over 50 should be vaccinated by May

[tim...]

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/05/no-10-distances-itself-cabinet-office-covid-vaccine-schedule

which seems to me to be somewhat later than the original proposal

and somewhat closer the the timetable that I suggested.

I'm the oldest person in my immediate family, and all the rest seem to have
leap-frogged me in the pecking order due to some "job" criteria (none of
them are front line medical staff)

[Roland Perry]

Post by tim...
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/05/no-10-distances-itself-cab
inet-office-covid-vaccine-schedule
which seems to me to be somewhat later than the original proposal
and somewhat closer the the timetable that I suggested.
I'm the oldest person in my immediate family, and all the rest seem to
have leap-frogged me in the pecking order due to some "job" criteria
(none of them are front line medical staff)

To what extent are either of the #1 or Cabinet Office timetables linked
to over-50's being vaccinated by *21 days before* the May election?

[Tweed]

Post by Roland Perry

Post by tim...
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/05/no-10-distances-itself-cab
inet-office-covid-vaccine-schedule
which seems to me to be somewhat later than the original proposal
and somewhat closer the the timetable that I suggested.
I'm the oldest person in my immediate family, and all the rest seem to
have leap-frogged me in the pecking order due to some "job" criteria
(none of them are front line medical staff)

To what extent are either of the #1 or Cabinet Office timetables linked
to over-50's being vaccinated by *21 days before* the May election?

Is there any major reason why the May elections can’t be an entirely postal
affair?

[Recliner]

Post by Tweed

Post by Roland Perry

Post by tim...
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/05/no-10-distances-itself-cab
inet-office-covid-vaccine-schedule
which seems to me to be somewhat later than the original proposal
and somewhat closer the the timetable that I suggested.
I'm the oldest person in my immediate family, and all the rest seem to
have leap-frogged me in the pecking order due to some "job" criteria
(none of them are front line medical staff)

To what extent are either of the #1 or Cabinet Office timetables linked
to over-50's being vaccinated by *21 days before* the May election?

Is there any major reason why the May elections can’t be an entirely postal
affair?

The Royal Mail will probably go on strike.

[m***@round-midnight.org.uk]

Post by Recliner

Post by Tweed

Post by Roland Perry

Post by tim...
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/05/no-10-distances-itself-cab
inet-office-covid-vaccine-schedule
which seems to me to be somewhat later than the original proposal
and somewhat closer the the timetable that I suggested.
I'm the oldest person in my immediate family, and all the rest seem to
have leap-frogged me in the pecking order due to some "job" criteria
(none of them are front line medical staff)

To what extent are either of the #1 or Cabinet Office timetables linked
to over-50's being vaccinated by *21 days before* the May election?

Is there any major reason why the May elections can’t be an entirely postal
affair?

The Royal Mail will probably go on strike.

The Royal Mail is struggling at the moment and I don't they could
support a 100% postal election. Apart from the fact it would probably
need primary legislation to mandate it.

[Mark Goodge]

Post by Roland Perry

Post by tim...
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/05/no-10-distances-itself-cab
inet-office-covid-vaccine-schedule
which seems to me to be somewhat later than the original proposal
and somewhat closer the the timetable that I suggested.
I'm the oldest person in my immediate family, and all the rest seem to
have leap-frogged me in the pecking order due to some "job" criteria
(none of them are front line medical staff)

To what extent are either of the #1 or Cabinet Office timetables linked
to over-50's being vaccinated by *21 days before* the May election?

Is there any major reason why the May elections can’t be an entirely postal
affair?

Technically and legally, none. But it would be logistically difficult,
and probably unpopular.

