‘I just don’t think you wake up on Tuesday and it’s finished,’ says former Sage adviser Sir Jeremy Farrar
Tensions in societies around the world over the current Covid situation are going to be very difficult to handle, one of Britain’s most senior scientific figures has warned.
Sir Jeremy Farrar, the director of the Wellcome Trust, who stepped down as a government scientific adviser in November last year, warned the idea of simply “exiting” a pandemic is not realistic.
Continue reading...Nuvaxovid is similar to flu jab and may have reduced side-effects, which could persuade vaccine holdouts
The Covid-19 vaccine developed by Novavax has been approved by the UK regulator for use in people over the age of 18.
The vaccine will not be immediately widely available as its use as part of the UK’s vaccination programme will be considered by the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation.
Continue reading...Vaccinations, milder Omicron and arrival of spring should keep death rate low as cases rise to all time high
Europe could soon enter a “long period of tranquillity” that amounts to a “ceasefire” in the pandemic thanks to the less severe Omicron variant, high levels of immunity and the arrival of warmer spring weather, the World Health Organization has said.
In an upbeat assessment, Hans Kluge, the WHO’s Europe director, said the region was in a position of “higher protection” that could “bring us enduring peace”, even if a new, more virulent variant than Omicron should emerge.
Continue reading...Vaccinated New Zealanders in Australia will be able to return home from the end of the month; Czech move comes despite country breaking its daily Covid record on Wednesday
India reported 172,433 new Covid cases in the past 24 hours, the Times of India reports, a 50% drop on the 347,254 new infections detected on Thursday two weeks ago.
India experienced surging cases last month but there are signs infections have spiked.
Dozen UK companies given VIP fast-track contracts to supply PPE to NHS paid idled staff at taxpayers’ expense
Companies handed a combined £1.3bn in controversial fast-track Covid contracts with minimal scrutiny also claimed at least £1m in furlough grants, it can be revealed.
Analysis of the accounts of companies that won lucrative emergency contracts to supply personal protective equipment (PPE) to the NHS during the height of the pandemic shows 12 also claimed funds to put staff on furlough at taxpayers’ expense.
Continue reading...Albanese says aged care services minister ‘must resign today’; CMO says ‘we are past the peak’ of Omicron as nation records at least 82 Covid-19 deaths, with dozens of cases in ICU; bushfire emergency warning issued for East Rockingham. This blog is now closed
Speaking of the ongoing Covid aged care crisis, health and aged care minister Greg Hunt is defending the government’s handling of the situation, telling ABC radio that 99% of aged care workers are now double-vaccinated:
We have over 99% vaccination rate amongst aged care workers, one of the highest rates in the world; 91% vaccination rate for residents. We’ve been able to have one of the lowest rates of loss of life in aged care in the world ...
But it is immensely hard for so many. The mental health impacts of people being locked down in aged care, which is a protective mechanism for them, but at the same time it has a huge impact on their quality of life.
If they can’t endorse [federal environment minister Sussan Ley] they should get out of the way and let the federal executive ensure we can get things done.
Continue reading...The unusual masks designed to protect wearers while they eat have attracted criticism online
An anti-virus mask that only covers the nose and can continue to be worn while eating and drinking is on sale in South Korea.
The “kosk”, a combination of ko, the Korean word for nose, and mask, has been released by a company called Atman and sells for 9,800 won ($8.13; £5.99) for a box of 10 on online retailer Coupang. It consists of two pieces, one of which can be removed to leave the mouth uncovered.
Continue reading...Extreme fatigue, brain fog, sleep disturbances, chest pain and skin rashes. These are just a few of the on-going symptoms of long Covid, a disorder that can persist for many months after an initial Covid infection. With such a vast range of symptoms, and health organisations stretched to capacity by the acute stage of the disease, long Covid has continued to remain something of a mystery.
But with numerous studies trying to understand what exactly people are suffering from, progress is being made. Ian Sample speaks to Prof Akiko Iwasaki about what we do and don’t know about long Covid, and how the vaccine could reveal clues about what’s behind the disorder
Archive: Channel 4 News, Sky News
Continue reading...New Zealand's government has said it will end its quarantine requirements and reopen its borders, a change sought by thousands of citizens abroad who have endured long waits to return home.
Prime minister Jacinda Ardern said she knows many people associate the border controls with heartache but they have undeniably saved lives.
'There is no question that for New Zealand, it has been one of the hardest parts of the pandemic," she said. "But the reason that it is right up there as one of the toughest things we have experienced is, in part, because large-scale loss of life is not.'
Continue reading...Authorities also warned brining in the military carried a ‘massive risk’ as they believed the protesters are armed
Police in Ottawa warned they may have to call in the military to disband “unlawful” protests in the nation’s capital and a town near the US border, amid mounting tensions between protesters opposing Covid restrictions and local residents.
The Ottawa police chief, Peter Sloly, warned on Wednesday that the officers did not have the resources to remove a fleet of trucks parked by the protesters in the national capital, adding the city was considering requesting help from Canadian armed forces.
Continue reading...Army secretary says move is essential for combat readiness after vaccination made mandatory for service members in August 2021
US soldiers who refuse to get a Covid-19 vaccine will be immediately discharged, the US army said on Wednesday, saying the move was critical to maintain combat readiness.
