Category Archives: UK news

Covid: how has the pandemic changed in the UK in 2021?

Posted on by

The year has been marked by the success of the vaccination drive – yet thousands have still died

This time last year, Covid-19 cases were soaring in the UK, hospitalisations were steadily increasing, and the government had tightened restrictions to try to get a handle on a concerning new variant.

Twelve months on, there is a sense of deja vu. A weary public is worried about its festive plans being cancelled, an outcome that would be all the more painful in light of the Christmas party scandal that has enveloped Downing Street in recent weeks.

Continue reading...

‘The need is still there’: last young refugees arrive in UK as family reunion route closes

Posted on by

Activists lament that a safe, legal way into Britain has closed with Brexit, when stranded children need it as much as ever

‘When I was a child in Afghanistan I loved to watch my uncle play chess. Now I have joined the local club here.” Samir is grinning as he talks about settling into life on England’s south coast. “I’m very happy here, just being with my family, going for walks to look at the Christmas lights. It’s really beautiful.”

After arriving in Greece alone two years ago, when he was just 16, and spending many months homeless and terrified in the port city of Patras, Samir recently made a journey that most refugees can only dream about. He said goodbye to the friends he had made in a camp for unaccompanied minors – other teenagers from Somalia, Iraq and Palestine – and travelled safely and legally to join his father and sister in the UK.

Continue reading...

No new Covid restrictions before Christmas, Boris Johnson confirms

Posted on by

Prime minister warns rapid spread of Omicron variant could mean curbs are imposed after 25 December

Christmas will go ahead without any curbs on socialising, Boris Johnson has confirmed, prompting warnings this could lead to tougher measures later despite tentative signs that cases have begun to plateau.

The prime minister said he understood that families across England needed certainty to press ahead with Christmas plans but warned curbs could still be imposed after 25 December because of the rapid spread of the Omicron variant.

Continue reading...

Covid self-isolation cut to seven days with negative test in England

Posted on by

Public health bosses say move for those who test negative on days six and seven will help support essential services

The Covid self-isolation period has been cut to seven days in a move that could save Christmas for thousands of people and ease mounting staff shortages.

From Tuesday, new guidance will enable the 10-day self-isolation period for vaccinated people in England who have tested positive for coronavirus to be reduced by three days if they get the all-clear from lateral flow tests.

Continue reading...

Man accused of Chris Whitty assault contests charges in dressing gown

Posted on by

Jonathan Chew, charged with putting chief medical officer in headlock, defended himself by video link after lawyer withdrew in embarrassment

A man accused of assaulting Chris Whitty in a central London park attended a court appearance via video link from his bedroom while wearing a dressing gown after saying he had tested positive for coronavirus.

Jonathan Chew, 24, and estate agent Lewis Hughes, 23, filmed themselves with England’s chief medical officer as he walked through St James’ Park in Westminster on 27 June.

Continue reading...

UK government’s wait for Omicron evidence is a high-stakes gamble

Posted on by

Analysis: ‘incontrovertible evidence’ is a tall order and in the meantime the NHS risks being overwhelmed

At a long and difficult cabinet meeting on Monday, hawkish ministers demanded “incontrovertible evidence” that Omicron risks overwhelming the NHS to justify the cost of taking action, while on Tuesday Boris Johnson confirmed his view that there is insufficient evidence to justify new measures – yet.

While some clarity on the hospitalisation rate associated with the new variant should be available within a day or two, scientists have warned that getting the evidence ministers want may be “a tall order”. So why is it so hard to work out, and what does that mean for decision-making?

Continue reading...

EU in row over inclusion of gas and nuclear in sustainability guidance

Posted on by

Activists including Greta Thunberg criticise ‘fake climate action’ in response to planned investment taxonomy

The European Commission is facing a backlash from Greta Thunberg and fellow climate activists over plans to include gas and nuclear energy in a “green” investment guidebook.

Both energy sources are expected to feature in the next part of the EU’s “taxonomy for sustainable activities”, which is expected at the end of the year, following a period of intense political bargaining between the commission president, Ursula von der Leyen; the French president, Emmanuel Macron; and Germany’s new chancellor, Olaf Scholz.

Continue reading...

Barrister who sued after colleague asked him to stop farting loses case

Posted on by

Lawyer said flatulence was caused by heart medication and argued the request violated his dignity

A senior barrister who sued the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) after a colleague asked him to stop breaking wind in the room they worked in together has lost his case.

Tarique Mohammed sued for harassment and told an employment tribunal that his repetitive flatulence was caused by medication he was on for a heart condition.

Continue reading...

‘A fire-eater who’s run out of fuel’: European press lays into Boris Johnson

Posted on by

Continental media are in no mood to donner un break to the British PM, sensing the ‘beginning of the end’

For El País in Spain, his “magic has vanished”. For Libération in France he is “the only actor in the Boris Johnson show – which is, increasingly, a flop”. In Germany, Der Spiegel asked how long Britain could last being governed “almost exclusively by defiant optimism”.

As the scandals mount, the approval ratings plunge, the electoral defeats accumulate, the rebellions multiply, his trusted Brexit lieutenant jumps ship and the Omicron variant runs rampant, continental media seem – to coin a phrase – in no mood to donner un break to Britain’s beleaguered prime minister.

Continue reading...

