COVID-19 Coronavirus and other virus UK and World News Update 7th July 2023
World COVID Statistics: 691,207,603 officially reported cases and 6,898,266 losses of life.
Happy birthday to the NHS!
On Wednesday the UK NHS was 75 years old, and so was the first baby born in their care. Most of us in the UK have lived entire lives without fear of financial ruin because we got poorly or had an accident. We can ring an ambulance, book an appointment with a GP, become pregnant or turn up at A&E without having to worry if we can afford it. That is a very precious thing, and it has been underfunded and squeezed for a long time. In order that the NHS care for us, we really needed to take better care of the NHS. Thank you to anyone who has ever worked for the NHS.
Yesterday the UK Government lost their legal battle to keep some of Boris and his mates' WhatsApp messages and notebooks secret from the COVID inquiry. They argued that some of it is 'irrelevant', and the High Court decided the COVID inquiry can be the judge of that. I think the Government are out of legal options now - they've got to hand it all over by 4pm Monday.
(For reference, the Christmas party video with catered snacks, flirtatious dancing and shiny paper hats is amongst things previously deemed irrelevant by our Government.)
All this talk of criminal behaviour hasn't gone unnoticed by the Metropolitan Police, who have already investigated Parliamentary lockdown breaches and handed out fines, and don't like being made to look like idiots when damning evidence they'd been told was deleted or 'accidentally dropped into the North sea' suddenly reappears (most notably that party video with the dancing, silly hats and catered food).
The Met have opened 2 new investigations. Boris will be pleased he doesn't get a mention this time, because he wasn't invited to Shaun Bailey's 'wannabeLondonmayor' Christmas party, or Baroness Jenkin's birthday party.
Fight's on. Sue Gray, who was in charge of the independent 'Partygate' investigation into whether or not UK MP's spent lockdown ignoring rules on gathering (they did), resigned in May and will start working for the Labour Party in September. An independent review said that's okay, but a review by the Cabinet Office says she's broken the Civil Service Code - because she started discussing the job before she resigned.
Understandably, many tories who have just been found guilty would like nothing better than to spoil her day, and she was a bit silly there - but then how do you get offered a job and resign from your current job before you've discussed it? Whatever happens, it won't change the facts, and they'll still be lying criminals. Best of luck with the next bunch of power-hungry millionaires...
Awww, remember Captain Sir Tom Moore. There's a story full of good feelings, as long as you stop at the '100 laps of the garden' part. Bear in mind that The Charity Commission is already looking into the Captain Tom Foundation, because it turned out the woman in charge (his daughter) was paying herself a very nice £100,000 wage, and employing her own companies to do work. Nice.
Now it transpires that (as I understand it) 'the Captain Tom Foundation' put in a planning application for an L shaped building next to Sir Tom's daughter's house. It was accepted, and later on amendments were submitted (as is not unusual during a build), only they changed the entire plan to be a circular building featuring a spa pool... Town planners have ordered the building be demolished, and the Charities Commission have a whole new investigation.
Donations to the charity have been put on hold for now, and we are reassured that the original £38m Tom raised definitely went to NHS Charities Together.
Locally acquired mosquito-borne malaria has returned to the USA. Last seen in 2003, to date 4 cases have been confirmed in Florida and 1 in Texas.
The US CDC remind locals that: "Despite these cases, the risk of locally acquired malaria remains extremely low in the United States."
Worldwide there has been a big jump in the number of children and adolescents being diagnosed with Diabetes, specifically Type 1 Diabetes. A recent study by University of Toronto, which pooled together information from 42 other studies, found a really significant jump during the first year of the pandemic (up 13% on pre-pandemic), which was then massively surpassed the following year up 27% on pre-pandemic).
The big questions are 'why?' - what caused this? - and 'how the heck are current provisions going to cope with the extra youngsters who need Diabetes care?'.
On 23rd June, in response to a Freedom Of Information request, the US Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) released “The Potential Links Between the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) and the Origin of the COVID-19 Pandemic” report.
The report conclusion was that there was nothing being intentionally researched or created which could develop into SARS-COV-2.
The WIV had been in trouble several times over recent years for not showing enough caution. They were studying several kinds of live and deceased animals, and various animal coronavirus, but nothing close enough to original SARS-COV-2. The report suggests the most likely scenario is that a lab worker was infected naturally by an animal during the course of their work, and unknowingly began the pandemic.
