News Round-Up

“U.K. Health Department plan for return to office working put on hold” – The Department of Health and Social Care is not exatly leading by example when it comes to ending work from home rules, having scrapped its timetable requiring civil servants to be in offices for up to eight days a month from September.
“Minister wants to slash wages of civil servants not in office” – A Cabinet minister has suggested that civil servants who refuse to return to the office should be paid less than those back at their desks, reports the Mail.
“Covid PCR costs can be excessive and exploitative, says Javid” – The Health Secretary calls on a watchdog to investigate “exploitative” firms overcharging holidaymakers for Covid tests, reports BBC News.
“Will Covid turn into the common cold?” – “There are reasonable grounds to believe that the Delta variant may be the virus’s end point,” writes Paul Hunter in the Spectator.
“Workers ignore Sunak’s ‘back to the office’ call” – Staff are embracing the ‘remote working revolution’, but economists warn that a slow return to city centres will hurt our economic recovery, reports the Telegraph.
“Companies Thought They Had Plans for Fall. Now They Are Scrapping Them” – The return to the office isn’t just being slowed in the U.K. Fears over the Delta variant has U.S. managers revamping schedules, with bosses delaying office reopenings and canceling events, reports the Wall Street Journal.
“Ditch the travel traffic light system, says former head of vaccine taskforce” – Current border arrangements are too complicated given the high proportion of the U.K. adult population that is vaccinated, says Clive Dix, as reported in the Telegraph.
“Macron grapples with new ‘gilets jaunes’ protests against vaccine passports” – President Emmanuel Macron faces increasing backlash over France’s controversial health pass brought in to boost a lagging pace of vaccinations, reports the Telegraph.
“Holiday chaos for Britons heading to France” – Brits hoping for a peaceful holiday in France will have to prove they are fully vaccinated for everything – from a trip up the Eiffel Tower to a glass of wine on an outdoor terrace, reports the Mail.
“CDC Study on 12 to 17 Year-Olds Who Got Pfizer Vaccine: 397 Reports of Heart Inflammation, 14 Deaths” – A study released last week by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed 9,246 adverse events reported among adolescents aged 12 to 17, including 863 serious events, 14 deaths and 397 reports of myocarditis, reports the Defender.
“Brisbane man ‘suffers heart attack’ after being arrested for not wearing a mask” – A video of a man apparently having a seizure after being arrested for not wearing a mask has caused outrage on social media, reports Sky News Australia.
“NHS still not recognising British citizens’ overseas Covid jabs, says peer” – Lord Paddick accuses the Government of “broken promises” after Pfizer jabs received in Norway go unrecognised by the NHS, reports the Guardian.
“Covid variants could be named after constellations once Greek alphabet is used up, WHO official says” – The World Health Organisation is looking to name new Covid variants after constellations because “we will possibly run out of the Greek alphabet”, reports Sky News.
“QPR 1-1 Millwall” – “I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many place vans in Shepherd’s Bush before, even when QPR have been playing Millwall. Was it because it was the first time most fans had been able to attend a game since March 2020? Were the police expecting a post-lockdown release of pent up energy,” asks Toby in his latest Pride of West London substack entry.
“Boris and Rishi at war over green agenda” – Chancellor Rishi Sunak is thought to be leading the push-back against Boris Johnson’s commitment to go net-zero by 2050, fearing it will spark a cost-of-living crisis with energy bills already on the rise, reports MailOnline.
“Olympics TV ratings plummet by 49% compared to 2016 games” – There has been a significant decline in Olympic viewership this year compared to previous games thanks, of course, to lockdowns but also to woke protests, reports MailOnline.
“Woke Barbie dolls” – “What sort of political fruit will our current cradle to grave woke indoctrination produce,” asks Collingwood in Bournbrook Magazine.
“The America I grew up in is disappearing into a vortex of identity politics” – At this rate the future generation of doctors may well be better equipped to offer a politics lecture than save one’s life, writes Zoe Strimpel in the Sunday Telegraph.
“Food blogger says it’s time to cancel ‘British colonial’ term curry” – “We’re still using this umbrella term popularised by white people who couldn’t be bothered to learn the actual names of our dishes. But we can still unlearn,” says a food blogger who calls on people to “cancel the word curry” in a video viewed millions of times online.
“My fight for free speech” – “I was fired for supporting Brexit – justice has finally been served,” writes former Fire Bridge Union Leader Paul Embery in UnHerd.
“These dusty well-paid professors have used the pandemic to scale back their service” – Talking on GB News, Mark Dolan takes aim at university chiefs using Covid as an excuse to continue online ‘learning’.

'These dusty well-paid professors have used the pandemic to scale back their service… remember, you are paying customers'

Mark Dolan takes aim at university chiefs using Covid as an excuse to continue online learning and not get back to lecture halls https://t.co/9nZOhbOVcV pic.twitter.com/I1BmsCMD7R
— GB News (@GBNEWS) August 8, 2021

