From a paintbrush to a Stratocaster and a stained glass panel, some unexpected items took on huge new importance in a world of coronavirus restrictions
Continue reading...Category Archives: Coronavirus
Local lockdowns possible in England if Covid rates rise, says minister
George Eustice says ‘intensive surveillance’ taking place in areas to determine if restrictions can be lifted on 21 June
Local lockdowns remain a possibility in some parts of England, as “intensive surveillance” continues in areas with high coronavirus rates, a cabinet minister has said.
The environment secretary, George Eustice, told Times Radio there was a “clear roadmap out of lockdown” with a decision due within weeks on whether the last stage of lifting of restrictions can go ahead on 21 June.
Continue reading...Locked out of school: Pakistan’s digital divide has students struggling
When Covid shut schools, fees still had to be paid even if rural pupils could not access online lessons
Iqbal Khan works as a chauffeur in Lahore. His children are in his home village in a rural area north of Peshawar. Both of these very different areas of Pakistan have the same problem for many of their young people: no means of getting access to an education.
Online learning was not an option for Khan’s children as the pandemic locked down schools across cities and countryside. Even as he worked to pay the school fees, his two sons, aged 16 and 13, were unable to access any lessons as their schools went digital.
Continue reading...Pfizer/BioNTech Covid vaccine has approved storage period extended
Increased flexibility of vaccine expected to have ‘significant impact’ on rollout in EU member states
The Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus vaccine can be stored at fridge temperature for much longer than previously recommended, according to the European Medicines Agency (EMA).
The previous advice was the vaccine needed to be kept at an ultra-low temperature, between -70C and -80C, until a few days before use when it could be transferred to a standard medical fridge.
Continue reading...‘Urgent. Oxygen needed’: Nepalis mobilise to take charge in Covid crisis
Amid political turmoil and an overwhelmed health system, young activists are stepping up in response to the pandemic
A ping and: “ICU bed needed. Please it’s urgent.” Another ping: “Where can I find Remdesivir. EMERGENCY.” Ping: “Very urgent oxygen cylinder needed, patient at last stage.” The messages never let up; a constant stream of posts pleading for hospital beds, oxygen, plasma and medicine.
It’s not Nepal’s government helpline, but an online group set up by a 24-year-old public health graduate.
Continue reading...Long Covid symptoms ease after vaccination, survey finds
Exclusive: Fifty-seven per cent of people with illness say they were better overall after jab
Covid-19 vaccines tend to alleviate the symptoms of long Covid, according to a large survey of more than 800 people that suggests mRNA vaccines, in particular, are beneficial.
Though Covid-19 was initially understood to be a largely respiratory illness from which most would recover within a few weeks, as the pandemic wore on increasing numbers of people reported experiencing symptoms for months on end. There is no consensus definition of the condition of these people who have symptoms ranging from chronic fatigue to organ damage, let alone a standardised treatment plan.
Continue reading...How worrying is the India coronavirus variant for UK plans to unlock this summer?
Monday’s change in the rules was supposed to be a moment of celebration – but the new variant spreading in the UK meant it came with a cautionary note. Can the next stage of the government’s ‘irreversible’ plan go ahead?
This time last week, most of us were feeling optimistic about the next step in the government’s “irreversible” plan to end lockdown. Then scientists started to warn that the accelerating spread of the India variant of coronavirus meant that we should proceed carefully – and even consider slowing down.
While the plans went ahead on Monday, they came with a heavy dose of caution and warnings that the last stage of the relaxation set for 21 June could be delayed. The Guardian’s science correspondent Nicola Davis tells Anushka Asthana about the latest setback in the fight against Covid – and what it means for what happens next.
Continue reading...Coronavirus live: Italy eases night-time curfew; Germany to offer vaccines to all over-16s
Italy relaxes restrictions in areas with low cases; Germany will scrap its vaccine priority list from 7 June; Taiwan posts 333 new cases in worsening outbreak
- How did Covid slip through Taiwan’s defences?
- New mask guidance adds to a confusing patchwork of rules across US
- Modi under fire over India’s Covid second wave
- What threat does Indian Covid variant pose?
- UK cases of Indian variant almost doubled in four days
This blog is now closed. You can stay up to date with our latest coverage of the pandemic below.
