Pfizer vaccine ‘neutralises’ Brazil Covid variant, study finds March 9, 2021 The Pfizer/Biontech coronavirus vaccine is able to combat a new variant of Covid-19 first identified in Brazil, according to a new study. Scientists tested blood samples from patients who had received the Pfizer jab and found it was effective in neutralising a laboratory-made version of the virus similar to the Brazil variant. The research, published in the [...]
London’s Nightingale Hospital to close next month as coronavirus cases plummet across capital March 9, 2021 The Nightingale Hospital at London’s Excel centre will close next month as hospital admissions and coronavirus cases continue to fall dramatically across the capital. All seven Nightingale Hospitals across England will shutter from April, one year after they were built last spring in a bid to ease pressure on the NHS. The temporary facilities, including [...]
‘Missing’ sixth case of Brazil Covid mutation found in Croydon March 6, 2021 A mystery sixth person infected with a new Brazil coronavirus “variant of concern” has been found in Croydon, the health secretary has announced. Six cases of the new mutation, also known as the P1 variant or Manaus variant, had been identified across the UK. Three cases were linked to Scotland, while two out of three [...]
Matt Hancock: Vaccines are breaking the ‘unbreakable link’ between Covid cases and deaths March 5, 2021 The “unbreakable link” from Covid cases to hospitalisations and deaths is now being broken as Britain begins to emerge from the grips of the pandemic, the health secretary has said. Latest official data showed infections have fallen 34 per cent over the past week, as the UK makes rapid progress with the vaccine rollout. Speaking [...]
Boris Johnson challenges EU after Italy blocks Astrazeneca vaccine shipment March 5, 2021 Boris Johnson has challenged the EU’s decision to approve the blockade of 250,000 doses of the Astrazeneca vaccine from being shipped to Australia. Italy yesterday announced it had blocked the shipment of vaccines made at its Anagni plant near Rome after the British-Swedish drug manufacturer failed to meet its EU contract commitments. The European Commission gave [...]
Brits must prove flights are essential as government cracks down on illegal travel March 5, 2021 People wishing to leave the UK from Monday will have to prove their travel is essential, as the government attempts to crack down on illegal holidays in the run-up to leaving lockdown. Passengers will now be required to fill out a mandatory form listing their reasons for travel before leaving the country. Non-essential travel is [...]
Covid: UK R rate rises despite lockdown measures March 5, 2021 The UK’s R rate has crept up slightly, despite Covid cases falling to their lowest level since September amid nationwide lockdown measures, according to the latest official figures. The rate of reproduction of coronavirus now stands at 0.7 to 0.9, meaning every 10 people infected will likely infect between 7 and 9 other people. The [...]
Test and Trace to receive extra £15bn, bringing total funding to £37bn March 4, 2021 The Test and Trace scheme is set to receive an extra £15bn, bringing its total funding over two years to £37bn. The contact tracing scheme, which has been awarded £22bn so far, will receive a further £15bn over the next financial year. The new figures were first revealed by the Huffington Post. It also revealed [...]
EU to launch legal action against UK ‘very soon’ over Brexit grace period extension March 4, 2021 The EU will launch legal action against the UK “very soon” over Britain’s extension of a grace period for checks on goods heading to Northern Ireland, the vice president of the European Commission has said. Maros Sefcovic told the Financial Times the decisions announced by the UK government yesterday had been a “very negative surprise”. Ministers [...]
Pubs without beer gardens to serve pints in car parks from April March 4, 2021 Pubs without beer gardens will be able to serve takeaway pints in car parks when restrictions are eased in April, the government has confirmed. Licensing rules for pubs, bars, cafes and restaurants were simplified last summer to make it easier for businesses to reopen in line with Covid guidelines after England’s first nationwide lockdown. The Ministry of Housing, [...]
