Beware – here be EU Commissioners
It’s a grim start to the week. Nothing matters – not Brexit, not the Budget, not even the weather – only the coronavirus epidemic. So let’s see how the fabulous EU is coping with this epidemic. After all, they’ve told their citizens via Ms vdLeyen that Brussels was going to be ‘strong’ and coordinate strategic responses and all that jazz.
Well, here we are, with case numbers rising everywhere and the death toll rising as well. Italy is worst hit, according to this report, with nearly 400 deaths as of yesterday. Whole regions are now put in quarantine there, just as in China. Here at home, with supermarkets rationing online food orders and the government going to talk with them today, there’s also this:
“Forecasters have warned that the quarantine in northern Italy could lead to a shortage of fresh fruit and vegetables as key supply routes are affected.” (paywalled link)
No more ‘Five-a-Day’, is it? Ah well … but surely the mighty EU has other member states where fresh fruit and vegetables are being grown for export? Meanwhile, I’ve taken a long look at those EU’s official sites addressing the coronavirus epidemic. After all, they surely must have better advice and strategies than our government, after Brexit, right?
In the first instance, one can go to the EU’s Commission official home page (here). There’s a lovely yellow button right at the top, linking to their ‘response’. When you go there, you’ll firstly and certainly most importantly see the names of those five Commissioners who are making up that “EU Response Team”. Then there’s a whole list of links to articles which anyone can find anyway, nothing to do with the EU, and then, lower down there’s this:
“The role of the Commission is mainly to support Member States in addressing the crisis, providing recommendations on a common course of action. The Commission wants to avoid Member States taking uncoordinated or even contradictory measures that ultimately undermine common efforts to fight the outbreak. Coordination and recommendations are therefore necessary in the areas of public health, but also transport, border control, internal markets and trade. The ARGUS crisis coordination mechanism of the Commission has been activated and the Crisis Coordination Committee meets regularly to synergise the action of all the relevant departments and services of the Commission and of the EU agencies.” (link)
Phew – they’ve ‘activated’ a ‘mechanism’ and are coordinating! Thank God for that! I’m sure the Italians will be well pleased … ! Should you want to know what the EU has actually been doing, go here. The information on that site is dated 24th of February, so you can estimate how wonderfully urgent this Brussels response is:
“The European Commission is working on all fronts to support efforts to tackle the COVID-19 outbreak. This includes ongoing coordination with Member States to share information, assess needs and ensure a coherent EU-wide response. The Commission is also […] supporting China with emergency medical supplies to tackle the outbreak at its source.” (link)
How generous of Brussels to support China … Delving further into that site we find this amazing statement:
“4) To boost global preparedness, prevention and containment of the virus, new funding worth €232 million will be allocated to different sectors, namely:
– €114 million will support the World Health Organization (WHO), in particular the global preparedness and response global plan. This intends to boost public health emergency preparedness and response work in countries with weak health systems and limited resilience. Part of this funding is subject to the agreement of the EU budgetary authorities.
– €15 million are planned to be allocated in Africa, including to the Institute Pasteur Dakar, Senegal to support measures such as rapid diagnosis and epidemiological surveillance.
– €100 million will go to urgently needed research related to diagnostics, therapeutics and prevention, including €90 million through the Innovative Medicines Initiative, a partnership between the EU and the pharmaceutical industry.” (link)
Yay the EU – ever so generous with our money, world-wide! You’ve not forgotten that we’re still paying them Danegeld, I hope. I cannot resist quoting the following paragraphs, showing the EU at its best: halo-creating, mutual back-slapping, praising themselves for doing what they ought to be doing anyway:
“Member States continuously inform the Commission and share information regarding their levels of preparedness. According to the information provided by the national authorities, there is a strong overall level of preparedness with countries having response measures in place to provide treatment for the cases in the EU and to mitigate any further transmission within and into the EU.” (link)
And then reality hit, in Italy first and foremost. Remember, this EU site was set up on the 24th of February, and the urgency with which Brussels has been addressing this outbreak can be savoured here:
“On 13 February, an extraordinary EPSCO Health Council brought together all Member States at a political level to discuss and coordinate measures to limit the spread of the COVID-19 outbreak and further preparedness measures to be considered for the future.” (link)
So that’s all right then – from the 13th of February to today, 9th of March, not much has really happened except meetings producing statements, it seems. Unsurprisingly, the rest of the site describes how Brussels is meeting with other supranational organisations and how generally everybody is well prepared. Yes, really!
