Category Archives: England

England’s ‘freedom day’ to be day of fear for elderly people, charities warn

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Vulnerable and immunocompromised people anxious about 19 July end to Covid rules

Boris Johnson’s “freedom day” will be a day of fear for elderly and vulnerable people and those with compromised or suppressed immune systems, for whom the efficacy of vaccines is much reduced, charities have warned.

Citing the statement by the new health secretary, Sajid Javid, that Covid infections could surge to a record 100,000 a day in a few weeks after all social distancing and mask-wearing regulations are removed in England, Blood Cancer UK has said that 19 July “will be the day that it feels like freedoms are being taken away from” many people.

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‘More than a game’: Euros delirium in Denmark despite UK travel setback

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Nation with Hans Christian Andersen-inspired football song is hoping for fairytale win against England

People dancing on buses is not something you see every day in Denmark. Rule-abiding Danes tend to keep their celebrations low-key – but not this summer.

Football fans brought traffic to a standstill in Aarhus after Denmark beat the Czech Republic in the Euro 2020 quarter-finals and even scaled public transport to broadcast their euphoria and belt out another round of Re-sepp-ten – first a hit for Denmark’s national team at the 1986 World Cup in Mexico. The anthem’s crowd-sourced lyrics are laden with Hans Christian Andersen imagery and feel particularly apt this year.

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To mask or not to mask: what will Johnson and others do after 19 July?

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The PM says he will keep his covering in crowded places after England’s rules change but what do his ministers and experts think?

Boris Johnson has said he will continue to wear a mask in “crowded places” after mandatory requirements are dropped in England on 19 July.

“What we’re trying to do is move from a universal government diktat to relying on people’s personal responsibility,” he told Monday’s Downing Street press conference. “Clearly there’s a big difference between travelling on a crowded Tube train and sitting late at night in a virtually empty carriage on the main railway line. So what we want to do is for people to exercise their personal responsibility but to remember the value of face coverings both in protecting themselves and others.”

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‘Idea of commuting fills me with dread’: workers on returning to the office

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Staff warily contemplate going back to work as business leaders say it is vital to boost urban economy

With the lifting of coronavirus restrictions in England probably two weeks away, the prospect of returning to offices means the revival of the daily commute.

In a push to bring back more people to town and city centres to boost the urban economy, a group of 50 business leaders, including the Canary Wharf executive chair, Sir George Iacobescu, the bosses of Heathrow and Gatwick airports, the Capita chief executive, Jon Lewis, and the BT chief executive, Philip Jansen, are calling for the government to encourage a return to the office.

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PM to confirm 19 July end to Covid rules despite scientists’ warnings

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Boris Johnson to press ahead with final stage of unlocking in England amid huge rise in infections

Boris Johnson is to announce that the lifting of most remaining Covid-19 restrictions in England will go ahead on 19 July amid a backlash from government scientific advisers who have warned that doing so would be like building new “variant factories”.

Despite cases having risen to their highest level since January 2021, the prime minister is set to press ahead with the final stage of unlocking in two weeks.

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Coronavirus live: UK records 24,248 new cases; Luxembourg PM ‘in hospital with Covid’

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Media reports say Xavier Bettel is undergoing tests as a precaution; Israel seeking new deal after talks with UK collapse

Russia has recorded a record daily number of Covid-19 infections after deaths hit at a record-high for five days in a row this week.

Vladimir Putin has for now refrained from calling another lockdown, but the 25,142 infections reported on Sunday were the biggest figure since 2 January, AFP reports.

France’s health minister has warned “our country is in a race against time” as he said a fourth wave of Covid-19 could arrive by the end of the month.

In a tweet on Sunday Olivier Véran urged people to get vaccinated as he warned of a worrying rise in cases caused by spread of the Delta variant, Reuters reports.

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All roads lead to Rome for England’s ardent army of expat fans

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Foreign-based fans slept in cars and even planned marriage proposals to be at the scene of Euro 2020 quarter final

They came from Berne, Berlin, Luxembourg and Dubai, some forgoing a night’s sleep as they drove across the Alps or took red-eye flights. Some of the more ardent football fans bought tickets two years ago; others bagged them in the last-minute rush that followed England’s historic win over Germany on Tuesday.

They were rewarded with an extraordinary, emphatic, exhilarating 4-0 victory over Ukraine, and those inside the stadium sang till their voices gave out.

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England rout Ukraine 4-0 to surge into Euro 2020 semi-final with Denmark

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Harry Kane back to his lethal best, productivity from set pieces, yet another clean sheet – the fifth out of five at Euro 2020 – and, for the coup de grace, a first England goal for Jordan Henderson on the occasion of his 62nd cap. This was the night when pretty much everything was picture perfect for Gareth Southgate and his players as they set up a Wembley semi-final against Denmark on Wednesday night.

As England came home from Rome it was easy to wonder whether football was headed in the same direction and, certainly, the fans of the team who had made it from across mainland Europe into the Stadio Olimpico thought that way.

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Covid: letting fully vaccinated skip quarantine in England ‘will cause resentment’

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Expert warns that plans to drop all legal requirements after 19 July could lead to mass non-compliance

Allowing those who have received two doses of a Covid vaccine to skip quarantine could breed resentment and result in mass non-compliance, a scientific adviser has warned.

Downing Street has confirmed it is looking at whether to drop all legal self-isolation measures for fully vaccinated people who come into contact with someone who is infected “as part of the post-step 4 world”.

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‘I want to believe’: proud Ukraine aims for Euro 2020 upset against England

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After disappointment in past tournaments, there has never been as good a time to be a Ukraine fan

Kyiv doesn’t look like a city gripped by Euro 2020 fever. Take a walk through Ukraine’s capital on a non-game day and there are few banners or flags to suggest the national team is on a historic run to its first quarter-finals of a European football championship.

