]

They want to control it until the pandemic ends presumably which isn’t the same as waiting until the virus “disappears” which isn’t ever probably

[bobbinwales]

Theres some very promising studies tho mushroom now showing it can reduce the chances of passing it on significantly. Should allso be coupled with a negative test before flying perhaps?

[jno]

people are flying in to Australia and New Zealand, in small numbers, but they've been required to take tests for the last year or so, and quarantine. We're only just doing this now. Inevitably, a few of them have Covid. But this is picked up quickly with a working system for tracing contacts, which we also never had.

So watch a cricket match in Australia or a rugby match in NZ and you'll see crowds. People go to the pub and eat in restaurants. They're leading pretty much a normal life. That's what we've missed out on for most of the last year. Result: they're leading far less stressed lives than we are.

In the longer run, they'll inoculate their populations and they'll require visitors to have Covid passports and sign up to their test and trace systems. Whether they'll still have to quarantine I don't know. But right now I'd sooner be there than here (especially as it's summer and the sharks are biting).

[New Judge]

//Currently there are about 21,000 people a day arriving in the UK, free to get on public transport to continue their onward journey. And we wonder why cases are not falling?//

There seems to be this widespread belief that the cause of the continued high rates of infection is people arriving in the UK from elsewhere. It's not. It's principally caused by spread within communities and that's perpetuated by the fact that people simply refuse to keep out of each other's houses or to desist from associating with each other.

The place with the highest infection rate for the past two weeks or so has been Knowsley on Merseyside. It was displaced from the top spot yesterday by Sandwell in the West Midlands. For quite a time around Christmas, three areas in North Kent - Medway, Swale and Dartford - occupied positions in the top ten, with Swale topping the charts for about ten days.

These are not places where people jet in to from all over the globe. Knowsley is in the top 20% of most deprived areas in England. More than 25% of children are said to live in low-income families and more than 25% are said to be obese. Similar profiles can be found in the areas of North Kent I mentioned. In particular Swale has a high concentration of people in social housing and premature deaths from smoking and dietary related causes are high.

In short, many areas in these parts are not particularly nice places to live and many of the residents are not well off. Yet they exhibit the highest rates of Covid transmissions in England and when you examine the rest of the top ranking areas many of them are similarly unblessed. It is doubtful, to say the least, whether many of the residents of these places are returning from a winter break in Covid hot-spots or whether people originating in those places are making a beeline for areas like Knowsley and Sandwell. The government is being urged to "do something" with the 21,000 people a day who are arriving here. They'd do better to have a butchers round places like Knowsley and Sandwell to see exactly what it is the residents are doing that is making Covid transmissions so high.

[KARL]

New Judge is absolutely correct to point out that "they" are not the problem but "we" are. Meanwhile a country which counts the UK as one of its closest neighbours has had 0-5 cases since sometime last month and is busy dismantling restrictions. But let's not accept comparisons, at least not while the UK compares so badly.