Yet more evidence of Government incompetence !!!

Something some of us have known even before Covid - 19 forced a lock-down, the scumbag 'nasty party' failed in their primary duty to protect the public !!!


Government criticised for quarantine ‘failures’ and treating kids as ‘afterthought’

PA
Aug 4th 2020 7:33PM
The Government has been criticised for treating children "as an afterthought" during the Covid-19 crisis and not acting quickly enough to close the UK border in the early days of the pandemic.

A failure to quarantine travellers arriving in the UK in the early days of the pandemic "accelerated" the spread of Covid-19, a new report by the Commons Home Affairs Select Committee suggests.

Meanwhile, children's commissioner Anne Longfield said the re-opening of schools "should be prioritised" as lockdown measures are eased, saying schools must be the first to reopen and the last to close during any local lockdowns ahead of pubs, restaurants and non-essential shops.

It comes as new laws enforcing lockdown restrictions in areas of the north of England including Manchester, parts of east Lancashire and West Yorkshire came into force at midnight.

The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions on Gatherings) (North of England) Regulations 2020 were published on Tuesday afternoon and come into force on Wednesday.

Anyone found flouting the rules could be fined £100 up to a maximum of £3,200 for repeat offences.

Elsewhere, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has criticised Boris Johnson in a newspaper column for what he called his "slow response" to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Writing in The Guardian, Sir Keir said: "Trying to get answers and clarity from the Prime Minister is a frustrating experience.

"His instincts – to make excuses and blame others – are reminiscent of the schoolboy claiming his dog has eaten his homework. "

The latest figures show 46,299 people have died in hospitals, care homes and the wider community after testing positive for coronavirus in the UK as of 5pm on Monday, up by 89 from the day before.

Separate figures published by the UK's statistics agencies show there have now been 56,600 deaths registered in the UK where Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificate.

The Government also said in the 24-hour period up to 9am on Tuesday, there had been a further 670 lab-confirmed cases. Overall, a total of 306,293 cases have been confirmed.

 

this could be said of our current administration's policy on re-opening everything and sending everyone back to school as well. They wanted us to go back on campus! I can't believe that... it's so totally irrational!

Our President even said something about... oh, well... here is one:

AP FACT CHECK: Trump falsely declares kids safe from virus

Doesn't really fit in my mind since there are kids who're definitely effected.

 

Keir Starmer looks like an extra straight out of Inglourius basterds and he has the most Nazi sounding name

Möchten Sie Banane auf Ihren Fruchtschleifen, Herr Starmer

 

Incompetence you say? Unheard of. Lol. Seriously though Boris couldn't fight his way out of a wet paper bag let alone lead a country. He's gone into hiding mode again, assigning a 'spokesman' to give updates and read statements. With large swatches of England back under lockdown the 'empire' seems doomed. I doubt Ross who is taking over from Carlaw in the conservative party would do any better. The whole bloody thing makes me feel ill.

 

Don't get ill matey, fight back, - get even !!!

 

Now we have even further evidence of negligence, and incompetence !!!



50m face masks bought by Government in £252m deal cannot be used by NHS

PA
Aug 6th 2020 5:07AM
Fifty million face masks bought by the Government as part of a £252 million contract will not be used in the NHS due to safety concerns.

The masks, ordered from Ayanda Capital, have ear loops rather than head loops, and there are concerns over whether they are adequate.

The Government has confirmed in court papers that the masks, which are now in the Department of Health and Social Care's (DHSC) logistic chain, will not be used in the NHS.


The Good Law Project and EveryDoctor, which are suing the Government over its Ayanda contract, estimate the 50 million masks would have cost more than £150 million.

Government has admitted that 50 million FFP2 masks they purchased from Ayanda – for a price that we calculate to be between£156m and £177m – "will not be used in the NHS" because "there was concern as to whether the[y]... provided an adequate fixing." PPE masks not fit for purpose - Good Law Project

— Jo Maugham QC (@JolyonMaugham) August 6, 2020

Court papers show the Government awarded the £252.5 million contract to Ayanda on April 29, with £41.25 million payable on commencement to secure the manufacturing capacity.

Ayanda Capital also supplied 150 million masks of another type, which the Government says are unaffected but will be subject to further testing in the UK before any are released for use in the NHS.

The Government also disclosed in court papers that the original approach to sell the masks came from a businessman called Andrew Mills, director at a company called Prospermill, which had secured exclusive rights to the full production capacity of a large factory in China to produce masks and offer a large quantity almost immediately.

The legal document revealed Mr Mills requested DHSC's contractual counterparty should be Ayanda rather than Prospermill, as Ayanda already had an established international banking infrastructure that could be used to effect the necessary payments overseas, whereas Prospermill's own bank had indicated it could take some time to set this up on its own account.

The Government also said in court papers that Mr Mills is an adviser to the UK Board of Trade and a senior board adviser at Ayanda.

Mr Mills told the BBC his position played no part in the award of the contract, the broadcaster reported.

Jolyon Maugham, director of the Good Law Project, said: "Good Law Project wrote to Government on three contracts each worth over a hundred million pounds – with respectively a pest control company, a confectioner and a family hedge fund.

Hundreds of millions of pounds spent on PPE from a pest control company, a confectioner & a 'family fund' held through a tax haven

– None as yet delivered for use in the NHS

– At least £150m wasted on masks that will never be used in the NHSPPE masks not fit for purpose - Good Law Project

— The Good Law Project (@GoodLawProject) August 6, 2020

"Each of those contracts has revealed real cause for alarm – including, on Ayanda, that around £150 million was spent on unusable masks. What other failures remain undiscovered?"

Julia Patterson, founder of EveryDoctor, said: "It is horrifying that during the worst crisis in the NHS's history, the Government entrusted large sums of public money in the hands of companies with no experience in procuring safe PPE for healthcare workers."

Rachel Reeves, shadow chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, said the case for the National Audit Office to investigate the Government's mishandling of PPE is "overwhelming", adding: "It is astounding that ministers allowed the national PPE stockpile to run down and then spent millions with an offshore finance company with no history of providing vital equipment for the NHS."

Liberal Democrat MP and chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Coronavirus Layla Moran said a clear strategy for procuring PPE is urgently needed, adding: "The Government has serious questions to answer over this shocking waste of taxpayers' money."

A Government spokesman said: "Throughout this global pandemic, we have been working tirelessly to deliver PPE to protect people on the front line.

There is a robust process in place to ensure orders are of high quality and meet strict safety standards, with the necessary due diligence undertaken on all Government contracts

Government spokesman
"Over 2.4 billion items have been delivered and more than 30 billion have been ordered from UK-based manufacturers and international partners to provide a continuous supply, which meets the needs of health and social care staff both now and in the future.

"There is a robust process in place to ensure orders are of high quality and meet strict safety standards, with the necessary due diligence undertaken on all Government contracts."

On its website, Ayanda Capital says it is "a family office focused on a broad investment strategy", adding: "We focus on currency trading, offshore property, and private equity and trade financing."

Ayanda Capital has been contacted for comment by the PA news agency.