Diners stay away from restaurants as Omicron variant spreads across the UK December 23, 2021 People are staying away from restaurants in the run up to Christmas, according to the latest data from Open Table.
AstraZeneca vaccine booster effective against Omicron variant, suggests Oxford University study December 23, 2021 A booster jab of the AstraZeneca vaccine is effective against the rapidly-spreading Omicron variant, according to Oxford University.
European airports passenger numbers slightly up in time for Christmas after plunging amid Omicron fears December 23, 2021 Passenger traffic through European airports increased nine per cent last week, as people make journeys to meet loved ones for the festive season, amid a “substantive” drop in traffic since Omicron was first detected. The number of passengers passing through Europe’s airports has fallen by around a fifth in the three weeks after the Omicron [...]
UK, US and EU received more Covid vaccines in last six weeks than all of Africa throughout the whole of 2021 December 23, 2021 More doses of Covid-19 vaccines were sent to the UK, EU and US in the last six weeks than African countries received all year, according to new analysis shared with City A.M. this morning. Between 11 November and 21 December 2021, the EU, UK and US received 513m doses of vaccines while countries in Africa [...]
Covid researchers ecstatic: Christmas comes early as multiple studies confirm Omicron is mildest coronavirus variant so far and rapidly replaces deadly Delta December 23, 2021 Researchers in the UK are increasingly convinced the Omicron variant of the Coronavirus is much milder than the previous Delta mutation, and most likely the least lethal strain so far, thereby confirming earlier findings in South Africa. According to research by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA(, people who get infected with the Omicron variant [...]
Omicron: Risk of hospitalisation two-thirds lower, Scotland study suggests December 22, 2021 Early data from Scotland suggests Omicron is less likely to result in hospitalisations compared to Delta , says the University of Edinburgh.
Vaccines recommended for younger children in the UK December 22, 2021 A new formulation of the Pfizer BioNTech coronavirus vaccine has been approved for use in children aged five to 11.
UK buys 4.25m more Merck and Pfizer Covid pills to ramp up Omicron defences December 22, 2021 The UK health department has fast-tracked two new deals with Merck and Pfizer to secure an additional 4.25m courses of their anti-Covid pills as it lines up defences for the NHS ahead of an expected winter wave of the new Omicron variant. In the deals announced today, the government has secured 1.75m additional courses of [...]
Met refers itself to watchdog over Downing Street Christmas party scandal December 22, 2021 The Metropolitan Police has referred itself to a watchdog for police over how it handled an alleged Christmas party in Downing Street last year during Covid restrictions, according to reports. Baroness Jones, a member of the Green Party, submitted a complaint over the Met’s refusal to investigate reports of an unlawful Christmas gathering at No.10 [...]
Covid-19: Self-isolation period cut from 10 days to seven with negative result December 22, 2021 People self-isolating with Covid in England can now end their quarantine three days early as long as they receive two negative test results, the health secretary has announced. Under previous rules, people had to self-isolate for a full 10 days if they were infected with Covid-19. Now they can curtail that period by producing negative [...]