By Michael Curzon / 9 August 2021 • 00.44

News Round-Up

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News Round-Up

“Schools are already scheduling Covid jabs for 12 to 15 year-olds” – Molly Kingsley, Co-Founder of the parent campaign group UsForThem, says NHS trusts and schools are “creating a presumption as to the JCVI decision” on the vaccination of younger teenagers, reports MailOnline.
“Holiday-bound Boris Johnson threatens to demote Rishi Sunak” – In a fit of frustrated impotence, Boris Johnson openly suggested that he might sack his Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak, due to his comments on the damage inflicted on the economy by travel restrictions, reports the Sunday Times.
Boris Johnson’s approval rating slips to lowest level since he became Prime Minister” – Bad news for the Tories does not necessarily lead to good news for Labour: backing for Keir Starmer is also down, reports the Guardian.
“Curse of the Covid generation – higher unemployment and lower wages await” – Regardless of their GCSE and A-level results, students could feel the economic effect of lockdown for a lifetime, reports the Telegraph.
“Professor Neil Ferguson interview: ‘Yes, my prediction was off… we’ll learn to live with Covid’” – Professor Neil Ferguson has gone from being the king of doom to the champion of cheer, reports the Times following its latest interview with the Government adviser.
“Government scientist: Face masks ‘have become politicised’” – Professor Clifford Stott, a Social Psychologist at Keele University and member of the Scientific Pandemic Insights Group on Behaviours subgroup of SAGE, says coverings have “become politicised”, reports MailOnline.
“Jab interval slashed to six weeks so young can go on holidays abroad” – Young people can now get their second jab just six weeks after the first to allow them to go abroad on summer holiday, reports the Mail on Sunday.
“Spreadsheet science is a flawed science – so why have superforecasters been given so much power?” – Policy and business decisions hinge on their every word, but should our leaders listen to their instincts as much as the superforecasters, asks Stephen Armstrong in the Telegraph.
“Top scientists remain puzzled over how and why Covid spreads” – The world may have multiple vaccines and drugs to fight Covid but we’re still not really sure about how it transmits or how to stop it, writes Sarah Knapton in the Telegraph.
“Calling Covid experts arrogant and wrong doesn’t make you a nutjob” – The expert-led consensus is driving once-complacent liberals towards more radical beliefs, writes Josh Glancy in the Sunday Times.
“Thousands of anti-vaccine pass protestors take to streets of Paris” – Protesters have taken to the streets across France this weekend for the fourth weekend in a row to rally against a new health pass, reports MailOnline.
“Prominent Law Professor Sues His School Over Vaccine Policy” – “From emergency powers, to lockdowns, to eviction moratoriums, and now vaccine mandates, the precedents we set today will forever affect the ark of our system of constitutional government,” writes Ethan Yang in AIER.
“Standing on the Precipice – The Week in Review (ep. 31)” – In the latest edition of the Bournbrook Magazine podcast, Michael Curzon, S.D. Wickett and Luke Perry discuss the vaccination of children against Covid and more.
“Just following orders, the Covid curtain-twitchers” – “As essential to the success of any tyranny as the police or the military, the Covid collaborators are the cogs which keep the wheels of repression turning smoothly,” writes Mary McGreechin in TCW Defending Freedom.
“Pop-up vaccination centre opens at the Nightingale Club in Birmingham” – A Birmingham nightclub opens a walk-in centre to encourage 18-24 year-olds to get the Covid jab, reports BBC News.
“I won’t judge you if you want to wear a facemask – please do me the same courtesy” – The lifting of restrictions on July 19th was our one chance to return to normality. If we miss it, we won’t get another, writes Daniel Hannan in the Telegraph.
“The villain retailers refusing your cash – and custom” – The Telegraph Money campaign names and shames retailers turning away consumers for using real money.
“I want this pandemic to end – yet I secretly pine for another lockdown” – For some of us, living with Covid the past 18 months gave us permission to slow down, and to re-evaluate how we want to live when this is finally over, writes Michael Venutolo-Mantovani in the Guardian.
Australian Army hits streets to enforce the world’s strictest lockdown” – Prime Minister Scott Morrison sent around 300 soldiers to parts of Sydney with higher migrant populations as well as southwestern areas yesterday to enforce the Covid lockdown, reports MailOnline.
“Racist tweets of Muslim Metropolitan policewoman” – Hailed as a hero for confronting anti-lockdown protesters, this police constable used Twitter in 2016 to insult Jews and mock the 9/11 attacks.
“Using Your EV Charge Card” – “People keep talking about how as electric cars become cheaper, more people will use them. But what they keep ignoring is that they are totally useless for long trips,” writes Willis Eschenbach in Watts Up With That.
“Obama gets his ‘scaled back’ 60th birthday party started” – Barack Obama has kicked off his 60th birthday weekend on Martha’s Vineyard with an intimate cocktail party held at a swanky resort, reports MailOnline.
“Boris Johnson’s push for net zero plunged into chaos” – A Treasury review has been delayed over fears working class families will end up footing the bill for the Government’s green agenda, reports the Sunday Telegraph.
“Life as a Stand-Up Comic Can Be Brutal. ‘Safe Space’ Call-out Culture Is Making it Unbearable” – “‘Cancel culture’ has become a trendy term in recent years,” writes Jessica Pigeau in Quillette. “But public shaming has always existed.”
“The Society of Cultural Anthropology’s Campaign to Present American Populism as Fascism” – “The Internet is bursting with pundits who are all too happy to frame great swathes of people as ‘good’ or ‘bad’ – us versus them,” writes Matthew Porter in Quillette.
“You know it’s over when Barbie surrenders to the woke” – There is barely any company, institution, school, publication or church which has not made its peace with the new woke regime, writes Peter Hitchens in his latest Mail on Sunday column.
“The Threat Posed by the Online Safety Bill to Free Speech” – “[The Online Saftey Bill] really starts attacking some of the fundamental points of the rule of law whereby we’re all responsible for what we do and is going to start addressing opinion that might lead others to say things or… to do things once they’ve read these opinoins [sic] online,” says Radomir Tylecote from the Free Speech Union in an appearence on GB News.

On today’s episode of “Free Speech Nation” I was joined by @RadoTylecote from the @SpeechUnion to discuss the government’s Online Safety Bill and the threat it poses to free speech. pic.twitter.com/7xHDzzJ1yM
— Andrew Doyle (@andrewdoyle_com) August 7, 2021

By Michael Curzon / 8 August 2021 • 01.03

News Round-Up

39 comments

News Round-Up

“No 10 draws up contingency plans for ‘firebreak’ lockdowns over winter” – Downing Street confirms it is prepared for “local, regional or national” lockdowns to ensure “there is no danger” of the NHS being overwhelmed, reports i news.
“Boris Johnson won’t isolate after sharing flight with infected civil servant” – Boris Johnson will not go into self-isolation despite sharing a flight with a civil servant who tested positive for Covid later that day, reports the Times.
“Britain is suffering a pandemic of political hypocrisy” – Whether it’s travelling abroad or getting back to the office, it is one rule for them, another for us, writes Camilla Tominey in the Telegraph.
“Covid infection level in England falls to one in 75 people” – A drop in the Covid infection level in England has been matched by a drop in the R number, which has fallen to between 0.8 and 1.1, compared with last week’s reported range of 1.1 to 1.4, reports the Guardian.
“‘Secretive’ Scottish Government plans to extend Covid restrictions to 2022 under attack” – Critics are hitting out after official advice said “it may be necessary to keep some precautionary measures in place” until next year, reports the Telegraph.
“No plans for vaccine passports in Wales, says First Minister” – Some good news from Wales, where First Minister Mark Drakeford says there are no plans to introduce vaccine passports. He will, however, continue to “weigh up” whether they are necessary, reports the Evening Standard.
“Those who put the panic in Covid pandemic must apologise for the cock-ups which blighted the lives of millions” – “Not for the first time, the doomsters were proved wrong, but only after the public had been needlessly terrified,” writes Trevor Kavanagh in the Sun. “So who put the ‘panic’ into ‘pandemic’?”
“The NHS has never been the ‘envy of the world’” – The NHS has slipped down the rankings of the Commonwealth Fund “Mirror Mirror” study. But should it have been that high in the first place, asks Kate Andrews in the Spectator.
“In wake of Wuhan, spies focus on detecting ‘nefarious’ meddling with nature” – Security agencies are funding scientific research into the risks of man-made or enhanced pathogens, as well as autonomous drones and ‘swarm robotics’, reports the Telegraph.
“Dancing still prohibited under latest hospitality rules while Communions and Confirmations may be permitted from September” – If Kenny Loggins is still alive, maybe he could be cajoled into recording the theme song for an updated Irish version of ‘Footloose’.
“Is Covid being used as an excuse to stop cheap travel?” – “Covid may now have become an excuse for doing what some of our elitist leaders have perhaps dreamed of for years: putting an end to the cheap package holiday,” writes Ross Clark in the Telegraph.
“Thank You, NHS” – “While Brits thanked the NHS, erected murals, and clapped into the abyss, the country plunged further into catastrophe,” writes Thomas McKenna in his latest Bournbrook Magazine column.
“South Korea to compensate nurse paralysed after AstraZeneca vaccine” – A nursing assistant has been paralysed after getting the AstraZeneca Covid vaccine and will receive compensation from the South Korean state due to having been recognised as a victim of an industrial accident, reports RT.
“86% of Youth Getting First Pfizer Covid Shot Experienced Adverse Reactions According to FDA Data” – TrialSite cites some worrying findings on the vaccination of children against Covid.
“Why so many Americans are refusing to get vaccinated” – With so many organisations adopting mandatory vaccination policies, it is now more important than ever that the decision makers creating these invasive policies understand why nearly half of America is against vaccination with the current Covid vaccines, writes ‘VaccineTruth’ in TrialSite.
“What If China Never Reopens?” – Keeping the borders closed may make it easier to govern China near-term, but the broader consequences would be tragic and potentially dangerous, writes Eyck Freymann in Wire China.
“Covid in Iceland: Vaccination Has Not Led to Herd Immunity, Says Chief Epidemiologist” – While data shows vaccination is reducing the rate of serious illness due to Covid in Iceland, the country’s Chief Epidemiologist Þórólfur Guðnason says it has not led to the herd immunity that experts hoped for, reports Iceland Review.
“I’m with Jennifer Aniston – anit-vaxxers are not my real Friends” – Far too many people still think they’re invincible – and all too often because they’ve been taken in by the deluded propaganda of the anti-vaxxers, writes Amanda Platell in the Mail.
“Playing the wild card” – “Britain can never be a pristine wilderness. Whether we like it or not, the human imprint is on the quilt of Britain’s countryside,” writes Matt Ridley in the Critic.
“Woke censors put offensiveness warning on classic ‘Allo ‘Allo episodes” – A message appears on the screen before each episode of ‘Allo ‘Allo on Britbox, which reads: “This classic comedy contains language and attitudes of the time that may offend some viewers,” reports Mail Online.
“Does Owen Jones have a woman problem?” – “So high on certainty is Owen Jones that he consistently uses his considerable social media platform to denounce ‘transphobes’, who invariably end up being women,” writes Douglas Murray in UnHerd.
“The trade unionist sacked for speaking at a pro-Brexit rally” – The witch-hunting of Paul Embery shames the labour movement, writes Tom Slater in Spiked.
“Florida is a place for freedom, not a ‘biomedical security state’” – Florida Governor Ron DeSantis lambasts President Joe Biden for forcing children to wear face masks in school rather than leaving the decision to parents and for working to make Covid vaccination a proviso for living a normal life.

