Coronavirus

Originally Posted by OLD BOY

I'm not sure what you are getting at here, jfman, as you explain yourself in convoluted ways. How does your statement relate to what I said?

However, what I would say here is that the fact that EU countries are now facing a third wave demonstrates the futility of lockdowns. It also clarifies that vaccines are the only answer to this pandemic.

The only alternative is lockdown after lockdown after lockdown until herd immunity is achieved.

Which is what I have been saying all along.

---------- Post added at 18:21 ---------- Previous post was at 18:18 ----------



I've already imposed a ban on European wine and other EU products until they stop this nonsense. If enough people do the same, the EU will certainly notice.

[spiderplant]

Originally Posted by 1andrew1

IVM's new software TV 360 is coded in the Netherlands, I believe, so Old Boy had better not upgrade to that software.

Better not mention the Polish and Romanian software that's already on his V6s.

Originally Posted by GrimUpNorth

And what's he going to do when the VM/O2 merger goes through, what with O2 being Spanish owned. Hope he's going to be true to his word and give his notice rather than send his money to the enemy every month. I won't hold my breath.

Netflix European HQ is in Amsterdam, Amazon European HQ is in Luxembourg, Apple European HQ is in Cork - he'll have to give up all those streaming services...

[Mr K]

Originally Posted by Hugh

Netflix European HQ is in Amsterdam, Amazon European HQ is in Luxembourg, Apple European HQ is in Cork - he'll have to give up all those streaming services...

But he's still got the British Broadcasting Corporation. British money for British programmes. No one can take Gardener's World or the Antiques Roadshow away from us, however much the evil EU might try.

This is wandering a bit, back to the topic please.

[1andrew1]

This is an interesting observation.

Perhaps significantly, for a company that has suffered public relations problems, there is nobody on the senior executive team with communications as a core part of their responsibilities, a difference from rivals such as Pfizer or GlaxoSmithKline.

One insider said: “There is a general sense of the company being buffeted on the reputational issue and just not being able to get on top of it.”

In this week’s example, the company had wanted to release promptly the findings from its large US trial, aware they could help lay to rest damaging questions about its safety and benefits, but had neglected to agree the press release in advance with the independent monitoring board.

Few lessons seemed to have been learned from an early data release in November, which caused confusion and controversy when three separate efficacy levels were included. Only later did it emerge that one dosing regime had been due to an initial error and had not been tested on people over the age of 55.

https://www.ft.com/content/7df5e368-...3-5b2e623ce708

Yeah, that sounds about right. It’s never nice to have to learn how to do PR while you’re in the middle of a crisis. There are however specialist in the field they can turn to, once they accept they have to.

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/25/w...trazeneca.html

India Cuts Back on Vaccine Exports as Infections Surge at Home

NEW DELHI — With its own battle against the coronavirus taking a sharp turn for the worse, India has severely curtailed exports of Covid-19 vaccines, triggering setbacks for vaccination drives in many other countries.

The government of India is now holding back nearly all of the 2.4 million doses that the Serum Institute of India, the private company that is one of the world’s largest producers of the AstraZeneca vaccine, makes each day.

India is desperate for all the doses it can get. Infections are soaring, topping 50,000 per day, more than double the number less than two weeks ago. And the Indian vaccine drive has been sluggish, with less than 4 percent of India’s nearly 1.4 billion people getting a jab, far behind the rates of the United States, Britain and most European countries.

[jonbxx]

Has anyone been watching BBC News this morning? One of their reporters has been in the Wockhardt factory in Wrexham where they do the fill/finish for the AZ vaccine (it's not made there by the way, despite the headline) It was really good! Here's a link - https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-56450968

---------- Post added at 09:06 ---------- Previous post was at 08:59 ----------

Originally Posted by OLD BOY

I've already imposed a ban on European wine and other EU products until they stop this nonsense. If enough people do the same, the EU will certainly notice.

What are EU products though. Say for example a vaccine made for COVID was manufactured in the UK but had 97% EU sourced ingredients and packaged in vials from Germany, is that British or EU sourced? If the company who made it was 50% Swedish, would you only have half a dose?

[Sephiroth]

Originally Posted by jonbxx

<SNIP>

What are EU products though. Say for example a vaccine made for COVID was manufactured in the UK but had 97% EU sourced ingredients and packaged in vials from Germany, is that British or EU sourced? If the company who made it was 50% Swedish, would you only have half a dose?

Jon, we all know what OB was saying. French cheese, French wine etc, top of the list; other EU country products especially where there are quality non-EU alternatives. See Macron for details.

We are entirely shunning obvious French produce. Chilean wine is a first class alternative to French/Italian wines. Mild Cheddar is an excellent cheese as is Double Gloucester. The only one we can't avoid is Polish produce, specifically mustard and sour cucumbers.

