Coronavirus misinformation: a thread by us. 1/11

Our Public Health team, like others up and down the country, is made up of people who have expertise and understanding on what is going on, and what we can do about it.

We trust them absolutely, and so should you. 2/11

Coronavirus misinformation has been rife in our comments sections, mentions and replies on social media this week.

We give our residents the most up-to-date and accurate information about COVID-19 in Plymouth, and try to hide most misleading comments. 3/11

However, the last few days it’s been hard to keep up.

While most people are sensible and do favour effective measures to control the spread of the virus – some seem to deny the existence of the virus at all. 4/11

We publish accurate data about numbers of COVID related deaths on our website and updated weekly. https://www.plymouth.gov.uk/coronaviruscovid19information/positionplymouth

In the last few months we have all seen the debilitating, long term effects coronavirus can have. 5/11

We’ve also had people expressing that our rate per 100,000 is lower than other places that have moved into Tier 2.

This is correct as of today but this figure is rapidly growing and we expect to enter Tier 2 within days. 6/11

The faster this rate grows the more likely you or someone you love will contract the virus and the more likely we will move up a tier - which has implications for all of us and for the city’s businesses. 7/11

We do know a lot about coronavirus and about how to prevent it from spreading. We can reduce the spread by being outside more, avoiding indoor, crowded public places, wearing a face covering and keeping at least one metre (ideally two metres) away from other people. 8/11

We have also had commenters suggesting that the figures on deaths caused by flu or pneumonia have been replaced by or re-classified as coronavirus deaths.

This is incorrect, and has been debunked by Full Fact here - https://fullfact.org/online/flu-pneumonia-deaths-wrong/ 9/11

Our messages about going into Tier 2 are not scaremongering. If our rate of infection and number of cases continue to rise we will see further restrictions on residents and businesses.

We desperately want to prevent Plymouth going into Tier 2, and we’re sure you do too. 10/11

Help protect Plymouth, wear a mask, wash your hands and practice social distancing. 11/11

Bonus tweet! Thank you to our residents who debunk incorrect information in our comment sections and replies on our behalf, we hugely appreciate your time and effort.