Gov. Ron DeSantis blasts Joe Biden, tells him to do his job and that Florida is a place for freedom, not a "biomedical security state." pic.twitter.com/bsarqlnbHY
— (((Jason Rantz))) on KTTH Radio (@jasonrantz) August 4, 2021

By Michael Curzon / 7 August 2021 • 00.48

News Round-Up

95 comments

News Round-Up

“The vaccination of children is not a straightforward decision” – It is not sufficient to argue that now older groups have been vaccinated, the same should automatically happen to children, says the Telegraph editorial from Thursday.
“Robert Dingwall axed as Government advisor” – “With Robert Dingwall’s departure from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, the wind now appears to be blowing in only one direction when it comes to vaccinating children,” writes Steerpike in the Spectator.
“Statistics showing more young people hospitalised with Covid are not what they seem” – Number of older people being admitted has collapsed thanks to vaccination roll-out, bumping up percentage of younger patients, writes Sarah Knapton in the Telegraph.
“Inflated A-level grades may force universities to set entrance tests” – A levels had a 100% pass rate last year and leading universities may have to set their own entrance tests if grade inflation continues, reports the Times.
“Lockdown-Critical Academics Get ‘Canceled’” – Some academics say they’ve experienced a form of cancel culture, including censorship on social media and even losing their job, reports NTD.
“Why we shouldn’t fear a ‘fourth wave’ of Covid” – “Will there be a Covid wave in December,” asks Philip Thomas in the Spectator. “Based on my experience tracking the course of England’s epidemic, I would say this is extremely unlikely.”
“Brace for longer spell of post-Covid inflation, warns Bank of England” – Threadneedle Street warns that the cost of living is set to hit four per cent later this year – double its two per cent target, reports the Telegraph.
“Macron’s Covid health pass rules approved by top court” – France’s highest court has upheld a new law requiring the public to hold a health pass to access bars and restaurants and health workers to be vaccinated against Covid by mid-September, reports Reuters.
“‘I’m not a slave’: Briton detained in Singapore mental hospital after refusing to wear mask” – Benjamin Glynn, who was arrested after riding the subway without a face covering, calls the charges against him “insane”, reports the Telegraph.
“Jabbing the young? It’s a sign of a sick society” – The fact vaccinating the young against Covid is even being suggested is a dismal sign of the state of modern Britain, writes Frederick Edward in his latest Bournbrook Magazine column.
“We utterly deplore this reckless vaccine roll-out to children” – “Make no mistake, this decision [to vaccinate children against Covid] is egregious, immoral and indefensible,” writes TCW Defending Freedom Editor Kathy Gyngell.
“Putting the commie in committee” – A senior Government adviser on Covid wouldn’t last long if they were revealed to be a member of a political party which revered Hitler, writes Rod Liddle in the Spectator. “But as Douglas Murray has pointed out, the crimes of the left almost always go unpunished.”
“Texas Governor Says No to Another Lockdown, Calls It ‘Wrong Course’” – Greg Abbott inists there will be no more lockdowns in the Lone Star state, calling it the “wrong course” of action, reports the Epoch Times.
“‘I’m plagued by worries of disaster’: an interview with Dominic Cummings” – “We’re going to keep having horrific problems, and there’s no one in politics equipped to deal with them,” says Boris Johnson’s former senior adviser Dominic Cummings in an interview with Lynn Barber for the Spectator.
“Vaccine passports would create a hideously divided two-tier society” – It is deeply un-British to implement a scheme that disproportionately hits disadvantaged people, writes Fraser Nelson in the Telegraph.
“Fake Doctors Paid to Peddle Jabs on TikTok” – An agency is recruiting actors to pose as GPs to combat “conspiracy theories”, reports Church Militant.
“Podcast – Shining the Light: Dispelling Covid Distortions” – Omar Khan interviews Nick Hudson, Chirman of Pandemics Data and Analytics (PANDA).
“Hart was right” – “As Herbert Hart rightly pointed out, just because something is law and some elected official has laid it down, that in itself does not magically make those laid down edicts morally right,” writes James Allan in Spectator Australia.
“How Well Do the Vaccines Actually Work?” – Low Covid vaccine effectiveness proves that all vaccine passports are meaningless, writes Thorsteinn Siglaugsson on LinkedIn.
“Violent crime is returning with vengeance, but the politically correct elite doesn’t seem to care” – The cycle of violent crime is doomed to repeat itself until leading figures conduct a robust discussion on the cultural aspect of the crisis, writes Ben Obese-Jecty in the Telegraph.
“Union member who spoke at pro-Brexit rally wins unfair dismissal claim” – A Norwich tribunal has ruled former Fire Bridge Union Leader Paul Embery was unfairly sacked as a victim of an “appalling witch hunt” after speaking at pro-Brexit rally alongside Nigel Farage, reports MailOnline.
“Want to enjoy foreign travel? Join the political elite” – Britain has created the most hostile environment in the world for ordinary travellers. But those attending the climate conference due to be held in Glasgow this autumn are getting a free pass, writes Ross Clark in the Telegraph.
“Climate Minister Alok Sharma jetted to 30 nations in last seven months” – Climate Tsar Alok Sharma has travelled tens of thousands of miles across the globe over the past seven months to prepare the ground for the COP26 global environment summit this autumn, according to the Mail.
“Teachers ordered to promote ‘social justice’” – The General Teaching Council for Scotland says teachers should promote social justice, reports the Times.
“It’s time for us to protect our children, not use them as a shield to protect us” – Children should not be vaccinated against Covid, says NHS GP Dr Renee Hoenderkamp in an appearence on talkRadio.

