Coronavirus tests: Raab throws Hancock under a bus
Dominic Raab: he opens his mouth… and drops Matt Hancock in the mire.
Brace yourself: the Tory government is about to miss yet another target.
Remember when Health Secretary Matt Hancock said he had set a goal of carrying out 100,000 coronavirus tests a day by the end of April?
Here – refresh your memory:
“I’ve set the goal of a 100,000 tests a day by the end of this month.”
Health Secretary @MattHancock says the pharmaceutical industry has to play its part in a “national effort” to expand coronavirus testing. #bbcqt pic.twitter.com/lK9euYSoI9
— BBC Question Time (@bbcquestiontime) April 2, 2020
And then Dominic Raab took over the daily coronavirus press conference.
Asked to repeat the commitment, he said: “The Health Secretary set out that target.”
That’s buck-passing if ever I heard it.
It suggests that this is accurate:
CONFIRMED:
Government to ramp up excuses for lack of testing and ventilators so as to hit their target of 25000 excuses a day.— David Schneider (@davidschneider) April 2, 2020
It reminds us of previous failures, including the claim that a quarter of a million tests would be carried out every day:
The party of poor numeracy?
250,000 tests a day = 10000
30000 ventilators = 30
50000 nurses = 30000#NumerousClusterFucks— Dellboy – The Original🐟 TeaBoy (@Dellboy29670181) April 1, 2020
And it suggests that more “gibberish” like this may be on the way:
They think we’re all bloody thick, NHS staff must be tested, why exactly did Johnson and Rabb decide to take the test if they feel not necessary.
Absolute disgrace feeding us rubbish. NHS staff cannot afford to have private test their wage rises were capped for 9 years.— Maureen (@becadjue) April 1, 2020
What it doesn’t suggest is that we’re going to see mass testing any time soon. Carole Cadwalladr was right when she commented on the last failure:
Without mass testing, there’s mass dying. Or mass lock-up. Or what currently looks most likely – both.
— Carole Cadwalladr (@carolecadwalla) April 1, 2020
It also suggests that Raab is quietly pushing the discredited “herd immunity” fantasy:
So….if mass testing is not Govt exit strategy only plausible alternatives are 1. Waiting for a vaccine 2.Herd Immunity . Am I missing something ????
— norman smith (@Thehackandhound) April 1, 2020
And it’s all very odd – for one very important reason:
"We have 44 molecular virology labs in the UK, if they were doing 400 tests a day we would be up to Germany levels of testing and that's perfectly feasible"
Anthony Costello – Prof of Global Health @ucl & former director @WHO #R4Todayhttps://t.co/TlVArA71Qg
— BBC Radio 4 Today (@BBCr4today) March 31, 2020
So there’s plenty of capacity for coronavirus testing, but it isn’t happening, despite promises from a senior cabinet member.
Dominic Raab said a mouthful when he handed off the commitment for 100,000 tests to Matt Hancock.
But do you get the feeling he didn’t tell us everything we needed to know?
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i have to say that this is very simple, either start telling the truth or consistently bamble around lying, however when this is over, there needs to be a proper Public enquiry that involves all the tory lies, with criminal actions where needed, when the corona virus issue is at a level where it appears manageable there needs to be a new set of rules for parliament, responsibility, accountability, assessment for role prior to being a candidate for a vote, adherence to strict rules on expenses which should be bought into line with a reasonable figure and not include alcohol, we need drug and alcohol testing, no more lobbying groups, this has to end and due to the distatefull recommendations for the lords this year a separate vetting panel, companies that attain government contract should be held accountable to the contract, where there not keeping to them there should be reciprocal fines that amount to considerable financial penalties that will give them a chance to improve within a timescale and if they don’t meet them a terminating fine worth the value of contract minus current expenditure decided by an outside body. we also should have more respect for everyone, if mp’s cannot do that then they should not be in the role, there plenty of supervision jobs in retail that will take them, go there
just going to pick up on one thing here……….. mainly cos its late n i am tired. but a local Councillor here in west Yorkshire is working like a Trojan trying to get in as many supermarket orders per day as he can and deliver them to those elderly, disabled and vulnerable people who have contacted him for help. via our first conservative MP since 1932 who passed the requests on via another Councillor… this man. needs recognition, not only does he do all the above, he pays for the orders himself and is paid back on delivery. when i asked if he got any expenses for the vast amount of petrol/diesel he must be using, let alone his time. he told me, no he gets nothing for doing the work hes doing, not even for fuel nor does he want it. he us doing it because he loves to help people. he wants no recognition for doing it.
