More than 100 patients have already been sent home as country faces its third and deadliest wave of coronavirus
Thailand has begun using sleeper trains to transport Covid patients out of Bangkok, where hospitals have been overwhelmed by a recent surge in cases.
The first train left the capital on Tuesday, transporting 137 patients who were asymptomatic or had mild symptoms to their home towns in the north-east of the country.
Continue reading...Ministers to discuss plans, with talks also to determine if they will apply to England only or all UK nations
Plans to significantly open up international travel are expected to be announced on Wednesday, with UK ministers poised to let people who have been fully vaccinated in the US and EU avoid quarantine if arriving from amber list countries.
The move would benefit millions of people by finally letting them be reunited with family and friends based in the UK, as well as businesses in the aviation and tourism sectors that have been hit hard by the pandemic.
Continue reading...When I heard my 18-year-old nephews had received their first jab, it was like sunshine slicing through the clouds
Even by pandemic standards, Saturday was a rattling day. As Covid cases in Sydney reached their highest tally to date, anti-lockdown protests turned violent in the CBD.
The day before, New South Wales had begged both the federal government and other Australian states for more Pfizer vaccines. The proposed approach gave me new hope, which by afternoon was extinguished. No solution appeared to be in sight.
Continue reading...Latest updates: reported UK deaths reach 131; Ireland’s national immunisation advisory committee recommended vaccinating children against Covid
Almost 99% people who have died of Covid-19 in Italy since February this year were not fully vaccinated, the National Health Institute (ISS) has said.
The study, contained in a regular report on Covid-19 deaths released by the public health body, added that the few fully vaccinated people who died of Covid were also significantly older than those who died without full vaccination, at 88.6 years of age versus 80.
The US’ top health agency is expected to backpedal on its masking guidelines today and recommend that even vaccinated people wear masks indoors in parts of the US where the coronavirus is surging, according to media reports.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is expected to make an announcement later in the day revising guidance issued on 13 May, which said vaccinated individuals did not need to wear masks in most indoor settings.
Related: CDC expected to backpedal some mask guidelines for vaccinated people
Continue reading...The prime minister, Boris Johnson, said it was important that people did not draw premature conclusions about several days of better Covid case data and urged the public to remain cautious.
'I've noticed that obviously that we're six days into some better figures, but it is very, very important that we don't allow ourselves to run away with premature conclusions about this,' Johnson said.
'People have got to remain very cautious and that remains the approach of the government.'
Continue reading...Fund calls on rich nations to help halt spread of infectious variants through countries with low vaccination rates
The world economy risks losing $4.5tn (£3.3tn) from highly infectious variants of Covid-19 spreading through poor countries where vaccination rates are lower, the International Monetary Fund has warned.
Calling on rich countries to take urgent action to share at least 1bn doses with developing nations, or risk severe economic consequences, the Washington-based fund said the gap between rich and poor economies had widened during the pandemic and risked worsening further next year.
Continue reading...Covid restrictions for greater Sydney, including residents in the Fairfield, Canterbury-Bankstown, Liverpool, Cumberland and Blacktown LGAs, the Central Coast, Blue Mountains and Wollongong to be extended, with lockdown set to lift for Orange, Blayney and Cabonne local government areas in the state’s central west. Here’s the full list of what you can and can’t do in NSW
Sydney’s lockdown is expected to continue beyond 30 July, but there will be some changes to the rules.
The NSW premier, Gladys Berejiklian, is expected to announce a four-week extension to the lockdown on Wednesday, where it is understood she will also outline eased restrictions for the construction industry.
Continue reading...Pedro Castillo saw off an ugly, Trump-style revolt against his victory and must now try to unite the country
After nearly two months of waiting, amid baseless claims of fraud and even rumblings of a military coup, Pedro Castillo will on Wednesday become Peru’s president. The son of illiterate peasant farmers, Castillo’s rise to the top on Peru’s 200th anniversary of independence is hugely symbolic, but he will face huge challenges to unite the country.
Castillo’s razor-thin win has split the country between those who back his pledge to overhaul politics and the economic system to tackle poverty and inequality, and others who fear his presidency will upturn Peru’s market-friendly economy and even threaten its democracy.
Continue reading...More than 170 daily cases reported, with block of flats sealed off by police, outbreaks affecting two hospitals and further delays to Novavax vaccine
New South Wales reported a record high number of covid cases on Tuesday despite more than four weeks of lockdown for the Sydney region, with signs tough measures could extend until September.
“Vaccination is the key to our freedom. Getting jabs in arms is a key part of our strategy,” said state premier Gladys Berejiklian. “I want August to be the month where everyone comes forward to get the jab. That is key to us being able to see what September looks like. I don’t think anyone can deny that the vaccination rate is absolutely key to how we live life in NSW.”
Continue reading...Report says 10% increase in child poverty hit Māori and Pasifika children hardest
An additional 18,000 New Zealand children were pushed into poverty in the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic, according to new research, despite child welfare being one of prime minister Jacinda Ardern’s main concerns.
The Child Poverty Action Group – a group focused on eliminating poverty – put much of the increased poverty, inequity, homelessness and food insecurity down to government neglect as it created its policies during the pandemic.
Continue reading...SA to exit lockdown at midnight; NSW records 172 local Covid-19 cases overnight; Victoria lockdown to ease from midnight after state records 10 cases; Queensland records no new cases overnight. Follow all the day’s news
NSW press conference:
Inevitable Berejiklian is now being grill over Victoria’s sucsess which many are viewing as proof that NSW’s lockdown was too little, too late.
