Covid rulebreakers should pay the going price | Rick Jackson

Sky News anchor Kay Burley broke Covid-19 restrictions by holding 60th birthday party celebrations in two London restaurants.

This cames after months upon months of her interviewing the likes of Nick Hancock et al, pressing them about the restrictions we are placed under.

The biggest insult to us all was that she was then put on gardening leave for six months, fully paid we are led to believe. Her salary is more than £600,000.

Don’t get me wrong, I wouldn’t want anyone to lose their job and she has apologised, but the punishment must match the crime, for all of us.

If you or I broke the rules in such a manner, any fine would severely damage our finances and I’m sure I wouldn’t be put on gardening leave, paid or not.

As the rest of us knuckle down to a quiet Christmas, in the expectation of further restrictions, Burley is jetting off to South Africa for a holiday at Richard Branson’s game reserve.

But this is what we come to expect. Footballers paid millions of pounds caught doing 150mph in their Ferraris. If they escape a driving ban, thanks to an expensive lawyer, the £100 fine is not even loose change.

Punishments for the rich have to have the same effect as they do on the rest of us.

In my opinion, punishments should reflect a percentage of their earnings.

A £100 fine for you or me should be £100,000 for someone of considerable wealth. Perhaps they should have those Ferraris taken away from them too and given a Honda Jazz to drive, they

wouldn’t get caught speeding again!

A six-month paid ‘holiday’ for Kay Burley sends out all the wrong messages. For me, a public. on-screen apology followed by a month’s suspension without pay would be in keeping with what she has done.

The murky world of journalism continues, from phone hacking to Covid-ignoring. Thank goodness for the whistle blowers who ensure these people can’t sleep too soundly in their satin sheets.

This is about life and death Frank, who cares if it’s fair?

As Southampton, Brighton, Liverpool and Everton become the only Premier League clubs allowed fans into their stadiums, Chelsea boss Frank Lampard believes football should be exempt from Tier 3 restrictions.

Many even feel the government should scrap its Christmas bubble idea as infections spike. But Frank, this is more important than fairness in football. Would you be happy to have your dad, Frank Lampard Snr and uncle Harry [Redknapp] in the main stand for your next home game?

The message is clear, we make sacrifices now to protect our families and give hope for the future, not to blow it all in a queue for a dodgy burger.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Wardrobe sewage-chopper adds piquancy to his suits

What was the clincher when you bought your house? Big garden? En suite? For my friend and breakfast show colleague Kate Weston, it was a macerator!

Her house has the bathroom at the back and you go through the marital bedroom to get to it. When she discovered the front bedroom, destined for son, had a toilet fitted in a cupboard above the stairs, she bought the house! The macerator pumps waste into the sewage system but the box sits in her husband’s wardrobe above his suits! We had fun on the radio when the macerator failed and an engineer arrived. You can imagine the lid being lifted above an Armani suit as the blockage was shifted!