Seems plausible. Airlift exotic and usually not-very-friendly-with-humans creatures to your place of work. Don't wear an adequate mask or sing happy birthday to the end when you wash your hands. Voila, worldwide pandemic.
The World Health Organisation last week released the results of a study, which found diet sweeteners don't help you lose weight and keep it off. It's inexact science, because there are so many variable lifestyle choices between people, but our bodies just don't react the same to imitations.
In a couple of weeks Reuters report that they'll announce Aspartame may be a cause of Cancer. This has been general knowledge for at least 30 years, but again, incredibly difficult to prove. It appears to be a cumulative thing over the lifetime of the person, and more information is expected mid-month.
Don't panic, it's no more dangerous than it was last week. What will happen is that fizzy and sugary drinks, and other products which rely on Aspartame are likely to very swiftly make changes in order to keep worried cunsumers. Some products have already dropped Aspartame - including Tango and (according to The Independent) many of the supermarket own brands.
In the UK it is National Barbecue Week. The Food Standards Agency would like to remind you of the 4 C's:
CLEAN your hands, equipment & surfaces thoroughly
CHILLED foods need to stay cold (ice packs under plates and shade are handy) and shouldn't be out of the fridge for longer than 4 hours
COOK food in line with its guide for time & temperature (simply cremating the outside, because you were too impatient to wait for the coals to turn white, doesn't count).
CROSS-CONTAMINATION should be avoided - keep food that's yet to be cooked (especially meat) well away from anything that's ready to put in your mouth (e.g. don't get raw burger juice on your cooked burgers or your buns).
It is the weekend again, and it promises weather - extreme heat, sun, floods, thunderstorms, its all there. Be sensible and safe. If you know you are at risk of flood, be prepared... and whatever happens, don't forget to treat yourself to something nice. You've made it such a long way, you've definitely earned it.
Keep An Eye On The Forecast, Don't Overheat, Save The NHS.
Some people. They look like numbers here, but they are all people.
Country / Officially Reported Cases / Losses of life (Worldometer):
USA 107,352,160 / 1,168,485
Brazil 37,682,660 / 704,159
India 44,994,407 / 531,910
Russia 22,963,688 / 399,649
Mexico 7,633,355 / 334,336
UK 24,636,637 / 227,524
Peru 4,507,896 / 220,695
Italy 25,897,801 / 190,868
Germany 38,428,685 / 174,352
France 40,138,560 / 167,642
Sources:
Charlie Mackesy image can be found here: all profits going to NHS Charities Together.
Images
NHS
https://twitter.com/RishiSunak/status/1676522502556663808?t=5iSQxHxOEZRJN1yfSJ9Nbw&s=09
The austerity measures put in place in 2010 blah blah. Well, let me tell you a story, about a woman who went to her doctor in 2010 with a pencil sized hole in her stomach muscles and was told "the NHS don't operate on hernias any more". (Yeah, it was a shock to me too.) She had an operation for "stomach pain" 2 years later... in 2023 she had to have her entire abdominal wall rebuilt (yes, that was me).
NHS
NHS at 75: dire warnings it's unlikely to survive until 100 – what needs to change?
https://f7td5.app.goo.gl/E2Wc7M
https://www.upday.com/uk/nhs-turns-75-timeline-of-the-services-biggest-milestones-in-healthcare
Achievements Images
Plans to help it survive
https://twitter.com/DrAmirKhanGP/status/1674668737562025984?t=pGEJF5fOoGD7ljg3_y0ShQ&s=09
Partygate
Police reopen partygate investigation
https://f7td5.app.goo.gl/DzZ46F
https://news.sky.com/story/police-reopening-investigation-and-launch-fresh-probe-into-partygate-allegations-12914924
Sue Gray
https://www.upday.com/uk/sue-gray-broke-civil-service-code-over-contact-with-labour-party-government-says?utm_source=upday&utm_medium=referral
Kids diabetes
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-66054946
Capn Tom
https://www.upday.com/uk/your-morning-briefing-july-6
https://www.upday.com/uk/planners-order-demolition-of-pool-and-building-at-home-of-captain-toms-daughter
Lab leak
Malaria
Aspartame
https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/whos-cancer-research-agency-say-aspartame-sweetener-possible-carcinogen-sources-2023-06-29/
National Barbeque Week
Charlie Mackesy image can be found here: all profits going to NHS Charities Together.
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