In any case, the polling stations aren't going to be the real problem,
especially if a lot more people than normal choose to have postal votes
anyway (which they are perfectly entitled to do). Other countries have
successfully held elections during the pandemic, and there's no evidence
that the polling stations have been significant vectors for virus
transmission. That's why the government's current plans (published
today) are to go ahead with the elections but make whatever adjustments
are necessary to have covid-secure polling stations and make it easier
for peple to get a last-minute proxy vote (if, eg, they are having to
self-isolate due to an infectious close contact):

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/may-2021-polls-delivery-plan

The difficult bit will be the count. Normally, this involves a large
number of people working flat out cheek-by-jowl in an enclosed space,
with plenty of other people (candidates, media, official observers, etc)
milling around as well. That's clearly not going to work this time. The
count venues will probably need to be more spacious (the document above
alludes to that where it talks about providing the funding for
alternative venues where necessary), but even that won't necessarily
solve the problem - especially given that the count venues are,
typically, leisure centres, and they tend to be the largest indoor
spaces available outside the large cities. So it may also be that the
count has to proceeed more slowly, over several days instead of just
one, so that fewer staff are required to be working at any one time.

Mark

[Jeremy Double]

Post by Tweed

Post by Roland Perry

Post by tim...
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/05/no-10-distances-itself-cab
inet-office-covid-vaccine-schedule
which seems to me to be somewhat later than the original proposal
and somewhat closer the the timetable that I suggested.
I'm the oldest person in my immediate family, and all the rest seem to
have leap-frogged me in the pecking order due to some "job" criteria
(none of them are front line medical staff)

To what extent are either of the #1 or Cabinet Office timetables linked
to over-50's being vaccinated by *21 days before* the May election?

Is there any major reason why the May elections can’t be an entirely postal
affair?

I’ve requested a permanent postal vote, when the forms came through about a
week ago.

[Roland Perry]

Post by Tweed

Post by Roland Perry

Post by tim...
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/05/no-10-distances-itself-cab
inet-office-covid-vaccine-schedule
which seems to me to be somewhat later than the original proposal
and somewhat closer the the timetable that I suggested.
I'm the oldest person in my immediate family, and all the rest seem to
have leap-frogged me in the pecking order due to some "job" criteria
(none of them are front line medical staff)

To what extent are either of the #1 or Cabinet Office timetables linked
to over-50's being vaccinated by *21 days before* the May election?

Is there any major reason why the May elections can’t be an entirely postal
affair?

You still need people to verify and count the votes (in person).

[Recliner]

Post by Roland Perry

Post by Tweed

Post by Roland Perry

Post by tim...
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/05/no-10-distances-itself-cab
inet-office-covid-vaccine-schedule
which seems to me to be somewhat later than the original proposal
and somewhat closer the the timetable that I suggested.
I'm the oldest person in my immediate family, and all the rest seem to
have leap-frogged me in the pecking order due to some "job" criteria
(none of them are front line medical staff)

To what extent are either of the #1 or Cabinet Office timetables linked
to over-50's being vaccinated by *21 days before* the May election?

Is there any major reason why the May elections can’t be an entirely postal
affair?

You still need people to verify and count the votes (in person).

Yes, and there's *more* admin work to verify and then count postal votes.

[Tweed]

Post by Roland Perry

Post by Tweed

Post by Roland Perry

Post by tim...
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/05/no-10-distances-itself-cab
inet-office-covid-vaccine-schedule
which seems to me to be somewhat later than the original proposal
and somewhat closer the the timetable that I suggested.
I'm the oldest person in my immediate family, and all the rest seem to
have leap-frogged me in the pecking order due to some "job" criteria
(none of them are front line medical staff)

To what extent are either of the #1 or Cabinet Office timetables linked
to over-50's being vaccinated by *21 days before* the May election?

Is there any major reason why the May elections can’t be an entirely postal
affair?

You still need people to verify and count the votes (in person).

The vaccinated over 65s can do that.

[tim...]

Post by Tweed

Post by Roland Perry

Post by tim...
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/05/no-10-distances-itself-cab
inet-office-covid-vaccine-schedule
which seems to me to be somewhat later than the original proposal
and somewhat closer the the timetable that I suggested.
I'm the oldest person in my immediate family, and all the rest seem to
have leap-frogged me in the pecking order due to some "job" criteria
(none of them are front line medical staff)

To what extent are either of the #1 or Cabinet Office timetables linked
to over-50's being vaccinated by *21 days before* the May election?

