UK Pilot test events a 'very poor study' and 'public scandal'

[Shoulders?-Stomach!]

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jun/25/uk-covid-pilot-events-record-no-substantial-outbreaks

Allyson Pollock, a clinical professor of public health at Newcastle University, labelled the report a "very poor study" and a "public scandal", saying it had produced evidence of very "low return rate and very low yield".

[BlodwynPig]

Shit.

[Chedney Honks]

Organise a spitting competition for 50k meffs and don't test the cunts before or after. Talk about an double blind test 😂😂😂

[Blue Jam]

These events during the first phase of the ERP in April and May – which featured the FA Cup final, the Brit Awards and the World Snooker Championship

Fuck's sake, we could have lost Simon Cowell, Roman Abramovich and Barry Hearn here, and all for nothing?

[Fambo Number Mive]

Extremely concerning to say the least and disgusting that most of the media are ignoring this.

[mobias]

I saw footage of the Liverpool rave and there was a small group of young guys totally off their tits. I remember thinking that these were exactly the sort of disciplined and conscientious young men who will keep careful track of their lateral flow tests and be certain to attend a PCR test a few days later in order to help monitor this careful study.   

[BlodwynPig]

I saw footage of the Liverpool rave and there was a small group of young guys totally off their tits. I remember thinking that these were exactly the sort of disciplined and conscientious young men who will keep careful track of their lateral flow tests and be certain to attend a PCR test a few days later in order to help monitor this careful study.

The senseless elite meet the incapacitated proles. Guaranteed hit.

[Kankurette]

They would have to do it in Liverpool. Why not just turn the city into a Petri dish?

[thelittlemango]

I saw footage of the Liverpool rave and there was a small group of young guys totally off their tits. I remember thinking that these were exactly the sort of disciplined and conscientious young men who will keep careful track of their lateral flow tests and be certain to attend a PCR test a few days later in order to help monitor this careful study.

You didn't even have to attend the test, I did one of the test events (a 10km running race at a racecourse) and you got both pcr tests in the post with free 24hr postage when you'd taken it. Sent it on Saturday, morning of the event, and had negative results the next day, and same with my second test.

[George Oscar Bluth II]

Almost as if the "test events" are actually just an excuse to let some events by favoured operators go ahead with a crowd??? Surely not???

It's quite disappointing how crap these events were, because knowing what the spread could be at events like this is actually extremely important going forward isn't it.

[Cuellar]

Why didn't they just MAKE people do the PCR tests

[idunnosomename]

I saw someone in an Aldi with a Download pilot t-shirt and perused his back. Enter Shikari? The Wildhearts? BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE?!?

public scandal indeed

[flotemysost]

You didn't even have to attend the test, I did one of the test events (a 10km running race at a racecourse) and you got both pcr tests in the post with free 24hr postage when you'd taken it. Sent it on Saturday, morning of the event, and had negative results the next day, and same with my second test.

The Download pilot required a PCR (provided with the ticket, to be taken at home and posted off) 24 hours before the start of the event, then a lateral flow to be taken on the first day of the event, with evidence of a negative result shown for entry, and then another PCR 5 days after the last day of the festival. Which sounds sensible, but in theory it would be very easy for anyone to report their lateral flow as negative even if they hadn't actually taken it - you just need to enter the barcode number from the test online along with all the other gubbins and click the option for "negative", there's no way of actually proving the result. And I suppose there's no way of enforcing PCR uptake either really, unless you had someone checking everyone's phones on the second day to see their texts/emails with the results.

I mean, you'd hope that people taking part (and therefore presumably wanting to help live music/events to return safely) wouldn't fuck around with stuff which might compromise that research (or indeed anyone's safety) but I do wonder if any/many didn't bother.

[Zetetic]

It absolutely should be possible, both technically and legally, to pass PCR results for would-be attendees to the organisers of a pilot event.

[Pinball]

If I wanted to conduct Covid research, ravers would definitely be the study participants I'd choose.

[Shoulders?-Stomach!]

It's quite disappointing how crap these events were, because knowing what the spread could be at events like this is actually extremely important going forward isn't it.

Apparently not, the approach is that Vaccines make everything fine so it's totally ok for a million+ people in the UK to have Covid at any one time because now most only report mild symptoms. Never mind variant mutation, never mind shielding the elderly, never mind helping an NHS on its knees.

[steveh]

Transmission in vaccinated people is much, much lower and the length of illness considerably shorter so the chance of a dangerous new variant appearing in the vaccinated population is small. At this stage we should be becoming more worried about getting vaccines to other parts of the world that need them.

[Shoulders?-Stomach!]