But scratch the surface and you’ll find a city of diehards. “I’m set for a Ukraine victory,” said Andriy, 29, the head of a marketing agency, outside the popular Espressoholic cafe in the Podil district. “I know, of course, that England are stronger, but I want to believe.”

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Covid: Sage scientist fears England could repeat ‘mistakes of last summer’

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Prof Stephen Reicher says restrictions may have to be reimposed if reopening leads to surge in infections

A scientific adviser to the government’s Covid-19 response has expressed fears England could be in danger of repeating “the mistakes of last summer”.

Prof Stephen Reicher, from the University of St Andrews and a member of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) subcommittee on behavioural science, said the government may have to reimpose restrictions if the reopening leads to a surge in infections.

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‘A downward spiral that began in 2016’: German media react to England’s win

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Press criticises outgoing coach Joachim Löw for selection and tactics, tempered with praise for opponents’ ‘efficiency’

For England, Tuesday’s 2-0 win ended a 55-year jinx against a side they had repeatedly failed to edge past in the knockout rounds of major tournaments. But for Germany, too, the defeat at Wembley marked the end of an era.

“The Euros were meant to be a dignified send-off for national coach Joachim Löw,” said Boris Büchler in a comment for broadcaster ZDF. In his first 10 years in charge of Germany’s national team, Löw had taken his sides at least to the semi-final of every tournament they participated in. In 2014, he came home from Rio de Janeiro with the World Cup.

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England v Germany: Euro 2020, last 16 – live!

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45+1 min: A dreadful pass by Thomas Muller is intercepted by Sterling, who advances through the centre. He charges forwards and is tackled on the edge of the Germany penalty area. The ball squirts towards Kane, who looks like he can’t miss ... but Mats Hummels sticks out a leg and relieves him of possession as he tries to take the ball around Neuer. That was close!

45 min: Kalvin Phillips gets booked for a meaty challenge on Toni Kroos. Both England’s holding midfielders are on yellow cards.

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Business leaders arriving in England granted exemption from Covid quarantine

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Ministers facing criticism over new rules for visitors who bring ‘significant economic benefit’

Ministers have been accused of making a “mockery” of quarantine rules after it was announced some business executives travelling to England will be able to temporarily leave self-isolation.

Rules for those arriving from amber list countries have been changed to let visitors entering the country bringing “significant economic benefit” interrupt their up to 10-day stay at home for important business activities.

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England beat Czech Republic to top group as Raheem Sterling strikes again

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More than anything, it was a night when Gareth Southgate needed his attacking talents to express themselves. Safe passage to the last 16 at Euro 2020 had been guaranteed but could England show something to generate a bit of excitement, to fire the feeling that they might be able to cut through teams – a quality that had been wholly absent last Friday in the 0-0 draw with Scotland? Thanks in large part to Jack Grealish and Bukayo Saka, who both came into the starting lineup for the first time at these finals, they did so during an enjoyable first half when England asked questions of the Czech Republic with their movement and interplay.

Related: Bukayo Saka’s versatility has Czechs flailing and England flying | Jonathan Liew

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Euro 2020: Uefa blocks rainbow light display at Germany v Hungary – live!

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“It was like a winter bath for the people’s souls.” Marcus Christensen looks at the Danish media reaction to last night’s excitement in Copenhagen.

Related: ’Now we take Wales’ – Danish media celebrates ‘magical’ night against Russia

If you’re struggling with live football cold-turkey this afternoon, I feel compelled to inform you that some intense, high-quality, low-scoring cricket is taking place in Southampton, where India are fighting back against New Zealand. And you can follow it here.

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England frustrated by steely Scotland in Euro 2020 stalemate at Wembley

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England had the points on the board, they had the star quality and the theory was that they would drive home their favouritism, making a statement en route to the last 16 of this European Championship. So much for theories. Instead, it turned into a night of frustration, when the flaws in Gareth Southgate’s attacking gameplan were etched across Wembley and Scotland revelled in showing their old rivals that it is a perilous business to write them off.

On an occasion that will live long in the memories of the few thousand visiting fans in attendance, who included Sir Alex Ferguson, their team defied England, holding them at arm’s length with a performance of spirit and no little quality. From an England point of view, it was disconcerting to witness the relative ease with which they did so.

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Scotland’s Covid travel ban extended to Manchester and Salford

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Nicola Sturgeon prohibits non-essential travel as Delta variant spreads through north of England

Nicola Sturgeon has imposed a travel ban between Scotland and Manchester and Salford as a result of rising Covid cases.

The restrictions, which will come into force from Monday, add to travel limits put in place last month as the Delta variant spread rapidly through the north of England.

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The Covid Delta variant: how effective are the vaccines?

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Analysis: what protection do they offer against infection, hospital admission and death?

As lockdown easing in England is delayed from 21 June to a possible date of 19 July amid concerns of a substantial wave of hospitalisations due to the Delta variant of coronavirus, we take a look at the latest data on the protection offered by vaccines.

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Why is Israel lifting Covid restrictions as England extends them?

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Analysis: both are viewed as running successful vaccine campaigns, but case numbers are very different

Israel and the UK were viewed as world leaders in their coronavirus vaccine campaigns but whereas the former is lifting almost all pandemic limitations, the latter is now glumly extending its restrictions in England amid a sharp rise in infections.

Despite starting its mass inoculation programme after the UK in December, Israel has sped ahead and it reached a key milestone on Tuesday, scrapping a requirement to wear face masks indoors, one of the final Covid limitations.

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