by Rob Lyons
As the old joke goes, “You had one job.” Public Health England (PHE) is an executive agency of the Department for Health and Social Care. It’s fundamental mission is “to protect the public’s health from infectious diseases and other public health hazards”. Yet as the COVID-19 pandemic has unfolded, it’s increasingly clear that it is failing.
PHE has long been more interested in lecturing us about our lifestyles than making the crucial preparations for another pandemic. As Christopher Snowdon pointed out in the Spectator, PHE spent £220 million on anti-obesity schemes in 2018-19, but just £89 million on tackling infectious diseases. We can watch our own waistlines, thanks very much, but dealing with a pandemic requires a national response. PHE has been asleep at the wheel.
Critics have noted that the Government’s committee of scientific advisers, SAGE, doesn’t include any public health panjandrums. But why would it? Expertise on developing cartoon-character smartphone apps about healthy eating or running another round of Stoptober anti-smoking campaigns is about as much use in the current situation as the proverbial chocolate teapot.
When PHE has been called upon in the current crisis, it has not risen to the occasion. One important area where PHE could have excelled was rapidly scaling up testing. The UK’s capacity for testing at the start of the crisis was pitiful and the first attempt to launch a ‘track-and-trace’ programme was abandoned in March – in part, it would seem, because the capacity for testing and the ability to turn around results quickly simply wasn’t there. Health and social care services have been crying out for greater testing so that staff could be checked, allowing some to return to work if they tested negative and helping to minimise deaths in care homes.
Part of the problem was that PHE was determined to keep testing in-house, failing to exploit the resources available in other public and private-sector labs. Initially, all the testing was done at PHE’s facility in Colindale, North London. By March 11th, PHE claimed it had conducted 25,000 tests in total and was aiming at some point in the future to get to 25,000 per day. That clearly wasn’t enough.
Fear not, however. At least PHE was getting on with the important task of promoting equality and diversity. In February, when it should have been stretching every sinew to increase our testing capacity, it somehow found time to publish a virtue-signalling equality report. The document begins: “PHE aims to maximise opportunities to become more ambitious in its approach to creating a more diverse, and diversity-aware workforce, and promote equality and fairness in the way it designs or delivers products and services.”
And if you think that’s bad, check out this passage from PHE’s latest annual report:
The Advisory Board met in public on five occasions. Each meeting considered a core area of PHE’s business and provided valuable insight into shaping our approach. The following topics were considered by the Advisory Board during 2018/19: • sugar reduction and reformulation programme • sexual health • environmental public health • an independent report commissioned by PHE from Professor Parish following an employment tribunal, and PHE’s management response
Public Health England Annual Report and Accounts 2018/19
It was only at the end of April, driven by Matt Hancock’s 100,000-tests-a-day deadline, that testing finally ramped up – and PHE has only twice managed to meet that target in May. For all the talk about NHSx’s ambitious “track-and-trace” app, inadequate testing could still delay our escape from lockdown.
Perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised that PHE is a less-than-dynamic organisation. Far from being staffed by the brightest and the best, innovative and entrepreneurial, PHE is run by the usual quangocrats. These are people whose CVs describe a merry-go-round ride of one job after another for which they are, at best, only moderately qualified. Having delivered uninspiring leadership in one organisation, they move along to “lead” another, accumulating vast pensions and titles along the way.
The Chair of PHE is Dame Julia Goodfellow. A physics graduate at Bristol University in the early 1970s, her PhD was in biophysics at Oxford and she went on to become Professor of Biomedical Science at Birkbeck College in 1995.
She became Chief Executive at the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), one of the numerous public bodies funding research and running research institutes in the UK. In March 2007, the House of Commons Select Committee on Science and Technology noted that BBSRC was the research body “criticised most thoroughly” in an official review by Gavin Costigan. Fortunately, Goodfellow was already in the process of moving on, becoming Vice-Chancellor of the University of Kent that autumn.
As with many universities, Kent under Goodfellow’s leadership had ambitious plans for expansion and aimed to become “the UK’s European university”. However, given what’s happened, what with Brexit and the pandemic, Dame Julia’s decision to take out a loan of £75 million from the European Investment Bank in 2014 to pay for Kent’s expansion now looks questionable. Still, she enjoyed the perks of being the boss of a large organisation. She spent an astonishing £26,635 on flights in 2014–2015 – almost all in first or business class – and was paid a salary of £272,000.
She was the elected president of Universities UK from 2015 to 2017, during which time the organisation was at the forefront of campaigning for Britain to remain in the European Union. Indeed, under her presidency, Universities UK led the Universities for Europe campaign.
In 2018, she became the chair of PHE’s advisory board, which is “responsible for providing strategic advice on the running of PHE, assuring the effectiveness of PHE’s corporate governance arrangements, and for advising the Chief Executive”. So it was central to Goodfellow’s job to make sure that it could deliver on PHE’s most important responsibility – tackling infectious disease. Yet, as we have seen, PHE has been failing in this critical role.
