Covid self-isolation cut to seven days with negative test in England
The Covid self-isolation period has been cut to seven days in a move that could save Christmas for thousands of people and ease mounting staff shortages.
From Tuesday, new guidance will enable the 10-day self-isolation period for vaccinated people in England who have tested positive for coronavirus to be reduced by three days if they get the all-clear from lateral flow tests.
People who receive negative results from tests taken 24 hours apart on day six and day seven of their self-isolation period will no longer have to self-isolate for the full 10 days, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said.
Those who leave self-isolation on or after day seven are “strongly advised” to limit close contact with other people in crowded or poorly ventilated spaces, work from home and minimise contact with anyone who is at higher risk of severe illness if infected with Covid-19, the agency added.
Read the full story here.
Hello it’s Samantha Lock back with you on the blog.
First up, some numbers out of Australia where I will reporting to you from.
The state of NSW has recorded 3,763 new cases and two deaths. It is rise of more than 700 on yesterday’s number, a previous record day. Victoria reported 1,503 cases and six deaths.
Meanwhile, Australia could have 200,000 new Covid cases a day by late January or early February under a “worst-case scenario” included in Doherty Institute modelling to be discussed at national cabinet.
Summary
- Boris Johnson has confirmed no further Covid restrictions will be put in place in England before Christmas. The UK prime minister said there was currently not enough evidence to justify tougher measures before Christmas but curbs could be imposed after 25 December.
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Edinburgh’s annual Hogmanay street party has been cancelled, while in Wales employees face £60 fines for failing to work from home as governments tightened rules to limit the spread of the Omicron variant. The Scottish and Welsh governments also imposed limits on sporting events from Boxing Day.
- People over the age of 60 in Israel will be eligible for a fourth Covid vaccination, the country’s prime minister, Naftali Bennett, announced. His remarks came the country recorded its first death from the Omicron variant.
- The World Health Organization’s European chief has warned countries to brace for a “significant surge” in cases as Omicron spreads across the continent. Dr Hans Kluge said Omicron is now the dominant variant in a number of European countries, including the UK, Denmark and Portugal.
- The next mayor of New York City, Eric Adams, said on Tuesday he would postpone his inauguration ceremony, which was set for 1 January, due to the rise in cases of the Omicron variant of Covid-19. He did so shortly after the current mayor, Bill de Blasio, announced that residents who get a Covid-19 booster shot by the end of the year will receive $100.
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Germany has announced a string of new measures that are to take effect from 28 December “at the latest”, in a bid to get a rampant surge in new infections under control. Chancellor Olaf Scholz said the fourth wave of infections was now under control, but warned that the fifth wave was just around the corner.
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Portugal’s government ordered nightclubs and bars to shut doors and told people to work from home from 26 December to at least 9 January to control the spread of Covid-19 over the holiday period. A negative coronavirus test will also be required to stay at Portuguese hotels and outdoor gatherings will be limited to 10 people per group on New Year’s Eve.
- The archbishop of Canterbury has said that people will have felt “sorrow and sadness” seeing the photograph of Downing Street staff drinking together last May because it will have reminded them of what they sacrificed. In an interview, Justin Welby hinted at his disapproval over the gathering, saying that leadership involved setting an example.
- A bailout package worth about £1bn for businesses losing trade because of the Omicron surge was announced by the UK’s chancellor, Rishi Sunak. The funding will primarily help firms in the leisure and hospitality sectors, and follows concerns that they have faced cancelled bookings.
Israeli PM announces fourth Covid jab for over-60s to tackle Omicron
Israelis over the age of 60 and medical teams will be eligible for a fourth Covid vaccination to protect against the fast-spreading Omicron variant, the country’s prime minister, Naftali Bennett, has announced.
“The citizens of Israel were the first in the world to receive the third dose of the Covid-19 vaccine and we are continuing to pioneer with the fourth dose as well,” he said on Tuesday, calling on those who meet the criteria to “go and get vaccinated”.
