Re: Coronavirus
 

It’s not about individual risk - for New Zealand getting it back to zero means businesses open, no distancing, sports stadiums full.

Accepting community transmission means none of these things are long term, realistically viable. The measures you have to introduce to keep it “manageable” are a sizeable part of the way to lockdown and you have no option but to commit to them until there’s a vaccine.

People will say “ah, but tourism”. It’s to that argument what the German cars line is re EU trade. A sizeable irrelevance. Getting the rest of the economy going normally outweighs tourism.

Re: Coronavirus
 

The recession brought on by the Government's imperfect response to the coronavirus pandemic has led to the UK's biggest fall in quarterly GDP on record.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-53748278
https://www.cityam.com/uk-gdp-plumme...rly-drop-ever/
https://twitter.com/TheWordOfCarrie/...919809/photo/1

Re: Coronavirus
 

God almighty, talk about lacing a headline with your political slant of choice.

It was going to be a terrible set of results regardless, I don’t think the government response made the figures any worse than they might have been, the real test will be the speed of recovery

---------- Post added at 11:42 ---------- Previous post was at 11:33 ----------

Going into full lockdown when there is less than a handful of cases doesn’t seem particularly viable either

Re: Coronavirus
 

Those are moderate headlines. The FT says "UK economy suffers worst slump in Europe in second quarter"

If the government response did not make the figures any worse than they might have been, why are they then the worst in Europe?

Re: Coronavirus
 

So the only possible explanation is the one that suits your agenda? Can’t say I’m surprised.

You might try reading the articles you’ve linked to. At least one contributing factor is the overall balance of the economy. Four-fifths of our economy is derived from services, which have been hardest hit by lockdown and are hampered by reduced capacity on reopening.

Re: Coronavirus
 

Worst in Europe, least worst.........it’s like comparing turds, when all said and done they’re both turds.

As I say, the real test is how fast and big the recovery will be, how many jobs were saved by furlough, how many saved by opening up hospitality etc.

I’d keep the yard arm Away for the time being. Q2 2021. We’ll know where we are

Re: Coronavirus
 

That's tinkering around the edges. Germany’s GDP fell by 10% in Q2, the UK’s by 20%. Shops and pubs can't explain most of that difference.

Re: Coronavirus
 

There are no options without costs. Rishi is out today attributing our recession to the service sector and social elements of the economy.

New Zealand are looking at it objectively tossing up locking down for 3-6 weeks, getting to zero and getting back to actual normal minus tourism against the alternative of almost permanent restrictions.

Whitty says we are at or near the limit of what we can ease. That's before schools go back. There's no nightclubs, no 60,000 people at football matches, no concerts or events and other huge parts of the economy.

If they get it right the short term pain gives long term gain. I accept that's an if.

Re: Coronavirus
 

Fed up of seeing it reported as 'UK suffers biggest recession ever'

Why do news outlets insist on taking some news, and then dressing it up as the biggest disaster to occur, ever, in the history of the World :rolleyes:

Is it some modern thing that needs to be done to generate sales/viewing/discussion? Is it done as a means of getting one over on others due to having the best sensationalist headline . . that everyone then copies?

It's like bloody advertising, I don't know about you lot, but 99% of the adverts thrown at me - in whatever form - immediately make me vow to steer clear of their products :mad:

Re: Coronavirus
 

That's next on the list from China.

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/08/07/a...scn/index.html

Re: Coronavirus
 

Good luck steering clear of this recession... ;)

Re: Coronavirus
 

I think it's best that the media trust us to tell it as it is. I'd rather know the situation so I can plan accordingly than live in a world like North Korea where the news is happy-clappy because they don't trust their citizens with the truth.

I appreciate that everyone has different sensitivities but if the news offends, don't watch or read it. Easier said than done, I know, which reminds me of that famous episode from the likely lads.

Re: Coronavirus
 

Re: Coronavirus
 

It's simple fact, the UK economy is much more tied to the service industry than Germany's hence why we performed so poorly.

the figures are also skewed by the fact that a majority of European nations were exiting out of lockdown whilst we were still in lockdown

---------- Post added at 17:44 ---------- Previous post was at 17:42 ----------


Sensationalism sells

Re: Coronavirus
 

People are equating the service sector to being shops, restaurants and bars, which Germany and the UK are both strong in.

Germany has more manufacturing but the larger service sector we have is mainly due to financial and professional services.

That's more likely a reason.