I think this is dodgy. Govt "officials... confirmed" shooting & fishing are exercise under regulations. Only a court can do that as they aren't listed. This is plainly mates knocking on Cabinet's doors asking for special treatment, as per grouse shooting telegraph.co.uk/news/2021/01/0…
This also drives a coach and horses (that's next!) through the removal of "outdoor recreation" as an exception which both shooting and fishing would probably otherwise fall into. One rule for certain people, another for others.
Coronavirus regulations have been decided almost entirely in secret by what I assume is a very small group of people. This opens them up to graft as was the case with grouse shooting in the summer which was concealed as "relevant outdoor activity"
I am sure there have been plenty of other examples of similar favours being done. How are we to know this hasn't extended to businesses?
Guidance has a funny effect on law, I think, as though not same as law, if court faced with someone who fished & was charged, even if court said fishing not exercise, fact that it was publicly permitted by "officials" may make it an unlisted reasonable excuse. Power in guidance
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This thread will not say that the Covid laws should never be policed.
My basic point (which I have been making since March) is that this is fundamentally a public health not a public order issue and policing should be focussed on that purpose only.
I asked serving police officers to message me views of how things are going. About 20 did - thank you:
(1) I have not confirmed that these are in fact serving police officers but have no reason to doubt (2) I have permission to share these without revealing their identities
If you are confused about the new lockdown regulations I made a video which explains the basics.
I have now added links in the description to take you straight to key bits.
Politicians and police who are struggling are also welcome!
A number of police officers have been messaging me privately to say they have been using my analysis throughout the pandemic and that it often comes more quickly and in more detail than their local force guidance
And a number have also said how embarrassed they are about stories of over-enforcement as they undermine trust in the police during the pandemic which they feel is low anyway. Will post (with permission, anonymously) some of the messages soon
Children's outdoor sports gatherings removed as a reasonable excuse - we knew that from the guidance
Parents and child groups no longer permitted
What is important really is how similar this is to Tier 4:
- No open air recreation
- No parents and child groups
- More limited informal childcare options (I think)
- No children's sport or other outdoor sport such as tennis)
But otherwise its very similar
These are not a new set of regulations: they are amendments an old set of regulations
Which we thought were gone! But they are back
Welcome back No.3 regulations
A quick thing before we continue!
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Support bubbles, childcare bubbles, exercise, meeting with one of the person not from your household for exercise still in place from Tier 4
This has all been done with such crashing urgency that they haven’t even been able to transpose the PDF version of the guidance into the website yet, it is here:
Looks pretty much the same as Tier 4:
- Can't leave home without a reasonable excuse
- Can take exercise with household/support+childcare bubble/1 other person (says once per day - don't expect this to be in the regulations but who knows)