New York State this week will drop face mask requirements in most public spaces for those vaccinated against Covid-19, conforming to the latest US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance, the governor, Andrew Cuomo, said on Monday.
In California, the governor, Gavin Newsom, said his state would keep its mask order in place for another month, despite the CDC’s new recommendations.
Unvaccinated people should continue to wear a mask.
Related: A year of living dangerously: how Andrew Cuomo fell from grace
Continue reading...Joe Biden expresses support for ceasefire on call with Netanyahu – live
White House reported the US president urged Israel ‘to make every effort to ensure the protection of innocent civilians’
- Supreme court agrees to consider major rollback of abortion rights
- Liz Cheney defiant over Trump as Republican civil war heats up
- Joe Biden feels political ground shift as Israel-Gaza conflict rages on
Tennessee governor Bill Lee has signed an anti-transgender bathroom ball into law, in the latest attack on trans rights in a Republican-controlled state this year, the AP reports.
The bill would allow students, parents and employees to sue schools “for all psychological, emotional, and physical harm suffered” if the school allows a trans person to use a bathroom or locker room while someone else is suing it.
The Guardian’s voting rights reporter Sam Levine on the latest developments in Arizona’s election audit:
Arizona Republicans are overseeing a “grift disguised as an audit,” the chairman of the Maricopa county board of supervisors said on Monday, just before officials released a blistering letter refuting accusations the county was hiding information from auditors.
Maricopa county says Cyber Ninjas is just straight miscounting ballots https://t.co/riK3xBi6l3 pic.twitter.com/vM5Wa9XjnX
Continue reading...Australia news live: calls from business sector to open border before mid-2022 intensify – live
Pressure comes as Scott Morrison refuses to commit to a vaccination level at which regular flights will resume. Follow all the day’s news as it happens
Despite Australia’s relative success at locking out the coronavirus pandemic, we still aren’t moving around nearly as much as we used to. Public transport has been hit especially hard, as have recreational and urban areas generally.
Only road traffic has really recovered to pre-Covid levels, which experts say could be a short hangover of fears about the pandemic. Or it could reveal a longer-term shift as working from home becomes more accepted.
Related: How Covid changed the way Australians move: more traffic jams, less public transport
Triple doughnuts!
No new cases were reported yesterday.
- 8,917 vaccine doses administered
- 18,041 test results received
More later: https://t.co/lIUrl0ZEco #COVID19VicData #COVID19Vic pic.twitter.com/m8qeauJvaH
It could take a decade to vaccinate Venezuela against Covid as pace drags
Head of country’s academy of medicine issues warning with less than 1% of population having received a dose
Venezuela’s slow rate of vaccination for Covid-19 means it could take up to 10 years for the country to be fully vaccinated, the president of the nation’s academy of medicine said on Monday.
Venezuela, with about 30 million inhabitants, has received 1.4m vaccines from China and Russia, according to its health ministry. Authorities hope to receive enough doses for about 5 million people from the World Health Organization’s Covax system.
Continue reading...India variant will be dominant UK Covid strain ‘in next few days’
Scientists’ warning comes as government comes under pressure to explain border policy
The Covid variant first detected in India is set to be the dominant strain in the UK within days, experts have said, with the government and health teams struggling to contain cases, which have risen by more than 75% since Thursday.
With the rapid spread of the more transmissible B.1.617.2 variant threatening to reverse moves to ease lockdown, the government faced intense pressure to more fully explain the delay in adding India to the so-called red list of countries.
Continue reading...Caution and confusion mark PM’s approach to lifting Covid lockdown
Analysis: loosening of measures in England and Wales hedged with contradictory advice – but Boris Johnson sticks to plans
On what should have been a day of celebration, cabinet ministers have come across distinctly uneasy at the latest phase of the lifting of lockdown in England, Wales and parts of Scotland, which allows the reopening of indoor hospitality, hugging, overnight stays with other households and foreign travel.
Related: 17 May reopening: how Covid measures across Britain are changing
Continue reading...Australia news live: passenger on India flight tests positive for coronavirus; Singapore next potential travel bubble
One passenger onboard Saturday’s repatriation flight from India tests positive for Covid in Howard Springs quarantine facility in Darwin. Follow all the latest news live
• Call for medevac-style repatriation flights for Australians with Covid from India
• Stranded cricketers touch down in Sydney two weeks after IPL suspended
• Measures to support refinery industry could cost Australians $2bn over a decade
Health Minister Greg Hunt has stepped up to speak at a press conference in Somerville in Victoria, giving an update on the vaccination program.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian earlier today expressed surprise at a legal loophole that allows students to bring knives into schools.
