The Telegraph‘s Global Health Security correspondents Paul Nuki and Sarah Newey claimed this morning that there is “no trade off” between the economy and public health when it comes to COVID-19 and lockdowns.
Writing in the newspaper, the correspondents (whose coverage is partly funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation) write that the “‘health v economy’ trade-off” is “false” because “countries where the virus was swiftly contained – such as Vietnam – have seen less economic damage, plus far fewer deaths”.
This claim, based on one country, fails to acknowledge that the entire South East Asian region, regardless of the measures taken, has had a much milder experience of COVID-19 than some other parts of the world, particularly Europe and the Americas. Furthermore, while it may be true that Vietnam’s early border closures produced better outcomes (there is some evidence of this), that bird has well and truly flown for most of the world so the example of Vietnam is now irrelevant as far as this pandemic is concerned.
Perhaps, though, they have a future pandemic in mind. In fact, the peer-reviewed evidence is that lockdowns have no impact on the epidemic death toll (although it’s worth noting that Vietnam, which Nuki and Newey hold up as an example we should follow in future, has never imposed a full, country-wide lockdown). It’s also not clear how countries which close their borders to an endemic virus can ever hope to open them again – a problem Vietnam is currently experiencing. Vietnam is also not exactly an international global hub.
The article is part of the Global Health Security team’s promotion of an agenda to give the World Health Organisation more funding and more power to declare pandemics faster and be more proactive in ensuring compliance amongst states with public health edicts. They note approvingly that the pandemic has “thrust health to the centre stage, and may be an opportunity to promote a ‘green and healthy recovery'”. They appear to like the idea of a fast-acting global government imposing lockdowns so we can all be like Vietnam and “contain” the virus quickly, supposedly without suffering economic damage despite the vast disruption to the global economy this would bring.
Nuki and Newey highlight the problem of “viral misinformation” as one of 13 “mistakes” made early in the pandemic, though they blame the internet and social media rather than the WHO, despite its part in promoting myths about the virus such as that it doesn’t spread between humans and it doesn’t spread via aerosols.
But are Nuki and Newey engaging in disseminating misinformation of their own, making the bizarre claim that public health containment strategies have no trade-off with the economy based on a single unrepresentative country? When the U.K. economy shrank by a record 9.9% in 2020, this claim is frankly ridiculous and such claims are at odds with the Telegraph‘s overall coverage of the way different countries have managed the pandemic, which has been quite balanced. Should the paper really be allowing a team of journalists whose work is partly funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to use its platform to promote an agenda of enhanced global control in the name of public health?
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that Bill Gates is the virus… he should become endemic soon
As soon as I saw Nuki was the author I didn’t bother reading. You’re right through, it’s a disgrace the Telegraph allowed this to be published.
Perhaps Telegraph needs Bills money or indeed has been bought by Bill.
Gates is one of the funders of The Telegraph – hence them never mentioning him at all in a negative light, and also why their journalists or editorial team don’t write about the WEF’s Great Reset!
I can’t stand that Nuki guy!
Toby do you still not believe James?
The road to the gulag is paved with the meek
Thank you for catching. The Telegraph didn’t allow responses to it. To use Vietnam, whose 0 Covid strategy will begin to damage their economy for more going forward, as the counter? How about an EU nation or G20? Oh right, you can’t use one of them because it would disprove your point. Especially when we get to Sweden vs other nation GDP comparisons. To say nothing of whether our responses worked and whether the trillions lost are justified by say, 5% fewer deaths. This was an insult to our intelligence. And ruined the entire article’s argument.
Nuki is the sole reason I stopped my Telegraph Subscription.
I can’t read anything by Nicki. His writing feels to be propaganda!
That is probably because it is – also a smokescreen.
Re: the last paragraph- “Yes” and “No”. It would be a pity if the Telegraph were to cede its editorial policies and journalistic integrity to these bought-and-paid-for clowns.
Will,why are you asking us? Ask Toby. It will be in the Spectator next.
Its increasingly clear that the end point was the only reason for the last 17 months shit storm. ‘Life licences’ , global green reset, end of animal rearing for food, continual biosecurity totalitarianism, digi currencies only authorised for agreed expenditure. All the signs are around us , will enough people respond? Looks unlikely in most countries, its only a dozen or so US States that might just resist.
That’s funny because a Canadian researcher from Simon Fraser University just launched a report looking at all the studies done on lockdowns (including the oft cited Flaxman et al one) vs the economy and came to a very different conclusion.
http://www.sfu.ca/~allen/LockdownReport.pdf
He’s also interviewed on this podcast. Well worth listening in full:
https://pca.st/episode/93a09ee2-b6f4-4563-8182-44ef0718570c
“But are Nuki and Newey engaging in disseminating misinformation of their own,……”
Of course they are!!
You dont get funding from the sat*nic foundation for nothing you know.
In the latest episode of London Calling,
James D should have replied to Toby’s demand for his explanation of the driving force behind the Great Reset with: ‘Because they are Satanic. This is the manifestation of a long calculated plan carried out by a cabal of evil.’
This is quite simply the battle between good and evil and evil is winning hands down at the moment.
Congratulations to Will Jones for his critical editorial on this article. Thank goodness someone on the team at least harbours some suspicion that the World Economic Forum, and Gates in particular as one of the 3 key members of the WEF’s inner circle and one of the largest funders of the WHO have been driving the pandemic scenario, lockdowns and vaccine roll-out in particular. Having studied the contents of the WEF website in depth and over a year now, plus the writings of Schwab, and following up the leads on this site and other reputable ones (hosted by lawyers, scientists and doctors) there is so much hard evidence to point to Schwab, Gates, Fauci and the WHO following a carefully scripted and organised plan in order to deliver the Great Reset that I remain incredulous that Toby Young continues to dismiss them as a conspiracy theory
.
It is a conspiracy I agree, but a genuine one on a massive scale, not a theory. Everything is now ‘hidden in plain sight‘. 31 governments are signed up as WEF partners – and the UK is a lead partner (confirmed on the Gov.uk website in black and white for any doubters) and just look at the list of other partners on their Website – all committed to the individual plans which as a whole make up the Great Reset strategy. Open your eyes Toby please – to deny their involvement and that they are driving this ridiculous p(L)andemic saga for their own ends – is in effect colluding with them and inhibiting the resistance to this dangerous (and to quote James Delingpole and Dr Michael Yeadon) “horrifying” vision of our future under a single autonomous global power.
I wish we could have “pinned” comments!
Very well said.
Excellent post. And an excellent challenge in the last sentence.
Agreed! In fewer words it isn’t a conspiracy theory, it’s a conspiracy FACT because they wrote down what they are doing
Well said
‘Green and healthy recovery’, told me all I needed to know.
“So Sidney, I know you’re in agony and haven’t been able to see a doctor, or get any health care, but you’ll go to your death knowing you’ll be helping the green economy!?” f**k right off!
As a Telegraph subscriber I am immune to Paul Nuki. As soon as I see his name I ignore his article and just read the comments which are uniformly dismissive of his sycophantic rubbish.
Paul Nuki is a Branch Covidian, he has been terrible on lockdown.
Comparing Vietnam to western countries is pointless. You are either young, slim and very healthy or old, slim and extremely healthy. Not to mention they don’t really have seasons like us (just wet and dry). And people live a much more physically active outdoorsy lifestyle, even in cities.
They want Thunberg lockdowns
This has always been apparent