"It's time for us to protect our children, not use them as a shield to protect us."

NHS GP Dr Renee Hoenderkamp says children should not be vaccinated.@TVKev | @DrHoenderkamp pic.twitter.com/umYvoW69YZ
— talkRADIO (@talkRADIO) August 5, 2021

By Michael Curzon / 6 August 2021 • 00.58

News Round-Up

52 comments

News Round-Up

“Experts question No 10’s plan to vaccinate 16 and 17 year olds” – Microbiologist Professor David Livermore tells MailOnline that he can see “no good reason” to prioritise vaccinating this age group.
“When, where, how, parental consent – all your questions answered ” – As health chiefs have unveiled plans to give 16 and 17 year-olds a dose of the Pfizer vaccine by the end of the month, MailOnline answers questions about the roll-out to youngsters.
“Long-lasting Covid symptoms rare in children” – Research suggests that children who become ill with Covid mostly recover in less than a week, BBC News reports.
“Portugal to lift quarantine for Brits with Indian-made AstraZeneca jab” – Portugal had initially refused to recognise the Indian dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine but overnight it emerged the Government has changed its mind and will recognise the jab, reports MailOnline.
“Are Covid Restrictions the New TSA?” – Richard Hanania highlights the worrying parallels between the government reactions to 9/11 and Covid, and why some children might be permanently masked.
“Anti-vaxxers pretend to be vegan to avoid having the Covid vaccine” – As people fake that they are “ethical vegans” to avoid the Covid vaccine, animal rights activists say everyone eligible should get vaccinated, reports Euronews.
“Family describe ‘holiday from hell’ after being forced into quarantine” – Andy Stanton spent £4,000 on a family break to Zante but, despite a negative test at the airport, he was told by authorities he and his family must quarantine because the result was wrong, according to MailOnline.
“The war on breathing” – We should be wary of a morality forged by fear, says Laura Dodsworth in the Spectator.
“Tale of two nations is lesson on lockdowns” – While Australia slides into its own Covid crisis caused by the new, more transmissible Delta, Sweden has shown that there is another way, says Professor Angus Dalgleish in the Daily Mail.
“China’s worst Covid outbreak in a year is escalating” – China recorded 71 new infections on Wednesday, the highest daily figure since January, reports MailOnline. And with local transmission and 500 new cases since July, its zero Covid strategy is on the brink.
“Turn back, I beg you, from Project Fear – my letter to the PM” – “I genuinely believe that when you entered politics you had every intention to uphold and preserve democracy,” writes Gavin Singfield in a letter adressed to Boris Johson, published in TCW Defending Freedom. “It is now abhorrently apparent that you and your Government are its greatest-ever threat in the U.K.”
“Covid origins and the consipracy of silence” – “The mainstream media has fallen in line with a ‘consensus’ it now appears was manufactured and ruthlessly enforced by agents who were far from impartial,” writes Collingwood in Bournbrook Magazine.
“French firefighters’ and hospital unions declare strikes against ‘unconstitutional’ vaccination mandate” – Two French unions have called for strikes against the compulsory vaccination of firefighters, healthcare workers, and caregivers, RT reports.
“New York’s vaccine passport scheme could have a nasty side effect” – Vaccine rates vary dramatically between different races in the United States, meaning that New York’s vaccine passport plan could have unintended consequences, writes John Fund in the Spectator.
“Covid contracts: minister replaced phone before it could be searched” – The Government is expected to disclose Lord Bethell’s correspondence relating to award of £85 million of contracts for Covid tests, the Guardian reports.
“Why don’t you get a jab? Offspring drummer ousted after refusing Covid vaccine” – Pete Parada says “it has been decided that I am unsafe to be around, in the studio, and on tour” after turning down treatment on medical grounds, the Guardian reports.
“Who will call out Covid’s prophets of doom?” – The experts who said ‘Freedom Day’ would be a disaster were catastrophically wrong, says Brendan O’Neill in Spiked.
“Here it is: The actual data on which the CDC’s new mask guidance is based” – ‘Allahpundit’ looks at the study that caused the CDC to U-turn on its mask-wearing guidelines in Hot Air.
“No sex, please, you’re unvaccinated” – “For those who weren’t in a relationship when the pandemic broke, the last 16 months have morphed into an enormous Covid chastity belt that keeps acquiring additional layers of armour plating,” writes James Jeffrey in the Critic.
“Covid Tyranny Destroys the Myth of ‘Liberal Democracy’” – “Any rhetorical value that once came from appealing to the façade of ‘liberal democracy’ should now be dead,” writes Tho Bishop.
“Hydrogen boilers could cause four times as many explosions as gas” – Safety fears as Government-backed assessment finds the alternative fuel could spark as many as 39 blasts a year, the Telegraph reports.
“House of Lords Doubles Down on Equalities Training Enforcement” – The House of Lords’ equalities training hasn’t gone as smoothly as planned, reports Guido Fawkes. In April it was revealed almost 60 members had refused to participate in the £82,158 compulsory training course.
“Transgender lifter Hubbard retires after controversial Olympic debut” – Laurel Hubbard, who transitioned in 2012, has announced her retirement and said “age has caught up with her” after she failed to record a single valid ‘snatch’ lift in the 87kg+ weightlifting category, reports MailOnline.
“Australia’s zero Covid policy has been an absolute disaster” – “Only 15.5% of the Australian population have been double ‘jabbed’ which is why the’yre reacting in this completely hysterical way,” says Toby in an appearence on talkRADIO.

Lockdown sceptic Toby Young says Australia's "zero-Covid policy" has been "an absolute disaster."

