1/ Thread đŸ§”: Gaslighters out in force today as a small group of MPs and lobbyists use the media to try pushing the UK down the GBD route.

Worryingly looks like we are about to repeat our mistakes by not addressing transmission in schools. https://twitter.com/karamballes/status/1247678149778866178?s=19
2/ Look at how the debate is being framed.
Zero Covid is being depicted as an unachievable fantasy only supported by scientists on the fringe.
How many times have I heard "they never want to end lockdown" said by skeptics today?
No one's really calling for that
3/ Schools debate is a good example of how the skeptics fight straw men rather than the substance of the issue.
Call for additional safety measures to get pupils back, get labelled as never wanting schools to open.
Anyone trying to speak sense now has to first battle through..
4/ the false arguments and accusations regarding their real intentions, this cuts down time to discuss real policy consequences, while allowing them to repeat their untruths.

The lack of meaningful opposition doesn't help.
5/ By failing to oppose by not setting out an alternative policy like Zero Covid, Labour have allowed the Covid Recovery Group to act as the main opposition

"Leaks suggest government is planning to __, but the CRG say __"

has been todays narrative,Labours shut out the headlines
6/ The range of policy options the media is offering between CRG's open up as fast as possible and the leaked proposals of Johnson's plan.

I've heard the leaked proposals described as "baby steps" and "overly cautious"

Insane or just reckless, those are our options apparently
7/ We know that if a 3rd wave does arrive after opening up too quickly the government will be too slow to respond again.

By allowing the CRG to set themselves up as the opposition voice Labours failure to provide a real alternative makes a 3rd wave more likely.
8/ Once again we are back to an argument about when schools fully open rather than how they do.

Not enough talk of safety measures, just timelines, nothing learned from former mistakes.

Still claiming transmission isn't an issue, groundhog day https://bylinetimes.com/2021/01/06/how-did-the-government-get-it-so-recklessly-wrong-on-covid-19-children-and-schools/
How Did the Government Get It So Recklessly Wrong on COVID-19, Children and Schools? – Byline Times

Despite evidence showing the risk of teachers catching the Coronavirus in schools and then passing it on to others in the community, the Government has ignored the issue at every turn, says Adam Hamdy

https://bylinetimes.com/2021/01/06/how-did-the-government-get-it-so-recklessly-wrong-on-covid-19-children-and-schools/
9/ One paper today said Johnson is willing to get schools fully open even if it takes RO over 1.
Does suggest GBDs vaccinate vulnerable then let it rip strategy is being adopted.

Are they really going to ignore SAGE again?
10/ While ministers keep saying schools are low transmission risk, SAGE have been saying the opposite for ages, telling government greater mitigations are needed.

A timeline of willful refusal to follow the science

July: SAGE warn about schools https://twitter.com/BylineTimes/status/1359877608612237317?s=19
11/ So in July SAGE were warning that 30 students in poorly ventilated rooms without masks or social distancing would lead to amplifying community transmission leading to spread into vulnerable groups
Worse case scenario was a large 2nd wave in December.. https://twitter.com/dgurdasani1/status/1359433657388306434?s=19
12/ For a while in summer it looked like we would get rotas and maybe masks.

In August the astroturfing skeptic group UsForThem who oppose masks and social distancing in schools had meeting with Johnson and ministers. Parent safety groups were ignored https://bylinetimes.com/2021/01/21/parents-campaign-against-school-closures-receives-pr-support-from-boris-johnson-advisor/
‘Parents’ Campaign Against School Closures Receives PR Support from Boris Johnson Advisor – Byline...

Nafeez Ahmed investigates the opaque USForThem group lobbying against Coronavirus restrictions, and its Conservative Party, Brexit and Pro-Trump connections

https://bylinetimes.com/2021/01/21/parents-campaign-against-school-closures-receives-pr-support-from-boris-johnson-advisor/
13/ UfT claim their meeting with Johnson was vital in preventing safety measures being introduced in September.