There’s another EU entity concerned with this epidemic, the ECDC. They seem to be a bit more factual, but are still given to EU waffle:
“The ECDC provides technical support for the EU-level response to disease threats. It produces rapid risk assessments and epidemiological updates; and, together with the European Commission, can provide outbreak response in support of countries or international organisations. In the context of COVID-19, the role of the Commission and of the ECDC is to provide risk assessments and guidance. To support public health preparedness in the EU Member States, ECDC publishes daily epidemiological updates for the situation worldwide. ECDC also provides support on the ground to assess the situation and look at what further measures might be taken as events unfold.” (link)
Shouldn’t the ECDC support EU member states first, rather than international organisations? Mind you, I’m sure they’ve worked hand-in-glove with the Italian government! Next though, look at the page ‘Daily Risk assessment’, dated 8am, 8th March, where you’ll find the following headings – I’m not going to quibble about the content of their assessment:
“The risk of acquiring the disease for people from the EU/EEA and the UK travelling/resident in areas with no cases, […].” – “The risk for people from the EU/EEA and the UK travelling/resident in areas with more widespread local transmission […]” (link)
Note well: contrary to the wails of Remainers, we’re still a member of this particular organisation. We’re not condemned to be a lonely outpost, abandoned because of Brexit, left helpless in the face of the epidemic, unable to do anything
I’ll refrain from assessing the actual value of the EU’s ‘response’. It sends shivers down my back when I reflect that Macron wants an EU Army, to stand against Putin. By the time the EU Commissioners would have met and formulated a response, Putin would already be in Brussels – and Paris.
And what is our government doing? Here’s a quote from an article in the DT published early today:
“The UK Government on Sunday night insisted checks at airports for passengers on arrival were not necessary because airline crew were monitoring the health of passengers during flights from Italy. They added that checks were no use because the flight time is between two or three hours and the disease can incubate for 120 hours so “almost all cases will be missed”.“ (paywalled link)
Well, you decide if that’s a common-sense approach or more like a CYA (old meaning) one, the same going for this one:
“A Government source said: “The evidence is clear: temperature checks are not effective. Instead, we have a clinically-informed, evidence-driven approach to identify those at risk and take the necessary action to keep the public safe. […] Public Health England announced on Sunday night that anyone returning from the affected parts of northern Italy should go into self-isolation for two weeks, even if they show no symptoms.” (paywalled link)
Switzerland, bordering Italy, has not yet closed that border for economic reasons. Many of those living in the Tessin are commuting to work in Lombardy, one of the now quarantined regions.
Meanwhile, Ambrose Evans-Pritchard has a particularly deep ‘gloom-and-doom’ assessment in the DT today, but some of the points he makes are worth considering:
“The world’s geopolitical order will be unrecognisable once Covid-19 has done its worst. […] Those Western democratic governments that have been most complacent or incompetent will be torn to shreds by unforgiving electorates. Social media will see to that. Covid-19 is turning into a strategic contest between the social control model of China’s Communist Party and the unruly, free-spirited pluralism of the West. How that comparison plays out will shape the global order in the 21st Century. In this country, Brexit scarcely matters right now. […] Boris Johnson will be judged on whether or not his administration allows avoidable decimation of the elderly – and the not so elderly – and whether the National Health Service buckles in catastrophic institutional failure.” (paywalled link)
So will we let the Left rampage on social media, blaming ‘Toree Austeritee’, or will we ourselves see to it that common sense prevails over the ‘MeMeMe’ attitude which empties the shelves of supermarkets or orders so much from online grocery stores that they need to ration items?
Will we finally start standing up to the ghastly metropolitan attitude of ageism where those inside the Westminster Bubble secretly seem to think that ‘culling’ all of us who are over 60 is probably a ‘good thing’ because it’ll get rid of all us Brexit voters?
We’ll have to wait and see – so my advice, as always, is to take care, to take precautions, and to bloody well
KBO!
Vivian, is this item meant to be informative or a script for a comedian ? – The EU is throwing some money around the world to assist in combatting this virus. – The last time I checked, Italy was a member of the EU and the news would indicate that they are in need of real assistance right now ! – Also isn’t the EU supposed to assist or at least encourage trade for its members ? – If this is not so, then just what is the point of the EU ?
Many Thanks Vivian for giving me a chuckle with this item, but it does rather blow a hole through the ‘thinking’ (?) of the EU, and their ability with what could be a crises for Europe ! ….. and they have the cheek to be trying to tell the UK what it is necessary for us to do !
Now if we could arrange for our Senior Civil Servants in the Home Office to go to work in Brussels, at their rates of pay, we know that they would certainly fit in, as the HO is currently our most useless error prone Crown Office. – We would be shot of them and able to rebuild the HO, and the Commission would welcome pre-bent ‘workers’ that have the same mind-set as them !