"Only 15.5% of the population have been double jabbed which is why they're reacting in this completely hysterical way."@TVKev | @toadmeister pic.twitter.com/pEz3GbF51X
— talkRADIO (@talkRADIO) August 4, 2021

By Michael Curzon / 5 August 2021 • 00.50

News Round-Up

108 comments

News Round-Up

“Italy, the ‘far right’ and the muted opposition to vaccine passes” – Why is it that only the supposedly “fascist” Fratelli d’Italia are opposing Italy’s Green Passes, asks Nicholas Farrell in the Spectator.
“Australia is showing the perils of a zero Covid strategy” – How has it come to the point that Australia needs to call up the military to eradicate a virus that is now endemic in the world, asks this Telegraph editorial.
“All deaths are equal, but some are more equal than others” – Ramesh Thakur in the Spectator Australia worries that lockdown enthusiasts have got their priorities wrong.
“The Republican probe into the Wuhan lab proves conspiracy theories aren’t always wrong” – This is no longer just an argument over the origins of COVID-19, writes Eliot Wilson in the Telegraph. It is becoming a battle over how we deal with scientific inquiry.
“Traveller in Heathrow hotel quarantine reports rats in room” – A musician forced to quarantine in a Government-approved hotel has described having to move room twice because of a “disgusting” rat problem, the Evening Standard reports.
“Guardian: COVID-19 Lockdowns are Driving Up CO2 Emissions” – Ditching the commute might seem an easy climate win, but other factors such as the relative inefficiency of home heating outweigh the CO2 savings, says a story in the Guardian as reported here by WUWT.
“NHS app tweaked to ping fewer Covid contacts and appease business” – Ministers bowed to pressure from business and moved to ease the “pingdemic” by tweaking the NHS COVID-19 app, according to the Times.
“I’m a pingdemic liar. Admit it, you are too” – We are cutting back on social contact – but is it really the pandemic or do some of us just not want to go out, asks Stuart Heritage in the Times.
“Civil servants will continue to work from home despite Sunak’s plea to ‘get on’” – Civil servants are not being ordered back to their desks in Whitehall despite ministers’ praise for office working, reports the Times.
“Americans Are Willing to Take Pay Cuts to Never Go Into the Office Again” – A new survey shows 65% of workers who said their jobs could be done entirely remotely were willing to take a 5% reduction to stay at home, Bloomberg reports.
“The U.S. Economy’s Prospects Looked Bright, Until the Delta Variant Surged” – Gross domestic product grew at a 6.5% annual rate in the second quarter and the economy exceeded its pre-pandemic size, but slower growth is expected in coming months, reports the WSJ.
““I Will Not Be Leaving Quietly” by Five Times August (Music & Lyric Video) 2021” – Dedicated to all those fighting for truth and freedom, courtesy of Oracle Films.
“My own country of Canada just kicked me out because my Covid immunity was acquired naturally and not from a vaccine” – Rachel Marsden in RT writes that when she went home to visit her mother, Canada tried to force her into a Covid detention facility, threatening fines and police action, as they didn’t recognise her natural immunity.
“The Road to Totalitarianism” – A warning from C J Hopkins in OffGuardian.
“We must be free to be ‘grossly offensive’” – The case of the ‘Grenfell Tower effigy’ shows our laws on online speech are wildly authoritarian, writes Andrew Tettenborn in spiked.
“U.K. Asset Owners Pledge to Push Managers on Diversity” – A group of pensions and consultants, totalling $1.5 trillion in assets under management, will require asset managers to disclose information about the gender and racial makeup of their firms, reports Institutional Investor.
“In defence of proselytising” – We should thank religious nuts, especially dissenting Christians, for most of the liberal rights we take for granted, writes Stephen Wigmore in the Critic
“The shame of BBC Sport” – Framing your opponents as hateful is the politics of the kindergarten, write Rob Jessel and Madison Smith in the Critic.
“Brentford end refusal to take the knee ahead of their first Premier League season” – The club confirmed their players would join the other 19 top-flight teams in performing the anti-racism gesture, the Telegraph reports.
“How artists lost their courage” – Keeping silent is the price of a successful career, writes Jess de Wahls in UnHerd.
“Put the animal sentience bill out of its misery” – Lobsters and the like are given no more protection from cruelty under this legislation but bureaucrats will thrive on it, writes Matt Ridley in the Times.

By Will Jones / 4 August 2021 • 00.37

News Round-Up

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News Round-Up

“Boris Johnson steps in to save holidays on the Continent” – Reprieve for popular destinations as plans for controversial new ‘amber watchlist’ are shelved following backlash, reports the Telegraph.
“Tourism bosses call on PM to scrap traffic light system to save summer” – In a letter to the Prime Minister, major airlines and tour operators said simplified rules would help the UK travel sector recover while protecting the country’s health needs, according to the Mail.
“Amber list marks out border between Johnson and Sunak” – “Thank God for Rishi Sunak,” writes Stephen Glover in the Daily Mail. “I don’t know whether he will be, or should be, Prime Minister. I am just grateful that he displays a reassuringly analytical approach.”
“Just how bad is the situation in Spain, Italy and Greece?” – Experts say is’s unlikely that the South African ‘Beta’ variant will be able to ‘outrun’ the more transmissible Indian ‘Delta’ strain which is dominant in Europe and the U.K., says MailOnline.
“Obama’s birthday party sets a terrible example” – Piers Morgan lets fly against President Obama in the Daily Mail, who is planning to invite 500 people to his birthday bash.
“One AstraZeneca dose gives 82% protection against beta variant hospitalisation or death” – New findings increase pressure on the Government to lift restrictions on people travelling to and from France, reports the Telegraph.
“Could hidden viruses in your body be causing long Covid?” – A new picture is emerging that links the often debilitating illness to other post-viral syndromes, says the Telegraph.
“What Were Lockdowners Thinking? A Review of Jeremy Farrar” – Jeffrey A. Tucker, writing for the Brownstone Institute, his new think tank, tries to understand the mind of Jeremy Farrar, who he says was an even more influential advocate for lockdown than Neil Ferguson.
“Are booster shots necessary?” – Will Britain become the first country in the world to have a large section of its population immunised against COVID-19 three times over, asks Ross Clark in the Spectator. And will that be a worthwhile achievement?
“Nothing unethical about covert psychological ‘nudges’, says the BPS” – After six months of evasion and obfuscation, the British Psychological Society (BPS) has made its position clear: it sees nothing ethically questionable about deploying covert psychological strategies (often referred to as ‘nudges’) on the British people as a means of increasing compliance with public health restrictions. Gary Sidley is suitably outraged on his blog.
“As protests grow against health passes, are elites imposing the measures making the same disdainful mistakes Remain did in 2016?” – Right-wing parties have swung behind recent anti-vaxx demos sweeping Europe. It’s a high-risk strategy, but the establishment should not dismiss the protests out of hand, as it may come back to haunt them, as it did with Brexit, writes ex-UKIP leader Paul Nuttall.
“Neil Oliver: For the sake of freedom – yours and mine – I will cheerfully risk catching COVID-19” – Neil Oliver on GB News says the vast majority of us have nothing to fear from the virus.
“Twitter Suspends Science Writer After He Posts Results Of Pfizer Clinical Test” – Twitter has suspended ex-New York Times science reporter and anti-lockdown campaigner Alex Berenson.
“The smear campaign against the Great Barrington Declaration” – Dominic Cummings, scientists and the media successfully demonised anyone who questioned the lockdown, write Jay Bhattacharya and Martin Kulldorff in Spiked.
“The rest of the world has shamed Britain’s blasé rejection of liberty” – Our national failure to confront the autocratic implications of Covid rules is a devastating failure, says Sherelle Jacobs in the Telegraph.
“£100,000-a-year lawyer loses harassment case against boss” – A lawyer who filed 42 discrimination and harassment complaints to a Reading employment tribunal has lost her case, with the judge warning against “a culture of hyper-sensitivity”.
“Over-75s have plenty of reasons to reject the BBC. Here are a few” – The Corporation faces a funding crisis, and pensioners won’t cough up – but are Britain’s poorest to blame, or the overpaid suits? Hard-hitting stuff from former BBC journalist Robin Aitken in the Telegraph.
“People expect sensible debate about education – not inflammatory rows about ‘decolonising’ the curriculum” – We should perhaps avoid complaining that there are, for example, too many ‘dead white men’ in literature set-text lists – and instead focus on making the canon bigger and more inclusive, writes Ed Dorrell in the Independent.
“Hungary, Poland and the EU’s ‘diversity’ problem” – For 20 years the EU’s slogan has been ‘Unity in diversity’. But can the bloc cope with Hungary and Poland becoming illiberal democracies, asks Katja Hoyer in the Spectator.
“If all ‘problematic’ statues have to go, then that includes monuments to Gandhi, Marx, Engels and Che Guevara” – Now that both George Washington and Thomas Jefferson have been ignominiously defenestrated, it is clear that the iconoclasts really do mean business. But will left-wing icons be held to the same standards as everyone else, asks RT.
“Destruction and Hope in Portland” – How calls for justice morphed into the violence that struck the city. A harrowing account by ex-Portland resident Nancy Rommelmann for Persuasian.
“NHS lets trans sex offenders on female wards” – Sex offenders who were born male but identify as female can be placed on women-only NHS wards, according to guidance issued by hospital trusts. The Daily Mail isn’t impressed.
“Olympic rules for allowing transgender women to compete to be changed” – The Intentional Olympic Committee (IOC) say it will set out a new policy for the participation of transgender women in Olympic sports, following an international outcry over a transwoman being allowed to compete against biological women in the women’s weightlifting at the Olympics.
“Experts give their verdict on The Firm’s favoured alternative remedies” – Members of the Royal Family have reportedly used homeopathy for their ailments for years – but it’s not the only alternative remedy they’ve favoured. The Daily Mail has got some experts to sort the wheat from the chaff.

