Sunday 11 April 2010

Cough Up, Liam

So, now we know. We were stung to the tune of about £300 million for swine flu vaccines we didn't need during the pandemic that never was last year.

The main blame for the global swine flu hysteria lies squarely with the World Health Organisation**. But in Britain, most of it lies with the Chief Medical Officer, Sir Liam Donaldson, who warned us that some 60,000 people could die from swine flu and encouraged the Government to lay in enough vaccine to inoculate the entire nation.

But 60,000 people didn't perish of swine flu. Indeed, the figure was hastily revised down to 1,000 people, but even that wasn't realised.

In Britain, 457 people died after contracting it. But because 80 per cent of them had underlying health problems, the real figure was more like 100. In Poland, which didn't buy vaccines at all, the flu killed 140 people out of 40 million.

Sir Liam's hyperbole cost us dear.
Simple. Send the saggy-arsed tosser the bill.

And while we're at it, also send him another for the cost to the economy of 5,000+ pub closures since 2007.

** Err, that should be the unelected World Health Organisation.


7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Dick added
"And while we're at it, also send him another for the cost to the economy of 5,000+ pub closures since 2007."

I wonder if some statgeek could
work out the actual total cost of
the smoking ban,its enforcement,
its promotions,tax losses,job losses ,rates losses,duty losses,
prescriptions,etc,etc,etc,etc.

I'lle have a guess at £6.2-7.9
Billion

Any other bids

carbchick said...

thank christ he is going.

But ... what sort of tosser is going to replace him in post? Someone no doubt carefully picked to continue his high standards of fucktardness.

lenko said...

So... (putting on my New Labour spin-doctor's hat)... Originally 60,000 people were being measured for wooden overcoats... but thanks to quick and decisive action by Liam Donaldson (viz. being wrong) less than 1,000 perished.

Net result: New Labour save 59,000 lives! Well done, chaps! Have a free peerage.

Anonymous said...

I can just imagine the interview for the new CMO hmm hmm.

Please take a seat Dr Mengele.
What previous experience have you had in running a medical department ?
Vell I liked to vurk with cheeldren...............

neil craig said...

The [problem with diseases unlike most of the hysteria campaigns we are subjected to is that, very slight changes in disease vectors multiplying over many contacts may drasticly change risks. It is the same as with a nuclear bomb where very minor changes in the ability of neutrons to propagate |(ie by removing dampers) make the difference between a warm piece of metal & an explosion. Thus the epidemilogical difference between 100 deaths & 1 is the same as that between 100 deaths & 10,000. WHO may have overstated it but they were right to do so. Note that, because they stopped it, they get no credit for stopping SARS, which had a VERY high death rate but it was a near run thing.

We live in a world where diseases that took decades to go from China to Europe (the Black Death) can now do it in hours.

J Bonington Jagworth said...

Guess what? It was all a scam to sell more vaccines:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/jun/04/swine-flu-experts-big-pharmaceutical

Why do governments fall for this stuff? I bet they wouldn't need nearly so much if they bought it on sale or return...

J Bonington Jagworth said...

A syou can see, I'm going through (and enjoying) your Liam Donaldson stories. I quite like Simon Hoggart, too, but he does seem to be on the wrong paper! I hope he notices the latest proposals to reduce the legal limit for drivers to 50mg - I look forward to hearing your views on the subject, too... :-)

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1284140/Drivers-limit-pint-new-law.html?ito=feeds-newsxml