It’s involuntary comedy – the EU is quite serious. Their ‘bureaucrat-speak’ is astounding! Now imagine such paragraphs read aloud by M Barnier – they’ll sound suitably impressive!
Actually Viv, well I believe anyway, our government has said we do not want to continue in the ECDC after this year. So oh dear, as you say, poor Britain will be left in the cold outside this wonderful institution.
Aren’t the Evil Empire doing well (not) against the Corvid threat!
I must admit though I’m beginning to think we could have done better with screening at airports. It has been brought in through Heathrow and now Manchester airport. But there again it could have come through the Channel Tunnel I suppose. It’s bound to get here somehow.
I have jst been watching this interview, which some would have already seen. Dr Richard Hatchett is concerned and his response makes sense. It does seem that a responsible positive non-panic approach is needed. To my mind that is not what our Government is applying. They are the ones who should be setting an example and being proactive. Instead they have been, and still are, wasting precious time. As usual we are reminded that we have crap politicians, at any way you can measure crap.
My flabber is gasted. We are told by our scruffy and mumbling PM that they are doing all they can and that containment is the correct approach. Yet they are not taking the draconian measures that are clearly needed.
• All non-essential travel to the whole of Italy should have been stopped over a week ago!
• All gatherings such as concerts, football matches should have been stopped.
• All people coming into the UK should automatically have had a test for C19 two weeks ago.
• All staff at ports, shipping and air should be wearing protective clothing two weeks ago.
• Testing centres should have been set up at public places ie supermarkets, bus and train stations.
• All holiday cruises should have been stopped.
• Places of education and work centres should have members of the Healthcare giving advice and information.
This not just about whether one will fall seriously ill but also about who one may pass this virus on to, possibly an ill or elderly relative or friend.
The Government and particularly Johnson have been full of waffle and assurance but have not taken the pro-active approach necessary to contain this virus. There non-actions will enable the infected to peak in numbers beyond the ability of our unfit for purpose NHS to deal with.
The FCO have done nothing but advise people not to enter locked down areas of Italy when it is quite clear that lock-down means they could not enter those areas if they wanted to. A cowardly, incompetent and irresponsible FCO, but then who are they getting their orders from?
I am personally disgusted with the ‘we know what we are doing’ approach, when it is quite clear they haven’t got a clue. Yet when one looks at the rise of C19 in China we have had a clear example of what to expect.
It is right to fear the worse if one compares the fearful and focused response of a totalitarian state with the relative liberal and relaxed affluent state.
Shopping today I noticed a run on toilet paper but a large crate of bottled beer remained untouched, it was Corona Extra. I thought alcohol was quite important in our protection against this bug. Surely we can be treated like adults and be trusted to deal with the measures that would stand some chance of providing containment. Now that is too late, for with, at best, one week’s lead time, this virus will be already spread among us. But then money comes first.
How about having borders between counties and closing them right away? Barbed wire and so forth?
Looks like nothing can trigger government action on border controls in Britain…not even a killer virus.
The EU has said that Covid (or any other catastrophe) cannot interfere with the “sanctity of open borders.” Of course not; their agenda does not aim at our safety or well being , but to eradicate and replace us.
If the Covid 19 reaches its worst case and 500,000 die in UK clearly a case for another EU referendum in 2020 – NOT?!
What is the point of self isolation if you live in a family? Should the whole family therefore self isolate?
I wonder if it would help,, if people who had had C19 and survived and now ( Presumably in the lack of evidence from TPTB, to the contrary. ,) had immunity, and .were given a badge to stick on or similar. And that entitled them to free parking. That would be interesting.
Nobody seems concerned about immunity. Only the body count and country.
‘Only the body count and country’ – yes, and have you noticed that Italy has had as many deaths as the UK has had positive tests? From that you can draw your own conclusions about Italian hygiene…!
OK, but how come there are any frenchmen left?
🙂
Right, so “temperature checks are not effective. Instead, we have a clinically-informed, evidence-driven approach to identify those at risk.”
First, “temperature checks are not effective.” I think they mean we haven’t got the political will or the manpower.
Second, could they tell us something new? One would like to know on what occasions government does NOT use clinical information and evidence to drive their approach, and if so why not. So that’s just displacement waffle.
Second, rather than being pro-active like actually screening people at ports of entry, their wonderful new “clinically-informed, evidence-driven approach to identify those at risk” appears to be “let the people decide”; simply telling people to judge for themselves whether they are at risk and to self-isolate if the do. Talk about passing the buck… um, or the virus.