Bennett’s remarks came after a meeting of the country’s ministerial coronavirus cabinet which convened amid growing concern over the spread of the Omicron variant.
The premier called the pandemic expert committee’s decision to go ahead with a fourth dose “wonderful news that will assist us in getting through the Omicron wave that is engulfing the world”.
A statement from the health ministry noted that immunodeficient people will also be eligible for the fourth shot, which can be administered to them, elderly people and the medical teams at least four months after the third shot.
Read the full article here:
Updated
The UK’s National Health Service has increased the daily rate of booster vaccinations by three-quarters in a week – but remains short of the roughly 1.5m jabs a day needed to match Boris Johnson’s promise of a booster jab for all those eligible by the end of the year.
One group of health service bosses said the NHS “should not be blamed” if the target is not met, reflecting concern there could be political recriminations if the goal set by the prime minister just over a week ago is not reached.
On Monday, 897,979 boosters were administered around the UK, compared with 513,722 a week ago, the day after the prime minister brought forward the vaccination target in a televised address.
There remain 15.1 million people across the UK who had a second jab before the end of September and have not yet had a booster – and there are 10 days, excluding Christmas Day, to complete the programme in line with the prime minister’s pledge.
Read the full article by my colleagues Dan Sabbagh and Libby Brooks here:
The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has said he thought about “the sorrow and sadness” many will have felt at seeing the picture of Boris Johnson and Downing Street staff drinking wine during lockdown.
Speaking to ITV, he said he “felt a whole lot of emotions” after seeing the photograph, adding:
I thought about the many people who’ll look at that and remember what they were doing on that day – and the sorrow and sadness they felt because of not being able to see someone or a bereavement of the last time they saw someone they loved.
Although he said he was “not quick to judge people”, he said it “costs lives” not to have the “moral authority to lead”.
There needs to be truth and integrity and the cost of leadership is that you set an example. You lead from the front which means you obey the rules.
Updated
The next mayor of New York City, Eric Adams, said on Tuesday he would postpone his inauguration ceremony, which was set for 1 January, due to the rise in cases of the Omicron variant of Covid-19.
He did so shortly after the current mayor, Bill de Blasio, announced that residents who get a Covid-19 booster shot by the end of the year will receive $100.
“Today we’re announcing a $100 incentive for anyone who gets a Covid-19 booster at a city-run site or with our partner Somos Care,” De Blasio said. “This is a limited time opportunity – through 12/31.
“This is the moment. Get your booster and protect your family and city,” he said.
In his own statement, Adams, a Democrat like De Blasio, said: “It is clear that our city is facing a formidable opponent in the Omicron variant. After consulting public health experts, we have decided that [the] inauguration ceremony will be postponed to a later date.”
The Omicron variant is spreading rapidly. According to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Omicron is now the dominant version of the coronavirus in the US, making up 73% of new infections last week. CDC data revealed a nearly six-fold increase in Omicron’s share of infections in just one week.
New York state reported that nearly 22,000 people tested positive on Friday, the highest single-day total for new cases since testing became widely available. More than half of the positive results came from New York City.
Read the full article here:
Updated
One of Britain’s most senior scientific figures has warned “uncontrolled, high transmission” could have a “profound” impact across all sectors in the country.
Jeremy Farrar, director of the Wellcome Trust, said it is “impossible to have a functional economy” if high rates lead to illness, time off work and hospitalisations.
As we await more data to confirm trends, he has recommended the public get boosted, wear masks in all indoor spaces as well as to reduce contacts as much as possible.
5/6 5) Try & prioritise plans for next 2 weeks - what & who is really important to you to meet? 6) Improve ventilation where ever possible & meet outside if possible 7) Test regularly & on same day as meeting others if possible 8) If symptoms stay at home, even if LFT negative.
— Jeremy Farrar (@JeremyFarrar) December 21, 2021
Early human testing of an experimental Covid-19 antiviral pill developed by Pardes Biosciences shows it works as a standalone treatment, the company said.