Is there any major reason why the May elections can’t be an entirely postal
affair?

simply because HMG wish for the electorate to keep their choice (of voting
in person)

[Rupert Moss-Eccardt]

Post by Roland Perry

Post by tim...
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/05/no-10-distances-itself-cab
inet-office-covid-vaccine-schedule
which seems to me to be somewhat later than the original proposal
and somewhat closer the the timetable that I suggested.
I'm the oldest person in my immediate family, and all the rest seem to
have leap-frogged me in the pecking order due to some "job" criteria
(none of them are front line medical staff)

To what extent are either of the #1 or Cabinet Office timetables linked
to over-50's being vaccinated by *21 days before* the May election?

Is there any major reason why the May elections can't be an entirely postal
affair?

There isn't the logistic capability in the country, whether it be
distribution, return, scanning signatures etc.

And there are houses near me, and further afield, with a single letter
box serving hundreds of voters.

Not everyone can use a postal vote.

[Graeme Wall]

Post by Rupert Moss-Eccardt

Post by Roland Perry

Post by tim...
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/05/no-10-distances-itself-cab
inet-office-covid-vaccine-schedule
which seems to me to be somewhat later than the original proposal
and somewhat closer the the timetable that I suggested.
I'm the oldest person in my immediate family, and all the rest seem to
have leap-frogged me in the pecking order due to some "job" criteria
(none of them are front line medical staff)

To what extent are either of the #1 or Cabinet Office timetables linked
to over-50's being vaccinated by *21 days before* the May election?

Is there any major reason why the May elections can't be an entirely postal
affair?

There isn't the logistic capability in the country, whether it be
distribution, return, scanning signatures etc.
And there are houses near me, and further afield, with a single letter
box serving hundreds of voters.

Why would that prevent postal voting?

[Rupert Moss-Eccardt]

Post by Graeme Wall

Post by Rupert Moss-Eccardt

Post by Roland Perry

Post by tim...
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/05/no-10-distances-itself-cab
inet-office-covid-vaccine-schedule
which seems to me to be somewhat later than the original proposal
and somewhat closer the the timetable that I suggested.
I'm the oldest person in my immediate family, and all the rest seem to
have leap-frogged me in the pecking order due to some "job" criteria
(none of them are front line medical staff)

To what extent are either of the #1 or Cabinet Office timetables linked
to over-50's being vaccinated by *21 days before* the May election?

Is there any major reason why the May elections can't be an entirely postal
affair?

There isn't the logistic capability in the country, whether it be
distribution, return, scanning signatures etc.
And there are houses near me, and further afield, with a single letter
box serving hundreds of voters.

Why would that prevent postal voting?

It doesn't prevent it but makes it much, much harder and more prone to
error and fraud, even if just by disenfranchisement

[Arthur Figgis]

Post by Roland Perry

Post by tim...
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/05/no-10-distances-itself-cab
inet-office-covid-vaccine-schedule
which seems to me to be somewhat later than the original proposal
and somewhat closer the the timetable that I suggested.
I'm the oldest person in my immediate family, and all the rest seem to
have leap-frogged me in the pecking order due to some "job" criteria
(none of them are front line medical staff)

To what extent are either of the #1 or Cabinet Office timetables linked
to over-50's being vaccinated by *21 days before* the May election?

Surely a polling station during a local election is an ideal place for
social distancing?

[Mark Goodge]

On Fri, 5 Feb 2021 17:53:31 +0000, Arthur Figgis

Post by Arthur Figgis

Post by Roland Perry

Post by tim...
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/05/no-10-distances-itself-cab
inet-office-covid-vaccine-schedule
which seems to me to be somewhat later than the original proposal
and somewhat closer the the timetable that I suggested.
I'm the oldest person in my immediate family, and all the rest seem to
have leap-frogged me in the pecking order due to some "job" criteria
(none of them are front line medical staff)

To what extent are either of the #1 or Cabinet Office timetables linked
to over-50's being vaccinated by *21 days before* the May election?

