O/T. The Government's handling of Covid

[Ram59]

From what I've read from the British ambassador to the EU, we wouldn't have been able to deal direct with the manufacturers of the vaccines as well as being part of the EU procurement. The EU procurement team also claimed that they will decide on which EU countries get which amounts of the vaccines, dependent on need and not on ability to pay. This is a decision over which the UK would have had no control and this is one of the reasons for us opting to go it alone. I can't believe that the EU would have been sympathetic to the UK cause after Brexit.

We'll agree to differ, but I believe that the UK's plan is working best ATM, maybe that'll change over coming weeks.

Just to confirm what I've read, the EU president yesterday confirmed that parallel negotiations would be illegal for members of the procurement scheme, after some member states discussed getting their own additional orders. Part of the contract with the manufacturers forbids independent deals.

[AdiSalisbury]

Just to confirm what I've read, the EU president yesterday confirmed that parallel negotiations would be illegal for members of the procurement scheme, after some member states discussed getting their own additional orders. Part of the contract with the manufacturers forbids independent deals.

Sums up the main problem with the EU for me. I'm sure the good little German Swale will tell you that you lack understanding, are dim, thick, being lied to... Insert your own Swale drivel as desired.

[Ram59]

Sums up the main problem with the EU for me. I'm sure the good little German Swale will tell you that you lack understanding, are dim, thick, being lied to... Insert your own Swale drivel as desired.

In fairness to Swale, his last reply was quite polite, wrong but polite, which is how it should be.

[Oldtimeram]

Handling has been shambolic

[swaledale]

Just to confirm what I've read, the EU president yesterday confirmed that parallel negotiations would be illegal for members of the procurement scheme, after some member states discussed getting their own additional orders. Part of the contract with the manufacturers forbids independent deals.

Your missing the fact that we weren't members of the EU in 2019! The EU offered the UK (it didn't have to as we weren't in the EU) the opportunity to join the EU vaccine procurement, it couldn't stop us doing our own procurement (which we did obviously) in parallel because we weren't in the EU! We left on 31 December 2019 just to be clear.

So actually we could ahve done both.

[swaledale]

Sums up the main problem with the EU for me. I'm sure the good little German Swale will tell you that you lack understanding, are dim, thick, being lied to... Insert your own Swale drivel as desired.

Well before posting a smart response, perhaps you should be aware of the reality - the UK left the EU in 2019, the EU offred the Uk the opportunity to participate in the EU vaccine procurement scheme, it didn't have to and as we weren't in the EU, it could not stop us pursuing own own procurement in parallel.

Not sure how a group of countries operating in a cohesive manner, is the problem for the EU, its pretty obvious that if one chooses to join a club or a business consortium then one agrees to a set of rules and actions, one can't just go off and pursue a different course of action because at that time and place it appears or is more advantageous to do so.

I realise that seems counter intuitive, but the benefits of working in a cohesive manner, tend to outweigh the disadvantages, if they didn't then there would be no such bodies in politics or business.

[swaledale]

In fairness to Swale, his last reply was quite polite, wrong but polite, which is how it should be.

As I've pointed it it wasn't actually wrong and I'm trying to adopt a polite reasoned argument approach its my new years resolution.

[MadAmster]

Your missing the fact that we weren't members of the EU in 2019! The EU offered the UK (it didn't have to as we weren't in the EU) the opportunity to join the EU vaccine procurement, it couldn't stop us doing our own procurement (which we did obviously) in parallel because we weren't in the EU! We left on 31 December 2019 just to be clear.

So actually we could ahve done both.

I think you may have a typo in there Swale. The two bits in bold contradict one another...........

[Ram59]

As I've pointed it it wasn't actually wrong and I'm trying to adopt a polite reasoned argument approach its my new years resolution.

We'll agree to disagree, Ursella said on Friday that those part of the procurement plan were not allowed to have parallel negotiations as part of their contract being part of the procurement plan. The UK would have had to sign up to the same rules, surely, a fact stated by the UK's ambassador to the EU.

All this has come about because several EU countries unhappy with the EU procurement plan have discussed getting their own supplies, resulting in the EU president's slap down on Friday, co-incidently, the EU has just ordered an extra 200 million Pfizer vaccines, but denies that they ordered short, as many countries have claimed.

I know which theory I believe and that's the one whereby we're better off outside this procurement plan.

[ramAnag]

We'll agree to disagree, Ursella said on Friday that those part of the procurement plan were not allowed to have parallel negotiations as part of their contract being part of the procurement plan. The UK would have had to sign up to the same rules, surely, a fact stated by the UK's ambassador to the EU.

All this has come about because several EU countries unhappy with the EU procurement plan have discussed getting their own supplies, resulting in the EU president's slap down on Friday, co-incidently, the EU has just ordered an extra 200 million Pfizer vaccines, but denies that they ordered short, as many countries have claimed.

I know which theory I believe and that's the one whereby we're better off outside this procurement plan.

I’d love you to be right, Ram. Not about any EU failings, but about us doing so well in the areas of procurement and distribution.
Unfortunately, having seen the current national ‘league tables’ for Covid cases and deaths and recognising that the same individuals are in charge of the vaccine, I have my doubts.