If the drug, PBI-0451, proves effective in later-stage testing, it could have an advantage over similar pills that need to be taken with a second booster medication, such as Pfizer’s two-drug antiviral regimen, Paxlovid.
Pardes said it expects to complete its current phase I study in healthy volunteers early next year and plans to go public by merging with a special purpose acquisition company, Reuters reports.
“We’re hoping to be able to move as quickly as possible and generate significant data in 2022,” said the company’s chief development officer Brian Kearney.
The Pardes pill is a protease inhibitor, designed to prevent the coronavirus from replicating in human cells. Company officials said it plans to discuss with regulators the design of a larger, global trial of PBI-0451, including the number of participants and geographic locations.
Updated
Hospital bosses in England are bracing themselves for “a dangerous situation” because of the fast-growing Omicron-driven surge in Covid cases, an NHS leader has said.
Responding to Boris Johnson ruling out any new rules limiting social mixing in England before Christmas, NHS Confederation chief executive Matthew Taylor said: “It remains a question of when rather than if further restrictions will be brought in to curb the rapid spread of Omicron.
“While it is for the government to decide national policy on Covid restrictions, many NHS leaders are preparing for a dangerous situation in which rising patient numbers coincide with rising numbers of NHS staff off sick. That is why we must monitor the situation daily and stand ready to respond to changing evidence,” said Taylor.
He did not comment directly on the prime minister’s decision. But it is likely that hospital chiefs, many of whom are busy finalising plans for yet another wave of seriously ill patients who need to be admitted, will be concerned at Johnson’s reluctance to change tack because his action could help the virus to spread – which could result in a spike of hospitalisations.
Taylor urged the public to behave responsibly over the festive season. “The best thing the public can do is continue to behave in ways that will keep themselves and others safe, including taking up the offer of a vaccine or booster if they are eligible,” he added.
Updated
Hello, it is Léonie Chao-Fong here, taking over from my colleague Jedidajah Otte. The World Health Organization’s European chief has warned countries to brace for a “significant surge” in cases as Omicron spreads across the continent.
Speaking at a press conference in Vienna, Dr Hans Kluge said Omicron is now the dominant variant in a number of European countries, including the UK, Denmark and Portugal. He said:
We can see another storm coming.
Within weeks, omicron will dominate in more countries of the region, pushing already stretched health systems further to the brink.
Last week, 27,000 people died from Covid in the region and an additional 2.6m cases were reported, he said. Although these cases include all variants, he noted this figure is 40% higher than during the same period last year. He added:
The sheer volume of new Covid-19 infections could lead to more hospitalisations and widespread disruption to health systems and other critical services.
Governments and authorities need to prepare our response systems for a significant surge.
Updated
The Welsh parliament will be recalled on Wednesday “to consider a matter of urgent public importance”, government officials have confirmed.
First minister Mark Drakeford will make a virtual statement addressing the Senedd on the Covid-19 pandemic from 1.30pm and ministers will then have the opportunity to ask questions.
It will follow a government media briefing which will be held just after midday to update the country on the Omicron crisis after Cabinet talks were held on Tuesday.
The Senedd has been on winter recess since Monday. It is planned to sit again in Plenary on Tuesday, 11 January 2022.
Updated
Germany poised to introduce tougher restrictions after Christmas
Germany has announced a string of new measures that are to take effect from 28 December “at the latest”, in a bid to get a rampant surge in new infections under control.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz, North Rhine-Westphalia’s prime minister Hendrik Wüst and Berlin’s governing mayor Franziska Giffey gave a press conference about new coronavirus measures.
Scholz said the Omicron variant would soon cause infections to skyrocket. “Covid-19 won’t take a Christmas break,” he said.
The chancellor said the fourth wave of infections was now under control, but warned that the fifth wave was just around the corner.
Private gatherings will be limited to 10 people even for those who have recovered from the virus or who have been vaccinated. Children under the age of 14 are not included in this number. Clubs and discos will remain closed.
The “2G rule” – which stipulates that people must either be vaccinated or recovered from Covid-19 – will apply in cinemas and theatres.