Surely a polling station during a local election is an ideal place for
social distancing?

I was once[1] a poll clerk at a polling station in the middle of nowhere
in the Cambridgeshire fens for a local election. When we arrived to open
up, there was one voter waiting for us as he'd decided to vote on his
way to work. We didn't get another voter until 9.30am. The most we had
in the polling station at once was a family of four who all came
together. The average interval between voters was about 20 minutes. It
was the most boring day of my life.

[1] Well, twice, actually.

Mark

[JGD]

in the middle of nowhere in the Cambridgeshire fens

As a 2000% OT aside, I've often wondered where that is. My best guess is
Christchurch or Tipps End, with Benwick as a runner-up. Manea doesn't
score badly either and feels more cut-ff than most (other than by rail,
but not sure how many trains a day it has nowadays), but that's more
looking from the Ely direction - it's actually not that far from
Chatteris or Wimblington.

Shippea Hill could be a contender but there's surely not enough
habitations around to justify a polling station and only just in Cambs
by 500m or so.

[Mark Goodge]

Post by JGD

in the middle of nowhere in the Cambridgeshire fens

As a 2000% OT aside, I've often wondered where that is. My best guess is
Christchurch or Tipps End, with Benwick as a runner-up. Manea doesn't
score badly either and feels more cut-ff than most (other than by rail,
but not sure how many trains a day it has nowadays), but that's more
looking from the Ely direction - it's actually not that far from
Chatteris or Wimblington.

It was Black Horse Drove, at the village hall. Here:

https://goo.gl/maps/pNPaUSygpGvxLnS19

I was actually a poll clerk there at two (consecutive) local elections.
The second time, the hall had recently closed down (it has since
re-opened) and the toilet block had already been demolished in
anticipation of full redevelopment into a house. The presiding officer
and I were assured that arrangements had been made for us to use the
house next door (that the hall forms a semi-detached property with) if
we needed the toilet. Unfortunately, the residents were out all day! So
we just went behind the hedge at the back of the hall.

Post by JGD
Shippea Hill could be a contender but there's surely not enough
habitations around to justify a polling station and only just in Cambs
by 500m or so.

Shippea Hill was my local station when I was a teenager.

Mark

[JGD]

Post by Mark Goodge
https://goo.gl/maps/pNPaUSygpGvxLnS19

Ah yes, I can imagine that feels quite cut-off there. Very close to the
The Ship pub (as was) actually but the wrong side of the river and no
bridge. Very frustrating unless you had a boat or fancied a swim!

Was going to say that they could have sent the residents to Ten Mile
Bank to vote but I guess that's actually in Norfolk, not Cambs. (TMB the
only place I know with a just couple of dozen houses, one (pretty quiet)
crossroads, but traffic lights!)

[Marland]

Post by Mark Goodge
On Fri, 5 Feb 2021 17:53:31 +0000, Arthur Figgis

Post by Arthur Figgis

Post by Roland Perry

Post by tim...
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/05/no-10-distances-itself-cab
inet-office-covid-vaccine-schedule
which seems to me to be somewhat later than the original proposal
and somewhat closer the the timetable that I suggested.
I'm the oldest person in my immediate family, and all the rest seem to
have leap-frogged me in the pecking order due to some "job" criteria
(none of them are front line medical staff)

To what extent are either of the #1 or Cabinet Office timetables linked
to over-50's being vaccinated by *21 days before* the May election?

Surely a polling station during a local election is an ideal place for
social distancing?

I was once[1] a poll clerk at a polling station in the middle of nowhere
in the Cambridgeshire fens for a local election. When we arrived to open
up, there was one voter waiting for us as he'd decided to vote on his
way to work. We didn't get another voter until 9.30am. The most we had
in the polling station at once was a family of four who all came
together. The average interval between voters was about 20 minutes. It
was the most boring day of my life.
[1] Well, twice, actually.
Mark

The couple who regularly do ours in a similar quiet situation knit, I’m not
sure what he makes but the wife makes long scarves , she has made quite a
few over the past 4 years.

GH