There was an interesting debate on channel 4 last night with virologists and other such experts. They were confident that we would have a viable vaccine by September but that it would not be available to the public until 2021.

 This is the Oxford Uni  Trial i presume with Prof Sarah Gilbert?

Irony.

Yes.

Rightly or wrongly, in other parts of Europe Britain is increasingly seen as an example of how not to do things. My wife was speaking to friends in Poland last night and they'd read reports about the "horrific" situation in the UK. Also, in The Times this morning: 

Der Spiegel in Germany warned yesterday that seeking to copy the Swedish model could result in an altogether worse fate: “If you want Sweden, you could wind up getting Britain.” [source: The Times]

Human trials of the Oxford Uni COVID-19 vaccine start today. In the US and China they have been underway for a month. In Germany they start next week. Imperial College also due to start very soon. I'll wager that none of these will turn out to be effective.

People are dying prematurely of non Covid related illnesses - strokes, heart attacks, cancer treatment being stopped. Mental health and self harm, suicide. 

Eventually peoples teeth will start falling out as well. and cases of glaucoma and cataract are not being treated. Are we going to let people go blind? Whats the point of living if you cant see!

This lockdown has to end

I need a haircut and I live alone so its going to be a struggle to do it myself. 

More suggestions that smokers could be at lower risk from corona virus.

French researchers plan to give nicotine patches to coronavirus patients and frontline workers after lower rates of infection were found among smokers - but say it's NOT a reason to take up cigarettes

French researchers are planning to trial whether nicotine patches will help prevent - or lessen the effects of - the deadly coronavirus.

Evidence is beginning to show the proportion of smokers infected with coronavirus is much lower than the rates in the general population.

Scientists are now questioning whether nicotine could stop the virus from infecting cells, or if it may prevent the immune system overreacting to the infection.

Doctors at a major hospital in Paris - who also found low rates of smoking among the infected - are now planning to give nicotine patches to COVID-19 patients.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-8246939/French-researchers-plan-nicotine-patches-coronavirus-patients-frontline-workers.html

Gilberts vaccine is proven to work in animals so it should work in humans. Problem is it wont be available for pleb use until next year, by which time Corona would have done its worst anyway

Don't tell Trump

US Tobacco farms are going to love this. I do like the smell and taste of fresh tobacco and I used to chew it as a child. My father was a big pipe smoker.

I still have his old pipe, I may fire it up again!

I was in the same predicament as you - I last had a haircut during the Christmas holidays. I'd been hemming and hawing in February (as I usually wait 8 to 10 weeks), decided to put it off, then came down with that mild flu-like thing (so obviously wasn't going to go out). Then the lockdown started...

So I bought some clippers from Amazon, set them to 13mm, I think it was, and set to it... it's worked, as although it'll be a bit uneven it's not noticeable due to the length of hair.

In other words - you can do it, just don't go for a really short style!

I would still much rather have a proper cut, mind you...

The truth is now starting to come out about the length of time virus control measures may need to be in place. For vulnerable groups, this means a choice between sticking with it or accepting a substantially raised risk of death. I'm not sure it's the case that we, "can't tell them".

It seems to me that this is a question vulnerable groups will have to ask themselves. Do we accept lock-down or do we accept the mortality risk?

The problem for the government is very different. In recent years they have made de-funding services and assistance to vulnerable groups a central plank of policy. A disease which preferentially takes the old, sick, poor and minority groups must seem awfully convenient and too good an opportunity to miss. Their position will be driven by ideology rather than empathy or compassion and so, as usual, they will be looking for ways to do the very minimum whilst evading responsibility for the outcome.

They are always sold out of clippers in Tesco and Boots. They have beard trimmers. Would that work?

I don't do online shopping as I am worried about fraud. I never use my debit card and I always pay in cash, I'm so paranoid!

UPDATE: 2000 complaints to @Ofcom about me, 21,000 liking my response. Thank you Britain. https://t.co/hCuK4gRrF5

— *****Morgan (@piersmorgan) April 22, 2020

Alison Pearson (smart): smoking seems to offer some protection against covid. Tougher lungs!

Systematic review (dumb science): Smokers more likely to have severe symptoms, be admitted to ICU and die.

This is why we need scientists, not chancers. pic.twitter.com/JZ44ECQXsm

— Dr Benjamin Janaway (@drjanaway) April 23, 2020

Fancies his chances at 67 does he ?  I suppose if he doesn't chain-smoke or is a "fatso" he may be OK.

Much more preferable to treat Covid-19 in the short term with nicotine and die of lung cancer in the longer term 

I think that if proved successful, Sarah Gilbert is hoping that the vaccine she & her colleagues at  xford Uni are working on will be ready for September/October.

That will be a big ask though, but good luck to them. We need some hope to cling onto at the moment.

Excellent stuff. Who wouldn't look at the world's response to Covid19 & conclude that the best place for the UK to be is in Donald Trump's pocket? https://t.co/jfKE9y6fN2

— James O'Brien (@mrjamesob) April 23, 2020

FWIW, Whitty was very dismissive of the chance of any vaccine being ready for public use this year.

ROFL. 

That's priceless coming from someone who gets so agitated over the concept of 'free speech', which is also not a 'real problem'

I guess he has to exercise much caution in what he says, in view of his public role. The public would be very quick to criticise him were he to say that a vaccine was likely before then end of this year and then that ultimately didn't happen.

Not sure beard trimmers would have enough heft for the job! They won't have the "guards" needed for a longer cut even if they were powerful enough.

I bought these,

https://smile.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07M8NJK8C

...but the price has more than doubled since then!

Well he wasn't exactly cautious when he said the chance was incredibly small. You could argue that if a vaccine is available by the end of the year then he has potentially opened himself up to a lot of criticism (although people may not care that much about that sort of stuff if a vaccine truly is available).

Anyway, just his opinion, was surprised that he was so dismissive.

A private company in Sussex claims to be as well advanced as the Oxford group in developing a vaccine

https://www.stabilitech.com/ and https://www.stabilitech.com/orapro-covid-19/

They say they are using the same techniques as were successful for a vaccine against the zika virus. In particular, because their vaccine is absorbed via the mucous system (which of course is where corona virus gains an entry) it can be formulated as a pill and taken at home, thus ensuring a speedy and widespread distribution.

I don't know whether they really are on to something, or just hoping for government largesse to keep their research department going.