In addition, the sale of fireworks will be prohibited on New Year’s Eve, and there will be a ban on assemblies on 31 December.
Tough restrictions for unvaccinated people will remain in place – with the 3G rule [having to be either vaccinated, recovered or able to produce a negative test] applying at work and on public transport, and tight contact restrictions also applying over Christmas.
All measures decided on Tuesday should not start until after Christmas, Scholz said, adding that the past few years had shown that Easter and Christmas aren’t major drivers of infection.
The government is aiming to administer a further 30m booster vaccinations by the end of January, Scholz said. As an interim goal, the overall vaccination rate in the population is hoped to increase to at least 80%.
The different heads of Germany’s individual states will meet again on 7 January to discuss further steps, which is also when further financial aid for companies will be discussed again.
Updated
France will pass a law that will transform its health pass – currently needed to exercise some professions and to go to cinemas and bars – into a “vaccination” pass in the first half of January, government spokesman Gabriel Attal told journalists on Tuesday.
Reuters reports:
“The wave awaiting us will be high,” Attal said, adding that the Omicron variant accounts for 20% of new Covid-19 infections in France and is spreading rapidly, particularly in the Paris region.
The main aim of a vaccination pass will be to do away with the option of obtaining a valid certificate by testing negative instead of having the jabs.
In contrast to other European governments, Attal on Tuesday ruled out further restrictions, saying that the country had the means to battle the next wave of cases with its vaccination campaign and mass testing.
France logged 72,832 fresh infections on Tuesday, compared with 63,405 a week ago.
Updated
Israel records first death from Omicron variant
Israel on Tuesday recorded its first death from the Omicron coronavirus variant, according to Israeli news media which on Tuesday reported that a man in his seventies with pre-existing conditions died in Beersheva on Monday after having received two vaccination doses, Reuters reports.
The country confirmed 170 new cases of the Omicron variant, the health ministry said on Tuesday, bringing the total number of confirmed cases of the highly infectious variant to 341.
The health ministry said it was looking into 807 confirmed Covid cases that may be Omicron, but have yet to be confirmed, Haaretz reports.
The government’s coronavirus cabinet is set to meet later on Tuesday to discuss ways to handle the spread of the Omicron variant in Israel, in what will be the cabinet’s first meeting since the end of November.
Fresh infections continue to soar, with Tuesday’s 1,306 new coronavirus cases marking a two-month peak, but the number of patients in serious condition remains stable, according to official figures.
The country’s R number – representing the average number of people each coronavirus carrier goes on to infect – continues to climb, but the country has been able to observe a slight downward trend in serious cases over the past month.
Currently, there are 81 patients in serious condition, out of whom 48 are in critical condition and 41 are on ventilators.
Updated
Portugal tightens restrictions over virus wave concerns
Portugal’s government on Tuesday ordered nightclubs and bars to shut doors and told people to work from home from 26 December to at least 9 January to control the spread of Covid-19 over the holiday period.
Prime minister Antonio Costa also announced that a negative coronavirus test would be required to stay at Portuguese hotels and said authorities would limit outdoor gatherings to 10 people per group on New Year’s Eve.
Portugal’s recorded infections are still below the EU average, with 433 new Covid cases per day per million inhabitants. But in the previous week, this number stood at 386.
A total of 7,801 people were in hospital in the UK with Covid-19 as of 20 December, government figures show.
This is the highest number since November 23 and is up 1% from a week earlier, PA reports.
During the second wave of coronavirus, hospital numbers peaked at 39,254 on 18 January.
Separate figures from NHS England show that 1,904 people were in hospital in London with Covid-19 as of 21 December, the highest number since 2 March and up 41% from a week earlier.
The peak of the second wave had stood at 7,917 on 18 January.
Across England, 6,902 patients were in hospital with Covid-19 on 21 December – the highest number since 10 November and up 7% week-on-week.
The second-wave peak for England was 34,336 on 18 January.