Then in August and September Johnson met with RW press barons and key GBD people https://bylinetimes.com/2021/02/11/records-confirm-turning-point-boris-johnson-meeting-with-lockdown-sceptics/
Records Confirm Johnson Met with Lockdown-Sceptics at Key Covid Turning Point – Byline Times

Sam Bright reports on one of the most decisive days of the pandemic, when the Prime Minister defied his advisors and rejected a circuit-breaker lockdown

https://bylinetimes.com/2021/02/11/records-confirm-turning-point-boris-johnson-meeting-with-lockdown-sceptics/
14/ The idea schools are low transmission and that additional safety measures aren't required from schools had already been dismissed by August.

A look at what the scientific advice was in August, all were warning against the September plans https://twitter.com/karamballes/status/1292929284747780102?s=19
15/ Germany reopened their schools in the Summer, infections spread in students and then spread into older age groups.

This is exactly what happened in UK, particularly in the South East where B117 strain first took hold. https://twitter.com/karamballes/status/1296212565295595525?s=19
16/ September saw reassuring buy misleading reporting of a PHE study, this is still being used as evidence schools are safe despite the report saying that as it was carried out during lockdown its findings were relevant to September conditions https://twitter.com/karamballes/status/1298018784104546304?s=19
17/ By October outbreaks were occuring in schools but this wasn't being reported, seemed to be a media blackout on bursting bubbles.

Infection rates were rising fast in the North.
Raab said in US interview that giv expected infections to rise with schools https://twitter.com/karamballes/status/1315067136394625032?s=19
18/ Is in the thread above, but I'll out it here again as I still can't believe he hasn't been questioned on this as it implies he accepted SAGEs warnings and understood the consequences of not listening to them https://twitter.com/CNNnewsroom/status/1306656593371639810?s=19
19/ Yet as outbreaks increased, causing whole year groups to isolate,the governments response wasn't to cut transmission, it was to cut isolations, now only close contacts began to be isolated.

Ed select committee proved pointless due to weak questioning https://twitter.com/karamballes/status/1318300024426668032?s=19
20/ As infections rise NEU calls for schools to be included in a circuit breaker as many SAGE members go on the media to explain we are at risk of a serious second wave.
Labour calls for a circuit breaker, but without schools, ignoring SAGE scientists https://twitter.com/karamballes/status/1322543445345533953?s=19
21/ Paper with more warnings gets put out while the media continue to talk about all the safety measures schools have showing us pictures of socially distanced students wearing masks. https://twitter.com/karamballes/status/1328108997421961218?s=19
22/ They ignored half term, ignored having schools in lockdown 2, and positivity in students continued to escalate, this could be the start of B117 taking hold.

Questions are raised around how risk of educators is being represented, little media attention https://twitter.com/karamballes/status/1330439848868651008?s=19
23/ December, lockdoen 2 clearly didn't work without schools, schools are really struggling, at one point close to a million pupils are isolating.
Talk about moving inset days starts up, proper rearranging Titanic deckchairs stuff. https://twitter.com/karamballes/status/1333856758654263302?s=19
24/ After 3 months of gaslighting Hancock announced transmission in South East is being driven by school age students.

Few days later he tells us transmission is spreading into vulnerable groups.

Then the new strain is announced
25/ We end up with the ridiculous situation of SAGE begging government to start a full lockdown, exponential growth, and a new strain while schools in Tier 4 were threatened with legal action for wanting to close a few days early.
26/ Christmas consisted of rolling coverage of gaslighters. Schools will be fine for a full return in January they tell us, same old studies and misrepresented data still uses now rolled out again https://twitter.com/karamballes/status/1341766657866391561?s=19
27/ NERVTAG paper on B117 strain is released. Sets out clear implications for schools, need to mitigate against aerosols is even more urgent, government declines to even consider masks in classrooms or any other safety measures https://twitter.com/karamballes/status/1344679914084118530?s=19
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