Governments often over-react to news of the latest viral outbreak. One of the reasons we should be able to relax more is because, for a relatively small sum in the grand scheme of things, experts and administrators should be thinking through the kinds of resources we will need to have in place should the worst happen. It’s clear that PHE hasn’t done that.
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I don’t think our justice system is far behind.
It’s infiltrated by the same types, remember the guy jailed over some hurty stickers or something.
Exactly
The talk is GOP supporters are considering criminal cases against Biden and his wife and other democrats.
The democrats have opened Pandora’s box and nothing is going to shut it.
Megyn Kelly Issues MASSIVE Warning to Democrats After Guilty Trump Verdict
“In light of the New York ‘hush money’ trial guilty verdict, making Donald Trump the first former president in American history to be convicted of a felony, Kelly suggested that a reckoning is coming for Joe Biden, Barack Obama, and Hillary Clinton.”
Trump compared to Biden is the lesser of two evils.
And whom would you rather have in the UK leading an opposition movement, Starmer, Tice or Trump (if it were possible) or maybe best stay with Wishy-Washy Sushi.
Trump wants to ‘drill baby drill’ and kick Net Zero and climate lunacy into the wide blue yonder. Wants to lower tax and regulation.
I don’t know why the ds feels it needs to write a normy piece like this. Tobes please don’t insult our intelligence by wresting yr bum on a fence you have no business sitting on. What happened in that court was pure kangaroo that makes zanu pf look like bastions of democracy. Let’s call it as it is, Brandon is attempting to take out his political rival who leads him in the polls, pure banana republic stuff. This has now opened Pandora’s box whereby the far worse crimes or Obama (use of fisa warrants against trump), Bill (also paying off numerous women) and Hilary (bleaching her emails) to name but a few will have to be bought to court in a red states. Not to mention 10 for the big guy Brandon and his bribes off the Chinese.
AntiChrist Drumpf & Biden & Hilary are all good friends.
It is very hard to see how this ends well.
The tit for tat lawfare you describe would be tantamount to a civil war.
If the conviction hurts Trump and Biden miraculously wins the election, it will be nothing short of a disaster.
The only way I can see this ending well is of Trump prevails in the election and then goes on to do a sterling job with minimal amount of revenge against his political rivals thereby proving to the world what a hysterical, mendacious bunch of scumbags the Democrats and de Niro types are.
I don’t like or dislike Trump. He’s complex. But never have I wanted someone to win a n election more.
I absolutely agree with you on trump. Mogs said it when she said she can’t forgive over lock down/vaxx but can also see he’s far preferable to commie Joe.
Good item in DT online. In essence you have misdemeanour charges whose statute of limitations have expired, so Trump can’t be tried on them (paying off Ms Daniels etc). You have a rabidly Democrat supporting Judge, (Merchan), and ditto the prosecution lawyer. By reclassifying the misdemeanour as a felony, it becomes indictable as the statute of limitations can’t be invoked, so that’s what they do. The case was heard in a 95% Democrat supporting area of NY (Manhattan) from which the jury was drawn. As Jim Royle might say, “Fair trial my arse!)”
Something you expect in a banana republic.
Stealing an election with a 40 million vote fraud has consequences – namely the inevitable end of the country.
I am not a Drumpfian given he is just another quackcine salesman and Lockdowner, but how anyone could support the idiot Biden or his Communist unDemocratic cult is beyond my ken. How anyone can’t see the massive 2020 election fraud is incomprehensible (do some simple maths, total # of registered voters less Drumpf’s votes = what the pedo money launderer CIA stooge won).
The US is a sad sorry evil joke. Lawfare, the FBI and courts acting more as a Gestapo against ‘opponents’ of the regime than a ‘legal system’, the Police little better, the CIA who is the shadow gov’t along with the DoD rampaging across the planet, globaloneyBSboiling, Rona etc etc.
And now this travesty of jailing someone for a non-crime because he is going to win in November by a landslide.
Yesterday was a defining moment on the US’ path to eventual self implosion and failure.
And we are right behind the place with a Muslim Mayor, you know, for diversities sake.
Midget Jihad Khan will be the Labour Leader one day and likely future PM. Fake News will be doing backflips and having orgasms over the ‘diversity’ as Christians, Jews and Infidels at large are targeted by the Muhammadan cult – which will have the full loving support of the CoE of course…..
Nonsense. A minor setback for the AntiChrist Drumpf, who will buy his way out of it.
i agree with everything you said. It will be interesting to see what sentence the judge imposes on him. Will he jail him (and essentially his assigned secret service agents)? Or will he sentence him to house arrest making it easier on everyone but keeping him off the campaign trail? Or will it be probation? The whole thing will be thrown out on appeal, if not in NYS definitely one of the higher courts. This is the first election that I’m at a loss to speculate on anything that could happen.