Updated
Italy reported 153 coronavirus-related deaths on Tuesday versus 137 the day before and 120 a week prior, the health ministry said, while the daily tally of new infections rose to 30,798 from 16,213, the first time above 30,000 since November last year.
Italy has registered 135,931 deaths linked to Covid-19 since February last year, the second-highest toll in Europe after the UK and the ninth-highest in the world. The country has reported 5.4 million cases to date.
Patients in hospital with Covid-19 – not including those in intensive care – stood at 8,381 on Tuesday, up from 8,101 a day earlier.
There were 96 new admissions to intensive care units, up from 73 on Monday. The total number of intensive care patients increased to 1,012 from a previous 987.
851,865 tests for Covid-19 were carried out over the past 24 hours, compared with a previous 337,222, the health ministry said.
Updated
British prime minister Boris Johnson said on Tuesday that he would not be introducing new Covid-19 restrictions in England before Christmas, but stressed the situation remained extremely difficult and the government might need to act afterwards.
In a video posted on social media, Johnson said:
We don’t think today that there is enough evidence to justify any tougher measures before Christmas.
We can’t rule out any further measures after Christmas.
We continue to monitor Omicron very closely and if the situation deteriorates we will be ready to take action if needed.
Johnson said that while people could go ahead with their Christmas plans, he would urge them to be cautious and follow advice such as keeping windows open and taking a Covid test before visiting elderly or vulnerable relatives, and get a booster jab if possible.
I wanted to confirm that people can go ahead with their Christmas plans.
— Boris Johnson (@BorisJohnson) December 21, 2021
But we’re keeping a constant eye on the data and can’t rule out any further measures after Christmas.
Please continue to be cautious, follow the guidance and Get Boosted Now: https://t.co/VKGvuQ4lzq pic.twitter.com/506RPwP94h
The Philippines’ health ministry on Tuesday halved the waiting time for a Covid-19 vaccine booster to three months after a second vaccination to help prevent the spread of the more infectious Omicron variant.
A growing list of countries, including South Korea, the UK, Thailand and Germany are shortening the interval for boosters to try to stave off a new surge in infections, Reuters reports.
Adults in the Philippines can receive a booster dose at least three months after the second shot of a two-dose vaccine, cutting the six-month gap.
Recipients of a single-dose vaccine can get a booster shot after two months, the health ministry said.
“We are exploring all possible options to safely mitigate the effects of more transmissible variants of Covid-19,” health secretary Francisco Duque said in a statement.
The Southeast Asian nation has detected three imported cases of the Omicron variant.
The Philippines has received more than 192m doses of Covid-19 vaccines, and fully inoculated roughly 44.2 million of its 110 million population, government data show.
In November, the government started the rollout of booster doses for healthcare workers and the elderly.
Covid-19 cases have fallen to an average of 378 a day in December from the peak of 18,579 daily in September.
Updated
A further 90,629 lab-confirmed Covid-19 cases have been recorded in the UK as of 9am on Tuesday, the government said.
A further 172 people were reported to have died within 28 days of testing positive for Covid-19.
Separate figures published by the Office for National Statistics show there have now been over 173,000 deaths registered in the UK where Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificate.
On Monday, the UK reported 91,734 new daily infections, and 59,077 a week ago.
The UK Health Security Agency said there had been 15,363 additional confirmed cases of the Omicron variant of Covid-19 reported across the UK.
This brings the total confirmed cases of the variant in the UK to 60,508.
Updated
A total of 897,979 booster and third doses of Covid-19 vaccine were reported in the UK on Monday, new figures show.
It is the second-highest figure on record, behind 940,606 doses on Saturday 18 December.
More than 29.8 million booster and third doses have now been delivered in the UK, with 5.8 million in the past seven days.
The figures have been published by the UK’s four health agencies.
Updated
Vaccine sceptics in Sicily paid a nurse to give them fake Covid-19 jabs in order to obtain a health certificate that is mandatory for some professions, police said on Tuesday.