The army’s order applies to regular army soldiers, active-duty army reservists and cadets unless they have approved or pending exemptions, it said in a statement.
Continue reading...Trial in which volunteers were given dose of virus is first to monitor people during entire course of infection
Exposure to a single nasal droplet is sufficient to become infected with Covid-19, according to a landmark trial in which healthy volunteers were intentionally given a dose of the virus.
The trial, the first to have monitored people during the entire course of infection, also found that people typically develop symptoms very quickly – on average, within two days of encountering the virus – and are most infectious five days into the infection.
Continue reading...FDA decision could come within weeks but big obstacles remain to getting all children inoculated
Children under five, the last group of Americans still ineligible for vaccines against Covid-19, may soon receive emergency authorization for the shots, but getting all children vaccinated remains a serious challenge in the US.
Pfizer and its German pharmaceutical partner BioNTech announced on Tuesday that they were requesting emergency-use authorization of their vaccine for children aged six months to four years.
Continue reading...City that had 8 million overseas visitors in 2019 – including free-spending parties of Chinese people – is getting used to the peace and quiet
Until a couple of years ago, negotiating the hill leading to one of Kyoto’s most popular temples would have tested the patience of a Buddhist saint. The arrival of yet another coachload of sightseers would send pedestrians fleeing to narrow paths already clogged with meandering visitors on their way to Kiyomizu-dera.
That was before Covid-19. Today, the cacophony of English and Chinese, and a smattering of other European and Asian languages, has been replaced by the chatter of Japanese children on school excursions. Shops selling souvenirs and wagashi sweets are almost empty, their unoccupied staff perhaps reminiscing about more lucrative times.
Continue reading...ACTU’s Sally McManus says PM’s plan to lower unemployment rates doesn’t necessarily mean better pay or security – follow all the day’s news
Morrison is asked about the question he was unable to answer yesterday - the cost of basics like bread and petrol and, in this day and age, rapid antigen tests. Morrison says he “didn’t hear” the question about RATs.
To be honest, I heard bread and milk on the question yesterday, it was a pretty robust and torrid time at the press club yesterday, I must admit I didn’t hear the question about rats, that’s the honest truth. Didn’t hear it. It’s about $15-$20 and they can be less than that ... if it gets above that they will be coming after those who are price gouging, so to be honest I didn’t hear that part of the question, I heard bread and milk and for the record, it depends which bread.
Little milk comes from a cow anymore, there are so many different things that people have available but if it’s two, three bucks, you can get petrol from $1.60 to $1.80. That’s what it is. It’s one of those old things they do with the press club to make a bit of a headline.
No, I haven’t had the opportunity to do that but I appreciate what Gladys said yesterday in our own dealings with each other ... I think we work very positively and I think we work very well together as a premier and PM to do very great things from New South Wales in particular ... I can’t speak to the other things that are all anonymous and she doesn’t recollect it but it’s certainly not a conversation we have ever had.
People say nasty things about the prime minister all the time, they say nasty things about people in the media – just switch on social media. You will get yourself quite a giggle and I get one all the time. It goes with the job.
Continue reading...Exclusive: sources say PM dropped in at prosecco-fuelled farewell in 2021 now being investigated by police
Boris Johnson attended a prosecco-fuelled leaving do for a No 10 aide during the strict post-Christmas lockdown, which is now under police investigation, the Guardian has learned.
Sue Gray’s investigation into lockdown parties this week revealed several events that had not previously been publicised, including a gathering on 14 January 2021 “on the departure of two No 10 private secretaries”. But the redacted report revealed no further details.
Continue reading...Stores and vaccine clinics remain closed in Ottawa as protesters refuse to leave while federal Conservative leader faces criticism
Days of protests against pandemic policies and a deep rift within Canada’s conservative movement have highlighted the growing power of rightwing populist movements in the country.
On Tuesday, retail stores and vaccine clinics in Ottawa remained closed as protesters, who had travelled to the nation’s capital under the guise of protesting vaccine mandates for truckers, refused to leave.
Continue reading...Analysis: Threat failed to materialise this winter but experts say all bets off for next season
As winter approached the situation appeared perilous. Not only was the UK in the midst of a Covid pandemic, but experts feared familiar respiratory viruses could also hit hard.
“I will emphasise that actually flu could be potentially a bigger problem this winter than Covid,” Prof Anthony Harnden, the deputy chair of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme in June.
Continue reading...With confidence in public health system high, 95% of kids aged 2-18 are fully vaccinated and Omicron infection rates are low
The Swedes have rejected it, Dr Fauci says the US may soon approve it, the Chinese have started, but the Cubans have already vaccinated almost all young children against Covid.
The island is the only country vaccinating toddlers as young as two against the disease, and more than 95% of two- to 18-year-olds have now been fully vaccinated, according to the ministry of public health.
Continue reading...Though still rare, the numbers of kids across the US reporting symptoms long after infection are increasing, doctors say
Javanese Hailey found her daughter hunched over in pain inside their home in Manassas, Virginia, about 32 miles south-west of Washington DC.
The nine-year-old could barely walk because her stomach hurt so much, Hailey said, recalling that Sunday evening in October.
Continue reading...