The supposed crime was that by hiding his affair to avoid the bad publicity which might have altered the 2016 outcome, it amounted to election interference.
What then hiding the Hunter Biden laptop for the same purpose in 2020?
Not to mention that the “crime” was only specified at the prosecution summing up, after the defence had no chance to respond and test the allegation. There has been no trial of the truth or otherwise of this claimed crime – and indeed I gather there has already been a legal conclusion that there was no significant interference in the 2016 election by anybody.
Their only witness Cohen is a convicted felon and serial liar.
Judge is Columbian born, his daughter an UnDemocratic cult activist who apparently made some big cash out of the last election cycle.
First US Prez convicted of a (non) crime. Utterly insane how depraved the US deep state and society has become.
And Biden the money launderer and election thief roams (stumbles) free.
…and the Appeal goes to….(values, thriving democracy, diversity)
But that’s a federal crime and NY state had no jurisdiction to prosecute it even if the statute of limitations hadn’t run out.
All the showers Biden had with his then teenage daughter as per her contemporaneous diaries.
The classified documents that he smuggled out of the SCIF’s to keep in his garage.
The business associations with his family.
And his sleazy, perverted coke-head son sure as hell seems untouchable when it comes to the law.
Many Americans, particularly Blacks, Hispanics and working class Whites have had no faith in their justice system for decades.
This is why support from these groups has grown with each new charge levelled against Trump because he is getting the same treatment they are used to, so he has become one of them.
Do not lump working class Whites, whose ancestors built America into a great nation, in with Ethnic Africans & Latinos, who did not.
It certainly seems to have buoyed the mood on the left today. I expect they see this as the absolute proof that the ‘dreadful man’ is not coming to knock down their view of the world. The ‘means justify the end’ in this context. Who cares if the charges were minor and ‘trumped up’ (sic), all that matter is that he’s guilty.
Fortunately nothing like this could ever happen here. Could you imagine say hounding a Prime Minister out of office for a piece of cake..?
Or a piece of Parkin Neil.
Dont get giddy ’cause you made a pun…
Brilliant!
Well, if by some fluke The Donald succeeds in being elected there are going to be alot of Democrats with twitchy bottoms and the judge in this case may have significantly shortened his life span.
Actually, it doesn’t need to be The Donald, I suspect any Republican will set out their stall to wreck vengeance. It strikes me that the USA cannot survive in its current form following this so-called judgement. Some form of implosion seems inevitable but how nasty it becomes only time will tell.
The implications for the rest of the planet are decidedly uncertain in both the short and the long term.
I am sure some will disagree but I find it difficult not to believe that the Davos Deviants are involved with Billy having an input at least.
There could be trouble ahead…
Its inevitable that things are going to get worse. Having theories of how to run a country, isn’t having the reins in your hands. Steering a course for the ‘SS Gone with the fairies’, around the rocks and reefs of reality only has one outcome. Thats why Labour are stuffed from day one too. In this case, the forlorn hope that the far-left will behave themselves.
Fluke?
There are three more trials and possibly a bullet waiting. If Donald Trump gets to the election I cannot see it being anything but a fluke. Or a miracle.
Correct. We are almost ready to boil over. The world doesn’t seem to know but our demise is theirs, like the Don or not. And I dont like him. As a matter of fact I wrote articles against the man and for RFK. But now voting for Trump as there is no other choice.
Thanks. Great to hear from the USA.
I’m with you. It’s kind of a pain to vote from abroad and I wasn’t particularly motivated as I’m not a Trump fan but now I’m going to sign up and vote for him.
As someone said of Drumpf,
“For 2000 years Christians have warned about the AntiChrist, but when he arrived, they welcomed him with open arms.”
It’s great that I’m an atheist so I’m not prone to believe in nonsense like that.
I doubt they will succeed if they tried because the left has infiltrated every aspect of the federal government. It’s going to be impossible for Trump to govern even if the landslide is so big that it’s cheat proof. A breakup of the country is the only way forward, in my American opinion.
That’s a good idea. Since 1) almost every American state is larger than most European countries, who have managed to thrive for centuries alongside each other, despite a myriad of language barriers, and 2) the federal government has long proven to be actively hostile to the interests of American citizens… every American state should declare itself to be an independent nation, and establish good trade relations with each other and the world.
Whatever the Globalists want, we should do the opposite. The Globalists want to abolish all countries, so let’s create more of them. Abolish the UN, the EU and all Global organisations like WHO.
What you say makes a lot of sense. I think the Founding Fathers would be astonished and saddened that the Federal Government has been allowed to have so much power.