Reuters reports:
Three people, including the nurse and a local leader of the movement known in Italy as ‘No-Vax,’ have been arrested and face charges of corruption and forgery.
Police used a hidden camera to film the nurse at a major inoculation centre emptying the vaccine syringe into a tissue before briefly putting the needle into the arm of the recipient.
About a dozen health passes were obtained in this fashion, including by a policeman. Local media reported that people paid up to €400 each for the service.
“We have uncovered the dark and fraudulent plots of these die-hard, No-Vax people who do not hesitate to break the law,” Palermo police commissioner Leopoldo Laricchia said in a statement.
In an effort to curb Covid-19 infections, the government has made vaccinations mandatory for health care workers, teachers, law enforcement officers and the military.
Italy further tightened curbs on people who are still not vaccinated on 6 December, limiting their access to an array of places and services, including indoor seating at bars and restaurants, museums, cinemas, clubs and sporting events.
Some 81% of all Italians have received either one or two jabs – one of the highest rates in Europe – while 26% of the population has had a booster jab.
As pressure has mounted to get vaccinated, so have reports of people trying to dupe the system.
Earlier this month, a dentist turned up at a vaccination centre in northern Italy wearing a fake silicone arm, hoping to fool a nurse into giving him a jab in order to obtain a Covid-19 health certificate.
Updated
Scotland to tighten Covid measures as Omicron becomes dominant strain
Omicron is now firmly established as the dominant strain of coronavirus in Scotland, first minister Nicola Sturgeon has said, as she announced new restrictions on public events.
Large-scale Hogmanay celebrations in Scotland are to be cancelled and live sports will be “effectively spectator-free” for three weeks from Boxing Day.
More restrictions in hospitality venues will be introduced after Christmas.
People in Scotland should also minimise their socialising at New Year, with Sturgeon urging people to keep their contacts with other households to a minimum.
Updating MSPs, the first minister said 62.9% of cases showed the S-gene dropout, and that more restrictions were needed to slow the spread of the virus.
She said:
It is currently spreading rapidly across Scotland, and so the steep increase in infections that was predicted last week has now started to materialise.
She added:
Difficult though it is, please follow this advice over New Year – minimise Hogmanay socialising as much as you can.
If we all follow the advice to minimise the contact we have outside our own households, we will help limit the spread of infections.
This is the bedrock of our plan for the immediate period ahead.
On restrictions for hospitality, Sturgeon told MSPs:
From 27 December, again for a three-week period – we intend to introduce some further protections in hospitality settings and other indoor public places to reduce transmission risk in what are, through no fault of those who run such venues, higher-risk environments.
I can confirm that a requirement for table service-only will be reintroduced for venues serving alcohol for consumption on the premises.
And we will also ask indoor hospitality and leisure venues to ensure one-metre distance, not within, but between groups of people who are attending together.
Recent funding from the Treasury will give Scotland an extra £175m to spend now, Sturgeon said.
She told MSPs the entirety of this sum would go towards supporting businesses, bringing the total package for business support over the next three weeks to £375m.
Discussing the new restrictions for hospitality, which include a rule for table service-only in venues serving alcohol, she said:
I know how unwelcome this will be for everyone - but we believe these precautionary steps will help us navigate a difficult period more safely.
I am also acutely aware that these decisions - and the advice we are giving the public – have significant financial implications for many businesses.
Updated
More than two-thirds of people aged 18 and over and who are eligible in England have received a booster jab against Covid-19, NHS England said on Tuesday.
In total, over 25 million people who are at least three months on from their second dose have already been boosted in England, with the online service opening to eligible adults last Wednesday.
The latest numbers follow a week of “blockbooster” records for vaccinations, including a weekend with over 830,000 booster jabs delivered on Saturday – the highest number ever – and more than 1.5m boosters reported over Saturday and Sunday.
More than 5.3m boosters were reported between 13 and 20 December.
More than four in five of people aged 50 and over have now been boosted.
The NHS is urging everyone who is eligible – three months on from their second jab and able to book after two months – to get their booster as soon as possible.
