Covid 19 Email John W

Dear Ms Miller, 

Thank you for your email.

Evidence suggests that wearing a face covering does not protect you. However, if you are infected but have not yet developed symptoms, it may provide some protection for others you come into close contact with.  The evidence of coverings preventing the spread of infection from one person to another is "marginal but positive", according to the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies that is advising the government.

Since 11 May the public in England have been advised to wear face coverings in enclosed public spaces, such as supermarkets, where it can be difficult to follow social distancing rules. There is growing evidence that wearing them helps protect individuals and those around them from the virus. Making it mandatory sends a stronger signal to people about their value.

If you can, you should also wear a face covering in other enclosed public spaces where social distancing isn’t possible and where you will come into contact with people you do not normally meet. This is most relevant for short periods indoors in crowded areas.  People will not be required to wear a covering in places where it's not practical - such as in a pub, cafe or restaurant. Children under 11 and those with certain disabilities or medical conditions will be exempt.

Face coverings do not replace social distancing. If you have symptoms of COVID-19 (cough, and/or high temperature, and/or loss of, or change in, your normal sense of smell or taste - anosmia), you and your household must isolate at home: wearing a face covering does not change this. You should arrange to have a test to see if you have COVID-19.

A face covering is not the same as the surgical masks or respirators used by healthcare and other workers as part of personal protective equipment. These should continue to be reserved for those who need them to protect against risks in their workplace, such as health and care workers, and those in industrial settings, like those exposed to dust hazards.

Face coverings should not be used by children under the age of 3 or those who may find it difficult to manage them correctly. It is important to use face coverings properly, dispose of them correctly and wash your hands before putting them on and taking them off.

I know that some people are unhappy about this change, indeed it is not something that I welcome.  But if we all do our bit we should be able to avoid a second wave of this disease and start to get back to so called normal life more quickly.

With regard to why the local authority has been measuring footfall, I would suggest that you contact them and ask them as this is not a project that I am aware of.

With best wishes

John Whittingdale

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Dear Mr Whittingdale MP,

I should appreciate your response to the following:

When did you first become aware that the Covid 19 related death figures in England were being misrepresented?

Are you aware of the reason for the sudden shift in Govt's, seeming preference, for following herd immunity guidelines then locking the whole country down within days of that announcement; that being 23 March 2020?

As the government continue to try to persuade the population that the above named virus is still a real threat, why do you consider, (this being the case) that compulsory wearing of masks in shops should not be enforced until 24 July 2020, a whole 10 days after the announcement?

To what end has our Local Authority been recruiting volunteers, (for the past six weeks) to stand on our streets 'counting foot-fall' and recording how many citizens are wearing PPE?

Thank you for your time and I await your response.

Yours sincerely,

Tory cuts to pensioner benefits April 2018

The Tories are using conference season to push through a change in a crucial benefit, Pension Credit, which they have renamed Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI); I suspect hoping it will attract little attention at such a time.  This could mean a cut to income of over £200 over month. 

Pension Credit is a top-up for those who are in receipt of State Pension but who have not paid in enough National Insurance to qualify for the full amount. Mostly women and mainly because they have stayed at home to look after family or took part-time or seasonal work as 'pin money' as was the norm when the 'war babies' became mothers.  A certain amount of Pension Credit is held back each week under the heading 'housing costs' which could mean anything depending on whether a home owner or renting, either, in what was referred to as 'Council Housing' or from a private landlord.  SMI has been created by the government in order to associate it specifically with mortgage interest in the hope they'll get away with making cuts under this guise.  To reiterate, SMI was never an identified benefit or included in Pension Credit and housing costs were never referred to under that heading plus there was never any indication that Pension Credit would be cut unless personal circumstances changed.

The poorest people struggling just to exist from one week to the next are an anathema to this plutocratic regime.

Theresa May has decided that people for whom this benefit is essential will be offered a loan instead. Coming into force in April 2018 the loan will be from a company of the government's own choosing, SERCO, who have already had their own problems and has to be repaid with interest with your house held as security and a restriction on selling without government permission.  

So now the worst-off won't just be fretting about paying their mortgage interest, they have to find the income to pay interest on the loan set-up to pay that interest.  They can put off this 'loan' and interest until they sell their homes.  What use is this?  After several years of this arrangement they will be left with even less equity, especially those on an 'Interest Only' mortgage, which many now are; how will they then buy another property?  The other option is to sell their homes earlier than planned but as the provision of suitable 'social' housing to move into is non-existent, where will they go?  

What a way to spend your final years.  How someone is expected to cope with these changes with only six months notice is beyond me.  All this whilst May continues to award Winter Fuel Allowance to all pensioners regardless of status.

What has happened to our moral compass?