One practical issue with a breakup of the US is how the borders would be controlled and would the current free movement of citizens be able to be continued. I don’t see how it could because otherwise you would be dependent on the border states enforcing the controls that each state wanted. To an extent free movement of citizens to find work and a political home is a strength of the current system.
But somehow even the smallest European countries manage to protect their own borders, or at least they did until the EUSSR Communists seized power.
Indeed – I think it would have to be like that. I think you’d need an initial sorting out to give people a chance to move, which might get a bit sticky. You’d need to make sure your welfare programs were not over-generous.
Thank you. Comments from the American side are much appreciated.
There is not a cat in hell’s chance the demented old duffer will be re-elected in November now. What the retarded, evil b’stards have done is shown the world ( as if it were really necessary ) what lengths they’re willing to go to in order to dispatch the threat, but all they’ve done is shot themselves in the foot and sealed their fate. Their desperation will just come back to bite them in the arse, in my opinion. I reckon more people than ever will vote Trump now. I would, and I don’t have selective amnesia over what he did to Americans during the scamdemic and ‘Operation Warp Speed’. The world and their dog can see with clarity that it’s the Bidens that are the real threat to Americans, as well as the actual criminals in all of this. We’ve just got to hope there’s more sane, patriotic people than Leftard, West-hating mentalists when it comes to the voting. And that it isn’t rigged again;
”All it does it show us how vile and evil the left is, with absolutely no scruples of any kind as they seek to re-elect floundering Joe Biden and better still, knock Trump from the race by any means necessary. It’s banana republic stuff and a sign of just how corrupted our court system has gotten. The only way out now is to re-elect President Trump. The campaign lines are now reportedly jammed with donors.”
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2024/05/travesty.html
Agree with every word but…..if they are willing to do this in public then stuffing ballot boxes in private in Fulton county is child’s play to them.
They act with absolute impunity as if they already know their “re-election” plan will work. Then there is Trans Awareness Day declared for all future Easters. That’s the ticket for hearts and minds.
Thanks Mogs
“But will Trump’s conviction sway the dial in November and damage Trump’s bid for re-election?” “… and nobody knows if that verdict will make him more popular or less.”
Oh I think after a year of this nonsense, by now we do know. The Trump campaign website crashed immediately after the verdict, overloaded by the number of people trying to make donations.
And people – independents, Democrats – don’t necessarily have to switch their vote to Trump, just not vote for the other guy. Non-Trump voters may stay home or maybe vote for Independent JFK.
Trump’s support has not just remained steady but increased over the last few months, whereas Biden’s support has ebbed away.
They’ll just cheat again.
I rather think that there will be some unofficial scrutineering going on.
No victim.
No crime.
No legal case.
Biased, political judge.
White House’s fingerprints all over the process.
Complicit media.
Pure lawfare which puts banana republics to shame.
I look forward to Trump’s now guaranteed Presidency. Revenge coming.
I am surprised TDS would publish Spectator Dribble. If Trump does NOT win all the world, esp in UK, will suffer the horrors of worldwide dictatorship and death. Wake up folks. As for our election he will win big but whether it will be certified in a country taken out like Bolosnaros Brazil, is an open question.
The Supreme Court should throw it out, but at what cost to Trump who is diverted from his Rallies having to defend himself from endless Lawfare!
Excellent news. Justice has been done. Of course he’ll get out of it, because he’s the AntiChrist, and that’s the Illuminati plan.
The real story, not from Spectator:
https://www.frontpagemag.com/trump-found-guilty-of-running-against-democrats/
Steyn on Trump.
“Much of the United States – certainly the bits that matter – is now institutionally evil, and I am not sure that evil can be reversed, whether we’re talking about the bodily mutilation of middle-school girls or the sacrifice of a generation of a distant nation’s men in the meat-grinder of the Ukraine war. On America’s watch, the entirety of western civilisation is sliding off the cliff, and very fast – which is all anyone will remember about it.
And yet any alternative to the Uniparty consensus is not to be permitted, and must be hunted down and crushed. There is no future in the post-constitutional polity the Democrats are constructing. “Decline” is a choice – in the Austrian or Portuguese sense. But that’s not in the offing here: America’s death will be bloodier and more convulsive than anything seen in post-imperial Europe. Check back with me in ten years, and see who’s right.
For the moment, the Dems are, as always, three steps ahead. A lot can happen between now and July 11th, and much of it is undoubtedly already underway.
So, as John Hinderaker says:
Matt Walsh just interviewed Vivek Ramaswamy, who has been tipped as a possible VP to Trump. Ramaswamy had some very interesting insights. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=okb3We_29Sc
Ramaswamy Dingdong has no insights except knowing how to say whatever you want to hear. He’s yet another Smarmy Indian Subcontinental trying to take over the West while everybody is shrieking about China.
Resident Biden is a conflicted melon. Rigged trial. Vote for Trump for President, like your life depends on it bcos it does