- “Leaked Whitehall document hints at ‘the new normal’ after July 19th” – MailOnline’s report on the leaked Whitehall paper that offers a glimpse of a ‘new normal’ which may await the country beyond July 19th. It includes masks, working from home and travel quarantine
- “Freedom Day wont be delayed beyond July 19th and face mask laws will be scrapped” – Matt Hancock has told MPs that freedom day will not be delayed beyond July 19th and that after that the laws will fall away, according to the Sun. This means the end of masks on trains and buses and of fines for not covering up.
- “Return of holidays abroad for people who are fully vaccinated” – In plans currently under consideration, double-jabbed Brits could be allowed to travel to amber listed countries without having to quarantine on their return, the Telegraph reports
- “Covid modelling that pushed back June 21st was based on out-of-date data” – The models used in Monday’s press conference were based on out-of-date estimates of vaccine effectiveness, says Sarah Knapton in the Telegraph, which have subsequently been adjusted upwards
- “‘Covid Pass’ to open up summer of sport” – By means of the Covid Pass app, fans will be able to show they have either had both jabs, a recent negative test or recovered from the virus in the last six months in order to attend sporting events, the Daily Mail reports. Big Brother Watch points out that the ‘official review’ has yet to be completed
- “NHS set to be given green light to use revolutionary Covid drug taken by Donald Trump” – The Regeneron antibody cocktails which reportedly worked so well for Donald Trump are expected to get the go ahead in the U.K., according to the Express
- “COVID-19 vaccine doubters more likely to be convinced if offered a choice of jab” – A study by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine found that nearly a quarter of those who were unsure about the jab said they could be convinced by being given a choice of vaccines, the Telegraph reports. By contrast, only 11% said they could be swayed by NHS advice
- “Social worker warns care home staff risk assault charges over new mask rules” – Social worker Valerie Nelson has warned that care home staff could risk assault charges if they coerce elderly residents to wear masks, the Herald reports
- “Debate: is it ethical to make vaccines compulsory for care home staff?” – John Harris and Julian Savulescu debate the question of mandatory jabs for care home staff in the Telegraph
- “Myocarditis followed by COVID-19 vaccines: A cause for concern or a reversible minor effect?” – A letter in BMJ from Hamid Merchant on the risk of myocarditis from the vaccines
- “Why we need the Great Reset” – “The terrible truth about the Great Reset is that there is no Great Reset,” says Peter Franklin in UnHerd
- “‘Freedom day’ or not, are we really returning to normal?” – Michael Curzon points out in Bournbrook that some things don’t end when lockdown ‘ends’
- “Has Boris caught Stockholm syndrome after being captured by Bond villains?” – “It’s no use looking for a James Bond to free Boris miraculously from his captivity,” says Jon Dobinson, Co-founder of Recovery, in Think Scotland. “We will have to learn once again to value freedom for ourselves”
- “Many scoffed at the claim it will be hard to regain our freedoms. Yet Ministers show no sign of handing them back” – Some would be happy to continue with Covid restrictions “in perpetuity” says Emily Carver for Conservative Home. “It is terrifying and depressing in equal measure to think that such extreme views may be reflected in the Government’s current strategy”
- “Professor’s ‘unforgivable’ wrong vaccine advice to BBC’s child viewers” – Professor Devi Sridhar has come under fire after she told the BBC’s Newsround – a television programme for children – that the Pfizer jab was “100% safe”, a claim which the BBC has now retracted, according to Sally Beck in the Conservative Woman
- “Answering those pesky lockdown questions – a User’s Guide” – Paul Stilwell reviews the User Guide, adopted by all “spouters of public health platitudes” when engaging with lockdown sceptics, for the Conservative Woman
- “Child sacrifice on the altar of Big Pharma” – During the Second World War, our ancestors “faced the danger themselves and put their children out of harm’s way” writes the Conservative Woman’s Elephant City. “Now, as we set about vaccinating our children against COVID-19, we are doing the exact opposite”
- “Delta Farce: How Boris Johnson’s incompetent handling of the new variant extended lockdown” – A Twitter thread about the Government’s response to the Indian ‘Delta’ variant