It comes after a 14-year-old boy at Glenwood High School in Sydney’s North West faces serious charges after allegedly stabbing a 16-year-old boy with a “religious knife.”
Students should not be allowed to take knives into school under any circumstances and I think it doesn’t pass the common sense test.
Even if they’re not using weapons, others might take them from them so I was very taken back when I learnt that.
Schools in NSW are among the safest places in the community, and Glenwood High School is one of those schools.
We are currently working with the department and community representatives to discuss how best to enable students to meet aspects of their religious faith and, at the same time, to ensure our school remains a safe place.
Continue reading...Tokyo Olympics: more than 80% of Japanese oppose hosting Games – poll
Japan expanded a coronavirus state of emergency on Friday as the nation battles a fourth wave of Covid infections
More than 80% of Japanese oppose hosting the Olympics this year, a new poll published on Monday showed, with just under 10 weeks until the Tokyo Games.
The latest survey comes after Japan expanded a coronavirus state of emergency Friday as the nation battles a fourth wave of virus infections.
Continue reading...UK ‘faces labour shortage’ as Covid and Brexit fuel exodus of overseas workers
Experts say recovery at risk amid sharp fall in EU workers and dwindling interest in UK jobs from abroad
Britain’s employers are struggling to hire staff as lockdown lifts amid an exodus of overseas workers caused by the Covid pandemic and Brexit, industry figures reveal.
According to the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) and the recruitment firm Adecco, employers plan to hire at the fastest rate in eight years, led by the reopening of the hospitality and retail sectors as pandemic restrictions are relaxed in England and Wales on Monday.
Continue reading...17 May reopening: how Covid measures across Britain are changing
Coronavirus restrictions are set to be eased in England, Wales and most of Scotland from Monday
Coronavirus restrictions will be eased further on Monday in England, Wales and most of Scotland. Northern Ireland will review its measures on Thursday, with a view to lifting more restrictions on 24 May.
The next phase of relaxation comes despite the spread of the coronavirus variant first detected in India, though Boris Johnson warned on Friday that the variant could make it “more difficult” to achieve the final step in England’s roadmap in June.
Continue reading...Fake Covid vaccine and test certificate market is growing, researchers say
More than 1,200 vendors operating in the UK and worldwide, offering false documents for as little as £25
- ‘It’s pretty common’: Border Force officer tells of spotting fake Covid documents
- What are the requirements for entry to the UK?
A hidden pandemic market advertising fake vaccine and test certificates for as little as £25 has grown exponentially, with more than 1,200 vendors in the UK and worldwide, researchers have found.
After UK ministers announced the return of overseas holidays – with travellers required to show proof of negative tests, and vaccine passports on the horizon – the Guardian has also learned that anti-vaxxers and people arriving in Britain from poorer nations make up a significant number of those buying forged pandemic paraphernalia.
Continue reading...What threat does Indian Covid variant pose and do vaccines work against it?
The number of identified cases of the B.1.617.2 variant in the UK has more than doubled in a week
The number of identified cases of the Indian variant in the UK has more than doubled in a week, from 520 to 1,313, according to the most recent figures. The areas with the highest numbers so far include Bolton, Blackburn with Darwen, Erewash in Derbyshire and Bedford, all in England, and Moray in Scotland.
Continue reading...Covid live: Matt Hancock says ‘high degree of confidence’ vaccines work against Indian variant, but urges caution
UK health secretary says England will not make decision on further unlocking scheduled for 21 June until a week before
Greece reported 1,262 new coronavirus cases on Sunday alongside 50 deaths.
This is a fall from 1,427 infections recorded a week ago, when 51 deaths were also registered.
More than 20 million adults in the UK have had both doses of a Covid-19 vaccine.
Across the UK a total of 56,677,012 vaccines have been administered between 8 December and 15 May, including 36,573,354 people with their first dose (69.4%) and 20,103,658 with their second (38.2%).
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