Israel announces fourth jab for over-60s; hospital bosses in England brace for ‘dangerous situation’

Posted on by

Portugal tells people to work from home from 26 December; Sweden announces working from home and tighter social distancing rules

Singapore has detected a cluster of three Covid-19 cases linked to a gym, its ministry of health said late on Monday.

The variant was found in two men, aged 24 and 21, and an 18-year-old woman.

On Monday morning, a mid-level staff member, who does not regularly have contact with the President, received a positive result for a Covid-19 test.

Three days earlier, on Friday, that staff member had spent approximately 30 minutes in proximity to the President on Air Force One, on the way from Orangeburg, South Carolina to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Continue reading...

UK accused of abandoning world’s poor as aid turned into ‘colonial’ investment

Posted on by

Rebrand of Foreign Office’s development arm, seen as effort to rival China’s loans, will shift aid to private sector, warn NGOs and unions

The British government has been accused by NGOs and trade unions of “chasing colonial post-Brexit fantasies” at the expense of the world’s poorest as they urge Liz Truss to keep aid focused on poverty reduction rather than geopolitical manoeuvring.

In a joint letter to the foreign secretary, the group criticises the rebranding of the UK’s development investment arm, which will see the Commonwealth Development Corporation (CDC) become British International Investment (BII) next year.

Continue reading...

Liz Truss to hold Brexit talks with EU over NI protocol

Posted on by

The foreign secretary, now chief negotiator with the EU, wants ‘a comprehensive solution’

The UK’s newly appointed chief post-Brexit negotiator, Liz Truss, said she would speak to her EU counterpart, Maroš Šefčovič, on Tuesday amid renewed calls to rip up the controversial Northern Ireland protocol.

The cabinet minister, who is also the foreign secretary, said she wanted to negotiate “a comprehensive solution” to the agreement, which requires post-Brexit checks on goods arriving in Northern Ireland from Great Britain.

Continue reading...

Lockdown party inquiry could expand to cover No 10 garden event

Posted on by

Cabinet Office can investigate ‘credible allegations’ on other gatherings, but PM says photo of staff shows work meeting

Bereaved families have accused Boris Johnson of showing “flagrant disregard” for the public as ministers struggled to explain the justification for a wine and cheese event in Downing Street at the height of lockdown.

A Cabinet Office inquiry into other alleged government parties in breach of Covid rules could be expanded after the Guardian published an image showing the prime minister alongside his wife and up to 17 staff in the Downing Street garden in May 2020.

Continue reading...

Unite launches inquiry into building costs of Birmingham project

Posted on by

Following leaked accounts, union’s new general secretary says possible ‘significant loss’ must be investigated

Unite is launching an independent inquiry into how the building costs of a hotel and conference centre in Birmingham spiralled into a “potentially significant loss” for the trade union.

The inquiry follows reports at the beginning of the year of leaked accounts seeming to indicate that the union had overspent on the 170-room hotel and 1,000-person conference centre.

Continue reading...

Covid restrictions unlikely before Christmas but PM watching data ‘hour by hour’

Posted on by

Boris Johnson caught between scientific advisers and his sceptical cabinet over action on Omicron

New Covid restrictions are unlikely to be imposed before Christmas amid deep cabinet divisions but Boris Johnson warned further measures remain on the table, with data on the threat of Omicron monitored “hour by hour”.

The prime minister was accused of failing to follow scientists’ advice on the need for immediate restrictions while leaving millions of people and businesses in limbo after a two-hour cabinet meeting ended with no decision on Monday.

Continue reading...

Global Covid vaccination failure will harm Britain, Gordon Brown warns

Posted on by

Exclusive: Ex-PM says virus will have ‘free rein to mutate’ unless richer countries fund $23bn vaccine drive

The failure to vaccinate the world against coronavirus will come back to haunt even fully vaccinated Britons in 2022, Gordon Brown has warned.

The former prime minister said the emergence of Omicron was “not Africa’s fault”, and added that new variants would continue to wreak havoc because richer countries such as the UK had “stockpiled” hundreds of millions of vaccines.

Continue reading...

Covid live: Thailand to consider ending quarantine-free travel; EU set to back Novavax vaccine

Posted on by

Bangkok considering reinstating mandatory quarantine due to spread of Omicron; EU’s drug regulator will decide on whether to approve Novavax

Thailand’s public health minister said on Monday that his ministry will propose reinstating mandatory quarantine for foreign visitors due to concerns over the spread of the Omicron variant.

The proposal would scrap the current quarantine waiver for vaccinated visitors and revert to hotel quarantine and the “sandbox” programme, which allows free movement within a specific location, Anutin Charnvirakul told the Inside Thailand television show.

Continue reading...

Rachel Riley awarded £10,000 damages over ex-Corbyn aide’s tweet

Posted on by

Judge says TV presenter proved Laura Murray’s post had caused serious harm to her reputation

The television presenter Rachel Riley has been awarded £10,000 in damages by a high court judge after suing a former aide to Jeremy Corbyn for libel.

Riley, 35, the numbers expert on the Channel 4 show Countdown, sued Laura Murray over a tweet posted more than two years ago.

Continue reading...

Contact with nature in cities reduces loneliness, study shows

Posted on by

Loneliness is significant mental health concern and can raise risk of death by 45%, say scientists

Contact with nature in cities significantly reduces feelings of loneliness, according to a team of scientists.

Loneliness is a major public health concern, their research shows, and can raise a person’s risk of death by 45% – more than air pollution, obesity or alcohol abuse.

Continue reading...