- “No Jab No Job – WEU leads the way in defending workers rights” – Godfrey Bloom discusses ‘No Jab, No Job’ polices with Stephen Morris of the Workers of England Union
- “Conservatives blast Trudeau over 10-hour quarantine in ‘special’ Ottawa hotel” – Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau only had to spend 10 hours in quarantine, the Post Millennial says, as he got his COVID-19 test back overnight in what would appear to be a record turnaround. His political opponents were not impressed
- “More evidence suggests COVID-19 was in U.S. by Christmas 2019” – A new analysis of blood samples from 24,000 Americans taken early last year is the latest and largest study to suggest that Covid appeared in the U.S. in December 2019, Medical Xpress reports
- “Florida Governor DeSantis Pardons All Who Violated Covid Health Guidelines” – Governor Ron DeSantis has pardoned all those penalised for violating Covid health guidelines in Florida, Forbes reports. “A recognition,” says the Governor, “that a lot of this stuff was way, way overboard”
- “ I Taught Online School This Year. It Was a Disgrace” – “Remote learning needs to end with the pandemic,” says fourth grade teacher Lelac Almagor in the New York Times
- “Defining Down Freedom” – “COVID-19 is enabling politicians to turn freedom from an individual right into a conditional bureaucratic dispensation,” writes James Bovard at the AIER
- “Has the Government Forgotten How Society Works?” – The behaviour of governments in response to Covid is “not unprecedented”, says Ethan Yang at AIER. “For the past hundred years or more, our government has become increasingly out of touch with sound economic principles and social science”
- “Washington’s Inoculation Gamble” – Julius Reuchel does what public health authorities have refused to do and calculates the “odds of death from the virus so you can weigh those odds against the risks of getting the jab”
- “The stars aligned and Andrew Cuomo let some real science slip out” – “If you get a vaccine, you don’t have to worry about unvaccinated people,” the New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said. “You may not be vaccinated, but you don’t pose a risk to me because I am vaccinated. So if you are vaccinated, what do you worry about?”
- “Andrew Cuomo’s Call for Living Life Is Way Too Little, Too Late” – “Life is about interacting,” says Governor Cuomo. “Make no mistake,” says Jeffrey Tucker in RealClearMarkets, his new rhetoric “isn’t really about science but politics. Restrictions were no longer tenable”
- “‘Pandemic puppies’ experiencing behaviour challenges” – A new study suggests that puppies adopted by Americans working from home throughout the pandemic are suffering from stress and anxiety as their owners return to work, according to the Daily Mail
- “Debate has become yet another casualty of COVID-19, we must relearn the ability to argue, but then smile and shake hands” – “Post-Covid, we must again learn to disagree passionately but amicably, not simply carry on flinging mindless insults,” writes John Scott Lewinski in RT
- “Costa Rica rejects delivery of Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine, says it is not effective enough” – Costa Rican health authorities have said that after studying the available clinical studies they have decided to reject the Sinovac Biotech’s vaccine for the time being as it’s not effective enough, Reuters reports
- “Kim warns of ‘tense’ food situation, longer Covid lockdown” – While opening a political conference on rescuing a broken economy, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un warned of potential food shortages and urged the country to brace for extended restrictions. He neglected to mention that North Koreans have been starving since long before the pandemic
- “Tokyo Olympics will need bailout if games go ahead without spectators” – According to the FT, the Olympics will need a bailout of about £572 million if paying spectators are not allowed in to watch the games
- “Full interview with retired Lieutenant-Colonel David Redman on the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns” – Lieutenant-Colonel David Redman brings his experience of emergency management to bear on the question of the COVID-19 response
- “The Truth is the Government hasn’t got a systematic way of showing us the cost benefit of the measure they propose” – “We have transformed this society for the worse,” said Steve Baker MP in last night’s debate about extending the Covid restrictions
- “By any measure the emergency has passed and yet freedoms are still withheld” – “The Government has set a disastrous precedent in terms of the future of liberty in these islands,” said Desmond Swayne MP in last night’s debate
By Jonathan Barr / 17 June 2021 • 02.01
