steve292
Guru
- Location
- Weston-super-mare, north somerset
Rupert Murdoch produces a wide range of missives suitable for wiping one's arse with.Who still reads newspapers? I’m not wiping my bum on my iPad!
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Mo1959
Legendary Member
- Location
- Perthshire,Scotland
At least nature has received a bit of respite due to the shutdowns.
https://www.esquireme.com/content/4...n-to-the-venice-canals-as-humans-self-isolate
https://www.esquireme.com/content/4...n-to-the-venice-canals-as-humans-self-isolate
Julia9054
Guru
- Location
- Knaresborough
My town has something similar. Been a bit worried about my parents - fit and well but 78 and 82. Unable to get a supermarket delivery until 7th April. Made some enquires and found a group local to them. A volunteer has offered to help (I am a bit far away and work in a school so likely to be carrying all sorts).
My mum had declined this kind lady‘s offer and has decided to go to the supermarket herself this morning. Sigh - what can you do!
- Location
- Somewhere wet & hilly in NW England.
I don't feel qualified to comment on that and at the moment I'm not sure there is any benefit for me to start debating the pro's and con's of the approach taken by different countries.
I'm getting my take on things from this tracker site as well as the Beeb. Scroll down for selected country stat's.
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/
France which has had a hard lockdown policy is still in the rapid new case rise phase so what to make of that?
Oddly the US has reported for the 18th March a very low increase in new cases - too early to comment but it's better than stat's heading in the other direction.
Not suggesting you but there will be many people who are just not interested in any positives at the moment unless it immediately affects their own situation positively - hence the doom focussed media/social media comments.
Mugshot
Cracking a solo.
Are they able to get to the shops or are they avoiding going out altogether?
Some supermarkets are introducing an hours trading for the elderly and vulnerable, Sainsburys did yesterday so more will follow suit.
numbnuts
Legendary Member
- Location
- Gone over the hill and far away
Dover is still quite busy 
randynewmanscat
Veteran
- Location
- Vienne, Poitou-Chrentes
I am about to find out. I printed my "attestation" and ticked shopping for essentials, I'll see if I can get a couple of photos in the shop. The supermarket I often use is just on the edge of town and quite near to a big road police station. If there is going to be a "controle" it will be there.
Basically the French government said that people had ignored the pleas for them to spread out and to stop gathering in groups so the government decided to slap them awake.
The list of cons is endless but had already began mounting after 12 million pupils and students went home, before the ban on all but essential travel.
The pros are unknown as yet, I think the idea is to buy time and not follow Italy. I can go out on my own to exercise, get my shopping in and if I had sick or elderly relatives go on care visits for them. People can still travel to and from work and take dogs for walks, on their own. Visit the vet, the car repairer and the Doctor. That is about the scope of what is tickable on the form.
Bear in mind that from announcement to implementation was one day, quite a shocker for many. A grainy photo I took in a smaller supermarket in Descartes on Monday seems to suggest that the big chains had already received a briefing on how things where to proceed. Note the blue markings on the run in to the checkout, people did pay attention.
The checkout on the left would normally have about three people waiting to unload their baskets and trolleys, the markings 2 metres apart stretched half way along the aisles.
Julia9054
Guru
- Location
- Knaresborough
I would like them to avoid going out altogether. My mum feels differently! Booths have advised customers other than the elderly to stay away 9.30 - 11.30 so she is going then
- Location
- Somewhere wet & hilly in NW England.
Dover is still quite busy
Kendal looking fine too.
At a slight tangent...
Re media pictures: I am reminded of the Foot & Mouth outbreak in the Lake District in 2001 when our local paper reported that Kendal town centre was deserted and it showed a picture to that effect - totally devoid of people and traffic.
Well, it must've been taken very early in the morning as on the day it was taken we were in town at 9.15am for a Specsavers appointment and the place looked as it normally did.
Make of that what you will.
Media 
Pale Rider
Legendary Member
Dover is still quite busy
When I nipped out to the chemist yesterday it was business as usual in terms of traffic.
Which means every journey usually made in Sunderland is an essential one.
Or, perish the thought, car drivers are being their usual selfish selves and ignoring the government advice.
Mugshot
Cracking a solo.
Sainsburys are also introducing priority delivery for the elderly and vulnerable too, this is the message;
Email from Sainsburys CEO Mike Coupe:
I wrote to you last week to tell you about some of the steps we are taking to support increased demand for food and other essential items.
After I wrote to you last week, many of you replied. You wrote to share your concerns about our elderly and vulnerable customers and to ask if we can do more to restrict the number of items each person can buy. I have listened to feedback from you and from Sainsbury's colleagues across the country and wanted to share some of the extra steps we are taking to make sure everyone has access to the items that they need:
A number of you suggested that we reserve an hour in stores for elderly and vulnerable customers. In response to this request, we will set aside the first hour in every supermarket this Thursday 19th March, for elderly and vulnerable customers. I hope that you can respect this decision and will work with us as we try our best to help those that need it the most. If you or an elderly family member, friend or neighbour would like to shop during this hour, please check online for your local supermarket opening hours.
We will also help elderly and vulnerable customers access food online. From Monday 23rd March, our online customers who are over 70 years of age or have a disability will have priority access to online delivery slots. We will contact these customers in the coming days with more details.
For any online customer who can travel to our stores, from Monday 23rd March, we will operate an expanded 'click and collect' service. We are significantly increasing the number of collection sites across the country over the coming days in preparation for this. Customers can place their order online as usual and pick it up from a collection point in the store car park. We believe this will also work for people who are self-isolating.
As we work to feed the nation, we are also focusing all of our efforts on getting as much food and other essential items from our suppliers, into our warehouses and onto shelves as we possibly can. We still have enough food for everyone - if we all just buy what we need for us and our families.
To help us get more essential items onto the shelves, from this Thursday 19th March, we will be closing our cafes and our meat, fish and pizza counters in supermarkets. This means we can free up warehouse and lorry capacity for products that customers really need. It will also free up time for our store colleagues to focus on keeping the shelves as well stocked as possible.
I mentioned last week that we had put limits on a very small number of products. Following feedback from our customers and from our store colleagues, we have decided to put restrictions on a larger number of products. From tomorrow, Wednesday 18th March, customers will be able to buy a maximum of three of any grocery product and a maximum of two on the most popular products including toilet paper, soap and UHT milk. We have enough food coming into the system, but are limiting sales so that it stays on shelves for longer and can be bought by a larger numbers of customers.
Finally, I wanted to end by saying a huge thank you to Sainsbury's colleagues across the business. Everyone is working flat out in difficult circumstances to do their best to serve our customers. If you're able to say thank you to them when you see them, I know they would hugely appreciate it.
Best wishes
Mike
Please note I haven't confirmed it but I think it's genuine.
Joey Shabadoo
My pronouns are "He", "Him" and "buggerlugs"
Confirmed by BBC - https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-51941987
Fab Foodie
hanging-on in quiet desperation ...
- Location
- Kirton, Devon.
Probably double-blind and peer-reviewed! Well you can't argue with science....
Mugshot
Cracking a solo.
Ah, thank you, I'd seen it on a Facebook local news post, yours is a little more reliable.
randynewmanscat
Veteran
- Location
- Vienne, Poitou-Chrentes
No this only started late last week with the announcement of the schools and colleges closure to begin Monday. Then on Sunday after seeing big groups of sun worshippers gathering in Parisian parks the government closed the parks. Only on Tuesday did the real restrictions kick in after the announcement of travel restrictions. In 14 days they will know if they have bought some time.