By Toby Young / 3 August 2021 • 03.07

News Round-Up

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News Round-Up

“Covid cases fall for the eleventh day in a row” – Covid cases have fallen for the eleventh day in a row (week on week), with a further 24,470 recorded in the U.K. today, according to MailOnline.
“Rail stations test finds zero Covid: Analysis recorded no traces” – Researchers found no COVID-19 on any surfaces and there were no virus particles in the air at major train stations such as London Euston and Manchester Piccadilly, reports MailOnline.
“Left-wing scientists are far from omniscient” – We should lay to rest the notion that science represents a neutral form of knowledge that is somehow distinct from the political melee, writes Freddy Sayers in the Telegraph.
“Tyranny of the Covid experts” – Jonathan Sumption lets fly against Sir Jeremy Farrar in the Mail on Sunday.
“It’s Time to End the Covid Mandates” – Randall G. Holcombe urges all U.S. states to end all the coronavirus restrictions in AIER.
“Vaccine booster shots for 32m to begin next month” – Ministers aim to deliver average of almost 2.5m third doses a week, with a key role for pharmacies, reports the Telegraph.
“Hundreds clash with police in Berlin anti-lockdown protests” – Berlin authorities banned several different protests due for this weekend, including one organised by the Stuttgart-based Querdenker movement, which had expected some 22,500 attendees, says MailOnline. See here for some footage of police brutality towards protestors.
“There’s a new divide as bitter as Brexit between those happy to stay in Covid lockdown and the rest of us who want our old lives back” – Kirstie Allsopp in the Mail on Sunday says fear has made people paranoid in the U.K. and it’s time to get back to normal.
“Seventeen countries could join the green list this week” – Among those places that U.K. travellers may be able to visit without having to quarantine on their return are Germany, Austria and Canada, according to the Telegraph.
“Matt Hancock living alone as he battles to save ministerial career” – A month after his fall from grace, the former Health Secretary resurfaces at his family home in London and re-engages with backbench MPs, reports the Telegraph.
“Jacob Rees-Mogg blasts plan to bring in Covid jab certification” – Enforcing vaccine passports is “not a British way to behave”, Jacob Rees-Mogg has warned the Government, reports the Daily Mail.
“Johnson’s scapegoating the young over Covid jabs is not a wise tactic” – If the Conservatives want to win the hearts and minds of the under-25s they’d do better by incentivising vaccination, says Larry Elliott in the Guardian.
“Could travel U-turn save our summer?” – The creation of an extra travel alert level hung in the balance last night amid a mounting Tory revolt and a warning by Rishi Sunak that the industry faced devastation, reports the Daily Mail.
“Britons could be offered free coffee and cinema tickets to get jabbed” – In a bid to tackle vaccine hesitancy among young Britons, the Government is planning to do deals with cinema chains, coffee franchises and high street restaurants to offer incentives to get jabbed, according to the Daily Mail.
“Half of Britons cut back on socialising to avoid pingdemic” – Nearly half of Britons are reducing social contact, polling for the Times has found, in a sign that the ‘pingdemic’ is having a significant effect on behaviour.
“Public policy on Covid framed on the back of ‘massive modelling mistakes’” – Sky News Australia host Alan Jones says public policy on the response to COVID-19 has been framed on the back of “massive modelling mistakes”.
“250,000 viable jobs at risk as furlough scheme winds down” – Hundreds of thousands of viable jobs will be put at risk when the furlough scheme ends, reports the Times.
“2020s will be boring, endless COVID restrictions and judgement for those who do not comply” – Douglas Murray tells Fox & Friends that the years ahead will be filled with constant government intervention in people’s lives.
“Covid: UK hits 85m jab milestone amid discount push for young” – Cheap travel and takeaways will be offered in a bid to boost vaccine uptake among young people, reports BBC News.
“Average age of seriously-ill Covid patient falls by 10 years to 49” – The NHS figures illustrate the dramatic success of vaccines in protecting older adults in Britain, almost all of whom have been double-jabbed, claims the Daily Mail.
“Bin lorry drivers are offered £3k bonuses as ‘pingdemic’ wreaks havoc” – Rubbish has piled up in many areas across the U.K. in recent weeks, reports the Daily Mail.
“‘Multiple athletes’ involved in rule-breaking party at Olympic Village” – Bosses of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games say “multiple athletes” and team officials were involved in an alcohol-fuelled party at the athletes’ village complex on Friday night, according to MailOnline.
“China tests millions as Nanjing airport outbreak sees Covid cases surge” – China fights its most widespread outbreak in months with cases in more than a dozen provinces, reports the Guardian.
“Boris Johnson’s approval rating plummets” – A new poll by the Conservative Home website finds Boris’s rating dropping from 39.2% last month to just 3.4 per cent today, reports the Daily Mail.
“Allegra Stratton: Net-zero date too far away” – Boris Johnson’s spokeswoman for the UN climate conference in Glasgow says the Government’s target of making the U.K. carbon neutral by 2050 is “too far away”, says the Times.
“Net-zero zealots take no notice of the hardship their haste will cause” – Britain ploughs on with costly green policies while dozens of other countries break their promises, says Nick Timothy in the Telegraph.
“Classical Music’s Suicide Pact (Part 1)” – Succumbing to specious charges of racism, America’s orchestras, opera companies, and conductors are abandoning the Western canon, says Heather Mac Donald in City Journal.
“Trustees quit Vegan Society after claims of racism at the top” – Five trustees at the Vegan Society have quit after claims of racism and discrimination at the top of the charity, reports the Times.
“Shot putter Raven Saunders crosses arms in Tokyo podium protest” – A 25-year-old American shot putter crossed her wrists on the podium, explaining that the cross represents “the intersection of where all people who are oppressed meet”.
“If you believe in liberal values, you have to stand up to this” – Andrew Doyle rails against the insistence that employees use the preferred gender pronouns of their colleagues on GB News

'If you believe in liberal values, you have to stand up to this.'