Victoria is now coming out of lockdown. Have they now shown us up? Should we have gone down harder and faster? They’ve done two weeks, we’re here in week five, and with no sign of things slowing down.
Oh look, I think it’s important to note that every state has had its own course during the pandemic.
Victoria is emerging out of its fifth lockdown, and I appreciate appreciate people want to make comparisons, but it’s also important to note that every state has had its own course. Every state has its own history of how they’re built with the pandemic.
Melbourne: schools, restaurants and bars open.
Sydney: 172 cases. Highest case number since the borders were shut and edging towards the 200 record.
In a survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation vaccine monitor, 23% of Republicans said they definitely won’t get vaccinated, while 16% of independents and 2% of Democrats said the same.
White House chief medical adviser Anthony Fauci said local leaders, particularly in areas with low rates of vaccination, needed to lead outreach efforts to get people vaccinated.
Related: Fauci says health officials considering mask guidance revision for vaccinated
Continue reading...Doctors forced to treat patients in car parks while others turned away as no beds available
Thailand’s worsening Covid outbreak is placing intense pressure on hospitals, forcing doctors to treat patients in parking lots and turn away people who are severely ill.
The country was widely praised for its Covid response last year, when it maintained one of the lowest caseloads in the world. However, there is growing public anger over the government’s recent handling of the pandemic, including its slow and chaotic vaccination campaign.
Continue reading...Number of reported cases ‘represents only a fraction of the estimated total number of infections’
The number of Covid-19 cases across the US may have been undercounted by as much as 60%, researchers at the University of Washington have found.
Related: Florida urged to ramp up vaccination effort amid ‘alarming’ Covid rise
Continue reading...With daily tests in NSW hovering around 100,000, pathology turnaround times are being pushed back as residents wait in isolation
Tens of thousands of Covid nasal test swabs are being put on planes and flown from hotspots in New South Wales to be processed in Brisbane and other cities, with labs in Sydney still “drowning” from record testing turnouts that have led to result wait times of up to 10 days.
As daily testing numbers hover around 100,000 in NSW, a backlog in processing swabs in Sydney continues to force people into isolation, with Guardian Australia aware of an essential worker abandoning their vaccine appointment as they await a negative result.
Continue reading...Doctors say most patients now arriving in intensive care are unvaccinated, and deeply regret their decision
For some people, the moment the ambulance arrives is the time they start expressing regrets about not receiving a coronavirus vaccine. For others, it’s the death of a loved one.
Healthcare workers and Covid patients have spoken out about growing numbers who, once faced with the serious reality of catching the virus, realise that they made a huge mistake.
Continue reading...Ireland and Italy among those joining France in requiring vaccine passes to enter bars and restaurants
An increasing number of European governments are planning to prevent unvaccinated people from being able to attend hospitality venues such as bars and restaurants this summer, as Emmanuel Macron celebrates the fruits of the recent announcement of the policy in France.
France on Monday passed the threshold of 40 million people having received at least one vaccine dose – close to 60% of the population. Macron tweeted: “Together we will defeat the virus. We continue!”
Continue reading...NSW reports 145 local Covid-19 cases overnight; no lockdown announcement for Victoria today after 11 new local cases recorded; SA to lift lockdown from midnight tomorrow and another vaccine record. Follow the latest updates
Brittany Higgins has welcomed the government’s decision to accept all 10 recommendations of the Foster review into how federal parliament responds to serious incidents.
The government put out a press release announcing this earlier today.
I am so pleased to hear that all 10 recommendations of the Foster Review will be implemented.
These reforms, most notably the independent complaints mechanism, will ensure Parliament House is a safer workplace for all future employees. https://t.co/wNNkVy4y9D
Sydney Covid crisis could take months to recede if other outbreaks are anything to go by - depressing read (but with good charts) from @joshcnicholas looking at peaks and troughs of covid waves https://t.co/slr3A5O9gX pic.twitter.com/4zR7STbB3i
Continue reading...China starts testing 9.3 million people in Nanjing as 76 new cases reported; French parliament adopts law despite protests
Virtual contact during the pandemic made many over-60s feel lonelier and more depressed than no contact at all, new research has found.
Many older people stayed in touch with family and friends during lockdown using the phone, video calls, and other forms of virtual contact. Zoom choirs, online book clubs and virtual bedtime stories with grandchildren helped many stave off isolation.
Related: Virtual contact worse than no contact for over-60s in lockdown, says study
More than 450 key workers with long Covid have told a cross-party parliamentary inquiry of their experiences of the condition, including struggles to return to work and lack of financial support, with one in 10 having lost their job.
Nurses, teachers, GPs, police officers and midwives were among those who shared their experience of long Covid, symptoms of which include debilitating fatigue, shortness of breath, chest pains, sleeping difficulties and brain fog.
Related: Over 450 key workers with long Covid tell MPs of their struggles
Continue reading...Kais Saied invokes emergency article of constitution after violent protests against country’s biggest party
Often touted as the lone success story of the Arab spring revolutions a decade ago, Tunisia is facing a critical challenge to its fledgling democracy after its president suspended parliament and dismissed his prime minister in what critics described as a coup.
Kais Saied, an independent without a party behind him, announced he was invoking an emergency article of Tunisia’s constitution late on Sunday night after a day of violent protests against the country’s biggest party, the moderate Islamist Ennahda movement.
Continue reading...