Sorry? That simply doesn't reflect the evidence.

Supermarket pricing is driven by what customers will pay. If that wasn't the case then why are the likes of Lidl and Aldi taking market share by offering lower prices?

I appreciate that you feel obliged to take every possible opportunity to slag off the business sector but this time you're only focussing on a small part of the issue.

The most reliable indicator of the mortality rate of Covid-19 is to look at the incremental jump in overall reported deaths. That does mean waiting a couple of weeks for the data but it's streets ahead of the daily headline number, which is little more than a hash total, given it sweeps up previous days/weeks into a single number.

Hugh Osmond, owner of Punch Taverns, making the point on lunchtime radio that only 11 people under the age of 45 have died of Covid (I haven't checked his figures). No prizes for guessing his agenda, but does he have a point - less lockdown for the young ones and stricter lockdown for the oldsters?

EDIT Osmond's figures are wrong not to say definitely optimistic. See Brian's post on next page for accurate figures

And yet it still comes nowhere near to backing up your scaremongering description of what the research on the mutations of this virus has shown so far.

What about significant damage to long-term health including organ damage?

This focus on death in the media as if it were the only thing that mattered/can be used to judge the danger of this thing is perplexing.

I think that is fake news.  As far as I can see in England alone 108 people under the age of 40 have died. Between 40 and 59 there have been 1023 deaths, some of those people would be under 45. In addition there will have been some deaths in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales to add on.

https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2020/04/COVID-19-all-announced-deaths-17-April-2020.xlsx

No. i suspect you meant me. You love to take a snip and a snipe and distort. I was out there in full support on the first night, and every other out of a feeling of loyalty. If you feel me saying that I'm not always comfortable with that especially knowing how hypocritical some of them are is in someway a "dig" at the NHS workers then you seriously don't get it. 

Italy by contrast only had 47 deaths of people under the age of 40, from a much higher overall total:

https://www.statista.com/statistics/1105061/coronavirus-deaths-by-region-in-italy/

. Suggests one of two possibilities:

• our treatment isn't as good


• our under 40 population isn't in as good a shape and has more obesity/drink and drug issues/underlying conditions

Agreed Brian. Also, what we don’t know if things were left to let rip, lots of issues could crop up that we not yet aware off. 
This punch tavern guy sounds like another Tim Martin worries about his millions.

Sounds attractive doesn't it? A get-out-of-jail-free card for younger people.

Yet we have no idea how many asymptomatic younger carriers will be spreading the virus and at what subsequent cost.

Coronavirus clue? Most cases aboard U.S. aircraft carrier are symptom-free

The possibility that the coronavirus spreads in a mostly stealthy mode among a population of largely young, healthy people showing no symptoms could have major implications for U.S. policy-makers, who are considering how and when to reopen the economy.

Roughly 60 percent of the over 600 sailors who tested positive so far have not shown symptoms of COVID-19, the potentially lethal respiratory disease caused by the coronavirus, the Navy says. The service did not speculate about how many might later develop symptoms or remain asymptomatic.

“With regard to COVID-19, we’re learning that stealth in the form of asymptomatic transmission is this adversary’s secret power,” said Rear Admiral Bruce Gillingham, surgeon general of the Navy.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-usa-military-sympt/coronavirus-clue-most-cases-aboard-us-aircraft-carrier-are-symptom-free-idUSKCN21Y2GB

Yes, another self serving dick head !

Thanks for the corrected figures, Brian. Shall we be charitable to Hugh and say he got his decimal point wrong? Maybe not.

But I note that the 108 deaths under 40 contrasts with the 7003 over 60s. So to be devil's advocate, does he have a point after all?

Just seen this on social media, and I have had something similar in my head for a while, along the lines of us only needing the COVIDiots to reach herd immunity for the R0 number to go down much faster. Could be interesting? It really wouldn't surprise me if this thing burnt out somehow before a vaccine was available.

(Apologies for the broken English, BTW)

Yes Carol, and 50% higher. Macron has voiced his concerns what information is coming out of China and if they can be trusted, seems not. There seems to be caveats on most stats, even tests don't work properly in some cases. 

he has a point that it's definitely more lethal the older you are

But if he's angling that somehow that means lockdown should reopen by age group he's tulipout of luck, because society isn't separated by age group. Families live together, parents with young children, older parents with older children, children and students are taught by older people, people at work cover all age ranges - once one age group starts mixing and bringing it back home, into work, into school etc it's the same as everyone being out and about

It was obvious he didn't mean you (he meant Q).

I wasn't "scaremongering", I was simply drawing attention to problems getting a viable vaccine up and running.

In the meantime, it appears that a "cure" is already in prospect for the worst affected patients, if Remdesivir continues to work as in the trials:

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/news/video-leak-boosts-hope-of-coronavirus-drug-jl397vtbf

"...

Dr Mullane said that after starting the drug, many patients’ fevers had reduced quickly. Some were taken off ventilators the next day and most did not need the full course of 10 days. According to Stat, she later confirmed that the leaked footage was real.

Remdesivir is an antiviral drug designed to interfere with some of the processes used by viruses to replicate. In theory, it should work for a broad range of viruses, and trials to learn whether it can be repurposed it for use in coronavirus have been a priority.

..."

The good news is that on Monday, our company will be expanding to additional premises, that have been temporarily donated, where we will be solely producing Covid visors.  I’m still working from home though. 

More footage of the westminster 'party'

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qe1qQsdKnuY

This also included Cressida dick. There are small children and babies here, and people are literally in physical contact.

This is absolutely shameful.

I'm sure he meant to take a dig at me, but the truth is many people on here (including, I presume yourself) hold the two non contradictory ideas that:

a) Clapping for NHS workers is a nice gesture

b) Doing it in a way that makes it more likely you will end up meeting them is f*cking stupid.

Then again those that tried to draw some kind of analogy with my 5am runs where I stay a full 50m away from anyone else probably don't get it.

Its also rather insulting to NHS workers, many of whom, will also share my opinion that what happened at Westminster bridge last night was indefensible. A way to respect the kind of person that works 12 hour shifts in awful conditions, at risk from a deadly virus, with half their collegues off sick and PPE gauging into their skin is not to make their workload even worse.

Interesting notion, but doesn't modern mass transit negate that idea? The pictures from a few weeks ago showed tube and trains packed with people - many of these people could be natural loners who don't go around with a "hail fellow well met" attitude, but they are still packed in like sardines when on the way to and from work.