Transmission in vaccinated people is much, much lower and the length of illness considerably shorter so the chance of a dangerous new variant appearing in the vaccinated population is small

We don't know for certain that will be the case when the vaccination programme completes. Transmission certainly isn't being suppressed and there is no decision yet on vaccinating children who will continue to spread it if they aren't protected.

Cases in last 7 days: 114,968   
Cases in previous 7 day period: 68,448

1st dose: 84.4%
2nd dose: 61.9%

What we can see is that this level of protection isn't sufficient at suppressing infections, but is still allowing exponential growth.

Obviously I hope once those figures both reach 90+% that will make a big difference but it seems rather presumptive for now.

[steveh]

PHE figures are a 50% reduction in onward virus transmission amongst those who have been vaccinated but reinfected - on top of the 79% vaccine effectiveness against the delta variant for symptomatic disease - which together I think are sufficient for my statement to stand.

[Norton Canes]

They would have to do it in Liverpool. Why not just turn the city into a Petri dish?

Yeah, it was a city of culture

[flotemysost]

It absolutely should be possible, both technically and legally, to pass PCR results for would-be attendees to the organisers of a pilot event.

Yep, given that these are government-backed pilot events I suppose they could ask attendees to take the first PCR a bit earlier and isolate until their results (seems to be no longer than 48 hours to get a result at the moment - I guess if they hadn't got it by the time the event started they could get refunded, as with attendees who get a positive lateral flow in the current system).

I guess attendees could always potentially get infected en route to the venue anyway, and then if that forms the blueprint for future events, that's pretty shit because it risks a future where only privileged twats who can afford to isolate for a few days either side get to enjoy stuff and generally widens the gap between those who have the means to enjoy live music and entertainment and those who don't, which would be horrible.

I dunno, I'm just speculatively rambling but there must be a more watertight way surely. I want so, so badly for live music and arts events to come back (not personally arsed about sport but likewise it's obviously hugely important to many many people), just it's frustrating that these pilot schemes seem a bit iffy.

Apparently not, the approach is that Vaccines make everything fine so it's totally ok for a million+ people in the UK to have Covid at any one time because now most only report mild symptoms. Never mind variant mutation, never mind shielding the elderly, never mind helping an NHS on its knees.

Not disagreeing with what you're saying, but I don't know if that is the approach here, as none of the events specifically require attendees to have been vaccinated as far as I know - I thought it was measuring the efficiency of testing beforehand, rather than vaccines? (Edit: unless you mean that they're taking place at a point where the implication is enough people have been vaccinated overall that it's no biggie if there is an outbreak, in which case got ya)

Anyway. Urgh, I miss live music so much.

Yeah, it was a city of culture

Fab

[BlodwynPig]

PHE figures are a 50% reduction in onward virus transmission amongst those who have been vaccinated but reinfected - on top of the 79% vaccine effectiveness against the delta variant for symptomatic disease - which together I think are sufficient for my statement to stand.

what I can tell you is shedding rates in faeces follow a much sharper and skewed distribution toward early shedding with a shorter tail than the Alpha or Beta variants. This seems to chime with shorter period of illness.

[olliebean]

I guess attendees could always potentially get infected en route to the venue anyway, and then if that forms the blueprint for future events, that's pretty shit because it risks a future where only privileged twats who can afford to isolate for a few days either side get to enjoy stuff and generally widens the gap between those who have the means to enjoy live music and entertainment and those who don't, which would be horrible.

If they get infected en route to the venue, or during the preceding couple of days, chances are vanishingly small that they'll be contagious already.

[Huxleys Babkins]

Just wanna go to Goodwood and accidentally kill Jackie Stewart.

[Shoulders?-Stomach!]

Not disagreeing with what you're saying, but I don't know if that is the approach here, as none of the events specifically require attendees to have been vaccinated as far as I know - I thought it was measuring the efficiency of testing beforehand, rather than vaccines? (Edit: unless you mean that they're taking place at a point where the implication is enough people have been vaccinated overall that it's no biggie if there is an outbreak, in which case got ya)

Ok, then just to clarify, my previous remarks were general and not directed at testing/these pilot events.

[Shoulders?-Stomach!]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-57667163

The pilot test events findings may have been done when there were fewer infected people but this still shows what a farce it was and genuinely deserves to be treated as a scandal.

[Cuellar]

Serves them right for watching football

crylaughing crylaughing crylaughing

[Pinball]

Dumb asses. A colleague went to Wembley, but he has self-isolated 'in case', which is admirable, even though he was a twat for going to Wembley. I feel conflicted about the altruistic twat.