Andrew Doyle says if you're asked to 'declare you pronouns' at work, you should 'refuse' and 'explain your reasons', even if you're 'accused of transphobia.' pic.twitter.com/au5hEzYL8f
— GB News (@GBNEWS) August 1, 2021

By Toby Young / 2 August 2021 • 03.02

News Round-Up

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News Round-Up

“England’s Covid care home deaths could be thousands higher than official figures, say providers” – Care homes have voiced concerns that the watchdog may not have registered a significant number of cases, says the SundayTelegraph.
“The Delta variant has been caged. Whisper it, but this may all be over soon” – Covid cases are falling, herd immunity is approaching and even gloomy epidemiologists believe the worst of the crisis may soon be behind us, according to the Sunday Times.
“Clubbers shun reopened venues in England amid confusion over Covid safety” – Owners blame ‘low consumer confidence’ and confused government messages for poor post-‘freedom day’ attendances, reports the Guardian.
“How drugs dished out by GPs for everything from head lice to diabetes could be the future of fighting Covid” – A time may be approaching where the majority of patients never need hospital treatment, says the Sunday Telegraph.
“Popular German Newspaper Issues Apology on Covid Deception” – Bild apologises to children for being complicit in their unjust treatment over the past 16 months.
“Vaccine passports are the first steps to a biosurveillance state” – Joanna Blythman in the Herald warns against the introduction of a British version of China’s social credit system.
“Mexico won’t be ‘hostage’ to Big Pharma, President says, as internet predicts trouble after country rejects Covid jabs for kids” – Social media users have theorised that the Mexican President could face severe repercussions after he refused to purchase Covid vaccines for children, according to RT.
“In attack on CDC’s new school guidance, Florida Governor signs order allowing parents to decide whether children mask up” – Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed an executive order to ensure that parents – and not officials – will decide whether pupils don masks at public schools, reports RT.
“Discounts from Uber and Deliveroo will lure young people in UK to get Covid jab” – Companies will offer credit and price reductions in government push to boost vaccination rates, says the Guardian.
“Revealed: the eight Test and Trace ‘fat cats’ earning more than the Prime Minister” – MPs criticise exorbitant pay for civil servants running the system, which has cost the taxpayer vast sums, according to the Sunday Telegraph.
“Sunak: Dump travel rules to save holidays” – Rishi Sunak has written to Boris Johnson calling for the urgent easing of travel restrictions as the holiday hopes of millions hang in the balance this week, reports the Sunday Times.
“MPs assure UK tourists ‘traffic lights’ won’t change while abroad” – MPs have called on the Government to reassure tourists the status of their holiday destinations won’t change while they’re abroad, according to the Mail on Sunday.
“Spare us from the mental torture of crazy travel rules” – It sometimes seems as if someone wants to punish us for wanting to live normally again, says this leader for the Mail on Sunday.
“Boris Johnson to welcome thousands of delegates with unregulated jabs” – The PM has given the green light for officials and leaders to attend the COP26 climate change summit in Glasgow later this year, even though many have only received vaccines not recognised by British or European regulators, says MailOnline.
“U.K. can expect thousands of Covid deaths every year, warn scientists” – Disease will circulate alongside flu and other seasonal viruses and become part of accepted winter illness, says the Guardian.
“Anti-vaxxers march through London to protest children’s Covid jabs” – Hundreds of protestors, young and old, marched along the banks of the River Thames before arriving at Downing Street where they chanted “save our children”, reports MailOnline.
“Israel and Covid: Is the drug deadlier than the disease?” – Nevile Hodgkinson in the Conservative Woman looks at the impact of Israel’s vaccination programme.
“Let It Rip” – Andrew Sullivan in his weekly Substack newsletter explains how he learnt to stop worrying about the virus.
“We know that the NHS had a woeful crisis. But we’re choosing to keep it just as it is” – The appointment of Amanda Pritchard proves the NHS is change averse, says Danial Hannan in the Sunday Telegraph.
“Sky News Australia SUSPENDED from YouTube” – Rebel News reports that YouTube has banned Sky News Australia over concerns that some of its reporters are breaching its community standards on Covid. The suspension follows the Australian Daily Telegraph cancelling Sky News presenter Alan Jones’s column.
“CDC Still Baffled People Are Paying Attention To Them” – The Babylon Bee takes aim at the CDC in its latest squib.
“Sniffer dogs inherit unconscious bias” – The ability of animals to recognise human feelings has become a concern for the prison service, reports the Sunday Times, which is worried that handlers of sniffer dogs may be communicating “unconscious bias” to their canine charges.
“I called it” – Andrew Doyle highlights how his satirical creation Titania McGrath correctly predicted that the sex of babies would soon no longer be recorded on birth certificates.

I called it. pic.twitter.com/Od33OGP5zD
— Andrew Doyle (@andrewdoyle_com) July 31, 2021