It won't be long before British hams appear in "Prosciutto" form and somebody finds a way to make a Port Salut cheese replacement. I'm not sure about Gouda cheese equivalent, though; if the Netherlands demonstrates resistance to the EC, I might continue with Gouda.

I wish a real pox and the EC and the likes of the French government and my shopping choices are the only weapon that I have.

As to Covid, I'm getting worried about the second jab stocks; is the government telling the truth that AZ stocks are/will be sufficient to cover all 2nd dose obligations within the 12 weeks?

Originally Posted by OLD BOY

I'm not sure what you are getting at here, jfman, as you explain yourself in convoluted ways. How does your statement relate to what I said?

However, what I would say here is that the fact that EU countries are now facing a third wave demonstrates the futility of lockdowns. It also clarifies that vaccines are the only answer to this pandemic.

The only alternative is lockdown after lockdown after lockdown until herd immunity is achieved.

Which is what I have been saying all along.

---------- Post added at 18:21 ---------- Previous post was at 18:18 ----------



I've already imposed a ban on European wine and other EU products until they stop this nonsense. If enough people do the same, the EU will certainly notice.

Originally Posted by Sephiroth

Jon, we all know what OB was saying. French cheese, French wine etc, top of the list; other EU country products especially where there are quality non-EU alternatives. See Macron for details.

We are entirely shunning obvious French produce. Chilean wine is a first class alternative to French/Italian wines. Mild Cheddar is an excellent cheese as is Double Gloucester. The only one we can't avoid is Polish produce, specifically mustard and sour cucumbers.

It won't be long before British hams appear in "Prosciutto" form and somebody finds a way to make a Port Salut cheese replacement. I'm not sure about Gouda cheese equivalent, though; if the Netherlands demonstrates resistance to the EC, I might continue with Gouda.

I wish a real pox and the EC and the likes of the French government and my shopping choices are the only weapon that I have.

As to Covid, I'm getting worried about the second jab stocks; is the government telling the truth that AZ stocks are/will be sufficient to cover all 2nd dose obligations within the 12 weeks?

But that's not what OLD BOY is saying - he is saying boycott all EU goods, not just the ones where it isn't inconvenient...

[1andrew1]

Originally Posted by Sephiroth

Jon, we all know what OB was saying. French cheese, French wine etc, top of the list; other EU country products especially where there are quality non-EU alternatives. See Macron for details.

We are entirely shunning obvious French produce. Chilean wine is a first class alternative to French/Italian wines. Mild Cheddar is an excellent cheese as is Double Gloucester. The only one we can't avoid is Polish produce, specifically mustard and sour cucumbers.

It won't be long before British hams appear in "Prosciutto" form and somebody finds a way to make a Port Salut cheese replacement. I'm not sure about Gouda cheese equivalent, though; if the Netherlands demonstrates resistance to the EC, I might continue with Gouda.

I wish a real pox and the EC and the likes of the French government and my shopping choices are the only weapon that I have.

As to Covid, I'm getting worried about the second jab stocks; is the government telling the truth that AZ stocks are/will be sufficient to cover all 2nd dose obligations within the 12 weeks?

Much as I'm amused by the boycotts taking place in a leafy corner of Berkshire, should you not be boycotting Indian and US companies instead?

These countries have actually prevented vaccine exports to the UK whilst the EU hasn't and has sent us 21m doses.

[nomadking]

The imbalance that the EU perceives between the EU and the UK, arises from two main factors. 1) They were later in approving any vaccines, so EU-produced vaccines had nowhere else to go. 2) The Pfizer vaccine isn't made in the UK, so there can only be one-way traffic with that.
The UK, and the World, got lucky in that the AZ vaccine works and has been approved. Otherwise there would be a UK and worldwide shortage at the moment.

[GrimUpNorth]

Originally Posted by Sephiroth

As to Covid, I'm getting worried about the second jab stocks; is the government telling the truth that AZ stocks are/will be sufficient to cover all 2nd dose obligations within the 12 weeks?

Just think, you're little bit of hypocritically selective boycotting might work and could be just enough to make the EU stop vaccine exports all together, resulting in you being the reason you (and many thousands of others) do not get their second vaccine after all because I'd expect the UK is relying on some new batches of vaccines arriving in the UK to cover some of the second doses .

[jfman]

Seph and Max (I think) have both raised the issue of vaccine stocks for second doses. I'd be very confident there will be no issue for second doses - the numbers involved relative to how the vaccination programme has scaled up over the last 12 weeks is small. While we may get less than expected volumes the priority will undoubtedly be on second doses.