just LOOK at the difference between that man (and thousands of others like him, not all people in top jobs, some just ordinary people living ordinary lives etc. who put themselves at risk daily and use own money to take a block of butter,or a pint of milk or loaf of bread, to a vulnerable person with no thought of recompense.) compared to those in parliament giving in colossal EXPENSES CLAIMS, DOING NOTHING FOR NOTHING………….. I WOULD SAY NO CONTEST……….. OUR LOCAL HEROES WIN HANDS DOWN
We need many more like him ones who don’t consider themselves but others godbless to those who looks after his lambs
I agree with this, that sadly is a rare person, we have two down here who sponsor and help out on a Friday/Saturday food for homeless and taking that out to them as well, I know about this as I helped, however the time and getting back home afterwards without transport and relying on a late night service proved a bit hit and miss, that is part of what I would like to see in any of there roles, that they either do stints to see real world preferably voluntary, If not then during there summer recess they spend that time at the voter’s choice doing community work, then the likes of certain politicians who have such a bad track record policy agenda might have a shock to there system when they spend a month shadowing staff in a medium secure mental health unit and might actually learn something that does not mean dropping a couple of cans of soup of to a foodbank pretending there doing well for a photoshoot and then telling the world that foodbanks are uplifiting, time to go back to grassroots and that means them as well, then they may actually learn to respect volunteers and some fo the complex roles that we have done for nothing, instead of having burke’s like david gauke coming out and saying well volunteer scan stack shelves, which incidently if he repeats that to often this volunteer will hang up his boots and he can pay proper money for what is free as I have a lack of tolerance towards tory idiots like that!!!
All this and a corporate media including the BBC,plus the main opposition party determined not to examine the reality of government policy,as opposed to the spin.
When have they told the truth they are born Pinocchio’s. Fibber liars they can’t help themselves and spending our monies isn’t natural to them has they like it to go to their mates then backhanders back into their pockets spend it on us that’s a no no
in addiction fields we call it normalised behaviour, you lie so much, believe your lies, think everyone else believes your lies, then come unstuck when your called out for lying, the difference is they don’t come unstuck they just carry on doing it, so therefore has hop got a addiction issue, well subsidied bars, there booze cellar and how much they spent on booze yearly, I think there a pretty good clue there somewhere, so is it time for random d/a carried out independently, I think so, after all in those positions there supposed to be running a country not weaving and bobbing and barely able to stand up, maybe we should have a dry parliament, sell of the booze, end the subsidies and give them a basic food allowance in lien with what you can spend as a charity volunteer
So here’s the reality. This so called “government” is no such thing. I don’t mean the ‘” this is a useless govt who can’t run this country at a time of crisis” type of government. I literally mean, it is not a government. Never has been and, never will be. And with the thumping majority Johnson got thry looked set to fulfill their elect3d plan. Which was never governance . Thry have always been a party of administration, and therein lies the difference. They assumed that, with the brexit bonus vote that swept them in to power , all they would have to do was administrate brexit, roll back the state and remove themselves from all responsibility and culpability beyond making the country a tax haven and employers paradise. Governance has never been on their agenda. Now that they have to actually DO something, they are individually being shown up for the shysters, carpetbaggers and charlatans that they are.
When this dreadful situation is over we will need a rethink as to how we want the country run.
Totally agree, we do need a rethink, we need proper capability entrance selection tests
before your allowed to put yourself up for vote, once elected there is a code of conduct training session, part of that will be your responsibilities, the part of responsibility will no longer be parliamentary privilege or someone else fault, it will be yours, you signed it, you agreed to it, your responsible for it, if there any actions legal or otherwise the issue is with the person/persons responsible, then when we have self-harm policies that are pointed out as a example and that minister does nothing about it after being told then he/she can expect a criminal trial with all the outcomes that come with it, if that means a lengthy prison sentence, they got no case to answer they were warned, if your in industry and you made mistakes like this lot did you be sacked, retrospective a ban from parliament should be a ban from any office that holds positions of responsibility. there is not enough accountability, there needs to be, a instant criminal offence for lying needs to be in force, random drug and alcohol testing, if your wobbling about and pissed or high what good are you as a mp, none, rehab for six weeks one chance only, repeat, out you go, time to get tough and make them accountable and that includes advisors, similiarly lobbying should be banned, no interests, if you got declared interests then you should not be allowed to hold office full stop and if you have declared interests and don’t declare them, then it Is a criminal offence, simple really