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Claire Fox Profile picture
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2 Mar, 5 tweets, 2 min read
A few things I wanted to say but no time, that genuinely baffle me. A short thread. Prime Minister has stressed data not dates (although I confess those dates are firmly written in my dairy). But if they insist on data, there's lots of good news (see tomorrrow's front pages). 1/5
There's robust data on vaccine roll-out, which is way ahead of original timetable. The data on efficacy of even one jab is brilliant news; cases, hospitalisations and ICU beds are falling quite dramatically. Yet too many in SAGE/ Gov seem to want us to ignore THAT data. Why? 2/5
Using their own logic, shouldn't Ministers be keen to sell us idea that changes in data must mean changes in dates? So, if over 50s are all vaccinated by end of March - a full month ahead of schedule - why on earth won't they start lifting restrictions a month ahead too? 3/5
Yet in face of good news data, we still get doom-mongering rhetoric, hyper-caution & more draconian laws as one rubber-stamped in @UKHouseofLords today. Seems they only follow data when taking freedoms away rather than restoring them. So forgive me: this means DATA ISN'T ALL. 4/5
I'd prefer Gov looked beyond data at unmeasurables eg Quality of Life/civil liberties/determining level of risk society willing to live with. All require politicians deploy moral judgement & public debate, not data crunching. So yes to data, yes to dates, but key is debate 5/5

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More from @Fox_Claire

Claire Fox Profile picture
23 Feb
Yesterday, I argued that this Maternity Allowances Bill is a step forward for women’s rights (even if too narrowly focused on women in Westminster). But the words ‘she’, ‘her’ or ‘women’ don’t appear once in the bill... (1/4)
One person suggested it was fine - a bit like saying ‘chairperson’. But giving birth is not like chairing a meeting. These language rows are not technical issues - we have to consider the political context. These new language codes are forcing us to engage in doublespeak... (2/4)
Language matters. I’m a woman, not a cis-woman. How will doctors & nurses talk about mastitis accurately while using language like chest feeding? How will official documents like the census be accurate while mangling gender identity and biological sex?... (3/4)
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9 Nov 20
Tonight, I tried to remind the majority of Lords declaring they will do whatever is necessary to remove part 5 from the #InternalMarketBill, that this was an affront to democracy... (1/5)
I pointed out that the majority in the unelected Lords seem happy to give preference to binding sovereignty of an international treaty over honouring democratic sovereighty at home... (2/5)
Guess what, a debate which was presented to be about international law was really a struggle at the heart of Brexit... (3/5)
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Claire Fox Profile picture
1 Aug 20
On peerages: a short thread. Thank you all so much for many wonderfully generous messages of support. It seems positive that the historic significance of Brexit has been recognised via so many of those offered peerages. It feels as much a recognition of voters as individuals 1/
I'm thrilled that many people I admire are joining #TheLords, especially some feisty women: @GiselaStuart @CatharineHoey @MorrisseyHelena. The irony is: having more democrats in the unelected #HoL at least might make the cause of democratic accountability harder to side-line 2/
For those reminding me that I've always argued to abolish the Lords: well spotted. I stand by that. But as w @TheGreenParty peers, I'll argue that in #HoL while it exists. I have some recent experience as an MEP of participating in an undemocratic body, which I disagree with 3/
Read 5 tweets
Claire Fox Profile picture
8 Jul 20
THREAD @DontDivideUsNow & EDUCATION: Last week a bunch of us issued a statement entitled Don't Divide Us. The response was overwhelming. One big concern that many brought up, is that schools seem to be reorganising curriculum & teacher CDP around divisive identity politics 1/
Parents/ carers involved in home schooling due to lockdown, have been sent letters/resources with instructions on how to teach issue of ‘race’ & are understandably concerned at the over-reach by schools. This has caused worries that changes are happening with no public debate. 2/
Teachers, governors & other stakeholders in education of schoolchildren have also contacted @DontDivideUsNow , expressing serious reservations. They note: even internal school discussions are being stifled by an assertion that any resistance is evidence of unconscious bias 3/
Read 4 tweets
Claire Fox Profile picture
18 Jun 20
Just a short thread on students following Rhodes statue's fall and grim harassment of Hitchens: don't blame student activists; they are kicking an open door. It's acquiescence of university authorities which should worry people 1/
Very many students - maybe most - (and this is not a code for white - but of all ethnicities) - do not go along with these trends. They fear speaking out - anyone who dares challenge is renounced, not just by peers, often by their own tutors who theorise/preach white privilege 2/
Students are just young people & sometimes their idealism is muddled and misplaced. But important to respect what is admirable in wanting to change world for better. Their sense of certainty and arrogance is part of being young. But young develop ideas when creatively interact 3/
Read 6 tweets
Claire Fox Profile picture
5 Apr 20
Much to mull over from @matthewsyed on dangers of blame game and online experts & lessons from Sweden: "A lack of dissent is one reason disasters in totalitarian regimes, historically at least, have tended to exert a greater death toll... 1/5
"I can’t help thinking that some scientists have learnt that in a time of hysteria you can gain a huge profile by using inflammatory language. Call it the Piers Morganisation of public discourse, a world of manufactured confidence and synthetic outrage". Bravo @matthewsyed 2/5
"A world where the digital weighting placed on the extreme and dogmatic offers a distorted picture not just of reality, but of evidence itself...
"We need a rational debate now about charting a wise exit from the lockdown," 3/5
Read 5 tweets

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