By Toby Young / 1 August 2021 • 01.45

News Round-Up

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News Round-Up

“Modellers warned of ‘1m cases a week’ even as third wave was subsiding” – A day before cases peaked at 60,000, Government scientists were saying that ‘stringent Covid measures’ could be needed, according to the Telegraph.
“NHS made secret pandemic plan to deny care to elderly” – Strategy drawn up by NHS England following 2016 pandemic planning exercise was designed to stop hospitals being overwhelmed, reports the Telegraph‘s Investigations Team.
“UK appears to defy dire ‘Freedom Day’ predictions as Covid cases fall” – Government will not say they believe worst is over, but cases fell for seven consecutive days this week, reports the Guardian.
“Summer holidays are at risk as ministers threaten a new danger list” – Plans for an ‘amber watch list’ have sparked uproar in Whitehall, with some ministers warning the scheme could wreck the hopes of millions of Britons to go to holiday hotspots in Europe this summer, says the Daily Mail.
“I refuse to be imprisoned by an incompetent Government invoking bogus science” – How on earth did this administration allow itself to be outflanked by both Labour and less vaccinated Europe, asks Ambrose Evans-Pritchard in the Telegraph.
“Next Covid variant ‘could kill one in three people’” – Research presented to SAGE warned a future strain could be as deadly as MERS, which kill 35% of infected people, according to MailOnline.
“Britons back ban on vaccine refusers at pubs, restaurants and shops” – Research for MailOnline found that nearly two-thirds of Britons are in favour of barring those who have not received two jabs from nightclubs and football matches.
“Vaccine passports deny basic freedoms, Cabinet critics tell Boris Johnson” – Boris Johnson has been accused by Cabinet ministers of denying people their fundamental freedoms over plans for vaccine passports, according to the Times.
“Is the government bluffing on vaccine passports?” – Ministers may be using the threat of vaccine passports to encourage young people to get their vaccine, says Katy Balls in the Spectator.
“Coronavirus: Clarifications on new SafePass measures” – A SafePass will be required from everyone aged 12 and over at all premises where more than 10 people including staff can congregate, the Cypriot Health Ministry said on Friday.
“Demonstrators take to streets of Slovakia’s capital, blocking roads to protest against Covid vaccination law” – Hundreds flocked onto Bratislava’s streets and obstructed traffic in the capital, to protest against a recently passed law granting fully Covid-vaccinated people easier access into public venues than non-inoculated citizens, according to RT.
“De nouvelles manifestations anti-passe sanitaire prévues dans toute la France ce samedi” – Le Figaro publishes the locations and start times of all the anti-vaccine passport and anti-lockdown protests happening in France today.
“Why Covid ISN’T as infectious as chickenpox” – British experts called into question the claims made by the CDC about the Delta variant, saying that if this was the case then Covid infections in the U.K. would not have dipped.
“No proof Covid screens stop transmission in pubs or the workplace” – New guidance after ‘Freedom Day’ told employers to consider placing screens and barriers between workers to Covid transmission, but a SAGE paper says they do not always help, according to MailOnline.
“Lockdown fanatics have created a poisonous Covid culture war” – The vicious abuse heaped on those who question the rules betrays the nasty side of the pro-lockdown brigade, writes Camilla Tominey in the Telegraph.
“In our determination to ‘follow the science’ we have abandoned all logic” – “Following the science” is all very well. But which scientist’s interpretation of the science would that be, asks Iain Duncan Smith in the Telegraph.
“Study shows schools do not spread Covid” – Schools are not spreading Covid, according to an official study that has boosted hopes that the return to class will not trigger an autumn surge in infections, according to the Times.
“Covid in Sydney: Military deployed to help enforce lockdown” – Authorities say the deployment is needed, but critics argue it will “pick on” marginalised groups, according to a report on BBC News.
“Australian War Crimes Syndicate To Police The Streets Of Sydney” – Caitlin Johnstone writes on her Substack account about the fact that New South Wales police have requested 300 Australian Defense Force troops to help enforce lockdown rules in eight local government areas in the suburbs of Western Sydney.
“More than a quarter of Britons fear life will NEVER get back to normal” – Research for MailOnline has found that 26% of Britons cannot see our pre-pandemic lifestyles returning at any point.
“Sweden: Despite Variants, No Lockdowns, No Daily Covid Deaths” – Michael Fumento in AIER says the country the media love to hate is reaping the best of all worlds: few current cases and deaths, stronger economic growth than the lockdown countries, and its people never experienced the yoke of tyranny.
“CNN’s Death Toll” – Robert E. Wright in AIER accuses CNN and other cable news networks of whipping up panic to boost their ratings and the CDC recently revealed that anxiety is the second most important contributing factor to death from/with Covid.
“Matt Hancock pictured loading up last of his belongings from home” – The former Health Secretary is pictured in the Mail loading up his car with his belongings as he moves out of the family home.
“Premier League stars ditch Covid app to stop football pingdemic” – Players are likely to receive a ‘ping’ from their phone if a team-mate tests positive for coronavirus given the close contact inside dressing rooms – so they’re dumping the app, according to the Daily Mail.
“If we want to live we have to suffer and weep” – David Pearce, a leading figure in the transhumanist movement that obsesses Silicon Valley’s elites, is an “abolitionist”. Nothing so niche and small-timey as slavery; Pearce is an abolitionist with respect to the totality of human suffering, writes James Marriottt in the Times.
“Any conviction politicians out there? Hello?” – James Allan in Spectator Australia laments the disappearance of conviction politicians.
“The Lockdown and the Vaccine” – Michael Gove has said that it is a selfish act to refuse the vaccine against coronavirus, but Alastair Cavendish disagrees in British Freedom.
“For Majority of U.K. children, Covid Mortality is 0.000” – The most comprehensive and perhaps important Covid study to date reveals that the threat to children and teenagers from the virus is virtually zero, writes Bill Rice in Uncover DC.
“Defining Away Vaccine Safety Signals” – Matthew Crawford on Substack takes a close look at the CDC’s methodology when it comes to evaluating the safety of the Covid vaccines – and is alarmed by what he’s discovered.
“A ‘no jab, no job’ policy would be a disaster” – Now that the government has announced that it will be compulsory to present a vaccine passport to enter a nightclub or other large venue from September, is it moving towards making double vaccination compulsory in the workplace too? Ross Clark is concerned in the Spectator.
“Estate agent guilty of assault after Chris Whitty headlock video” – Lewis Hughes, 24, admitted the attack which took place in St James’s Park last month and was handed a suspended sentence.
“Teenagers accused of sexual assault for slapping a man on the bottom” – Hannah Phillips and Scarlett Bareham, both 19, entered no pleas to the charges which relate to an incident at a popular nightlife district in Portsmouth, Hants. Did he really mind?
“Cambridge don hits back after Geoffrey Chaucer branded a ‘rapist’” – The damning portrait of Chaucer in the latest edition of the Chaucer Review has divided scholars and prompted one former Cambridge don to resign from the publication’s board in disgust at the “grotesque caricature”, reports the Daily Mail.
“NHS Bans ‘Offensive’ Capital Letters” – The NHS thinks capital letters may be triggering for some people, according to Guido Fawkes.
“Latin will be taught in state schools to end its ‘elitist’ status” – Officials believe subject will help pupils learn modern foreign languages and could bring improvements in English and maths, reports the Telegraph.
“Universities have succumbed to racial groupthink” – Critical race theory has replaced critical thinking, writes Jim Butcher in Spiked.
“The Multiversity and its Discontents: The Evolution of a Fatal Flaw” – Retired Psychology Professor John Staddon writes about the decline of the university for Minding the Campus.
“The Government has begun to tackle the Chinese military’s exploitation of U.K. research – but there’s much more to do” – Radomir Tylecote and Roberto White revisit the paper they wrote for Civitas about the extent of Chinese influence in Britain’s higher education sector.
“Girls are being abused because those ‘protecting’ them are too worried about being called racist” – In the wake of another child grooming report, whistleblower Maggie Oliver says she’s sick of seeing authorities sweep abuse under the carpet.
“Index on Censorship: U.K. Internet Regulation Plans ‘Catastrophic for Free Speech’” – Index on Censorship has become the latest free speech organisation to lambast the U.K. government’s Online Safety Bill, says the Epoch Times.
“Are you prepared to pay the cost of going green?” – Nigel Farage talks about how expensive Net-Zero by 2050 is going to be on his GB News show.

‘Are you prepared to pay the cost of going green?’

Nigel Farage speaks about the expense involved in reaching net-zero carbon emissions. pic.twitter.com/AXzOAc19GC
— GB News (@GBNEWS) July 30, 2021

By Toby Young / 31 July 2021 • 02.34

News Round-Up

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