Thread by @SteveBakerHW

This morning I chaired a Zoom briefing with MPs, @drraghibali, @timspector, @rwjdingwall, @emmakennytv and Lord Sumption.

We discussed a strategy for living with Covid, @T4Recovery Five Reasonable Demands and the impact of the current restrictions.

Thread of remarks to follow:

@drraghibali @timspector @rwjdingwall @emmakennytv @T4Recovery @emmakennytv: "Human beings are not meant to be isolated, in fact you are less likely to die if you smoke 15 cigarettes a day, than you are if you are lonely. Loneliness kills"

Read Emma's full remarks:

stevebaker.info/2020/11/02-11-…

Lord Sumption: "SAGE is working on a case fatality rate of 0.7%. So 4,000 deaths per day equates to about 4 million new cases per week. These are Noddyland numbers. They are designed to frighten, not to inform"

Read Lord Sumption's full remarks:

stevebaker.info/2020/11/02-11-…

@timspector: "data from the ZOE app on rates of increase were less pessimistic than other forecasts & more up to date. If we waited a few more days, based on our data it would’ve been seen we’re hopefully already reaching a peak in new cases in the North, Midlands and Scotland...

@timspector: …and we could have potentially avoided a national lockdown. I believe a regional approach in coming out of lockdown is now important as what is happening in Cornwall will be very different to the situation in Manchester in four weeks."

@rwjdingwall: "Zero Covid is a bit of a fantasy…it seems reasonably clear that Covid-19 will become endemic."

"We need to be clear that a risk-free society is not achievable."

@drraghibali: "The key to any successful strategy is sustainable compliance and so it must have public trust and confidence. We need everyone to get behind the same overall strategy and I think this will only be possible if we can show which option – none of which is cost-free...

...– causes the least overall harm. The government should immediately bring together doctors, scientists, economists, educationalists, etc to conduct a comprehensive cost-benefit analysis of options and come to a consensus."

Dr Ali's article in the Sun:

thesun.co.uk/news/13083466/…