However, people cannot get vaccinated within 28 days of having had the virus.
Recent data from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) showed that two doses of the vaccine are not enough to stop people becoming unwell from Omicron, but a booster significantly increases protection against the variant.
On Monday, the NHS opened the national booking service for 12- to 15-year-olds to get their second Covid-19 vaccine with more than 1.3 million young people already having taken up the offer of a first dose.
Updated
Despite high vaccination rates, Spain could be forced to reintroduce measures as the Omicron variant is running rampant.
Prime minister Pedro Sánchez will meet via video with the heads of Spain’s 17 regions on Wednesday to discuss new health measures, while medical groups and experts are clamouring for more action to be taken.
The country had hoped to rely on the willingness of 80% of its entire population of 47 million (90% of those over age 12) to line up for vaccine shots with little-to-no prodding and the widespread use of face masks to have a Christmas that looked much more like 2019 than like last year, AP reports.
But the incredibly fast spread of the Omicron variant is starting to put pressure on hospitals, prompting authorities in Catalonia to prepare to become the first Spanish region to reinstate serious limitations (see 10:35). The region accounts for one in four people hospitalised in Spain with Covid-19.
“We had all hoped to spend these Christmas holidays with our family and loved ones, but unfortunately we are not in that situation,” Catalan regional president Pere Aragones said Tuesday. “You don’t have to look at the numbers. All of us know people who have been infected.”
Spain is back in the high-risk zone with over 600 cases per 100,000 inhabitants over 14 days, more than double the accumulated cases seen before last year’s winter holidays.
The Omicron strain has increased from 5% of new cases in Spain to 47% within one week, according to the health ministry.
Updated
The British government needs to provide certainty, not just handouts for Covid-hit firms, a business owner has said.
Nathan Godley, of restaurant supplier Premier Seafoods, told BBC Radio 4’s World at One:
This time of year I need to know what I need for the restaurants and they are unsure what to tell me, and I am unsure what to tell my supplier.
Fish doesn’t just go from the boat to the restaurant. There’s quite a few of us in this supply chain in between and we all need to know what is happening.
Godley said he wanted an idea of how he could plan a week in advance, adding: “I don’t need any handouts. I am not asking for that. I am just asking for certainty.”
His remarks were echoed by the president of British Chambers of Commerce, who said the new grants for hospitality businesses this Christmas are a “good start”, while calling for more certainty about future restrictions.
Conservative peer Baroness Ruby McGregor-Smith told BBC Radio 4’s World at One:
We asked very much for grant support, so we are delighted that grant support has been given, but we don’t know yet the definition of eligible businesses and companies.
I think it is a good start. Our concern is around the fact that we need business confidence and we have got uncertainty.
We need to know that we can stay open and continue to trade and consumers will return.
Shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves said Labour “will be going through the details” of the new support measures for businesses, adding the government had been “dragged kicking and screaming” to announce them.
Mark Davyd, founder and chief executive of Music Venue Trust, described the announcement of a further £30m for the government’s culture recovery fund this winter as “inadequate” to deal with the impact of rising cases on the sector.
Michael Kill, chief executive of the Night Time Industries Association, said newly-announced support for the culture sector was “far too little” and “borders on the insulting”.
Updated
Sweden introduces tighter restrictions amid surging infections
Sweden will urge all employees to work from home if possible and impose tighter rules for social distancing, the government said on Tuesday, as it ratchets up restrictions aimed at fighting a surge in new infections of the Covid-19 virus.
The new rules also will also require seated-only service at bars and restaurants as well as at larger public events.
“We must now take joint responsibility and we need to adapt to the new reality,” prime minister Magdalena Andersson told a news conference.
“I understand that many are tired of this – so am I – but we now have a new virus variant, which means we are in a new situation.”
The Swedish Health Agency said on Tuesday that the worst case scenario in an updated pandemic model would lead daily new Covid infections to rise beyond 15,000 by mid-January.
In previous waves of the pandemic, daily infections have peaked at just over 11,000 cases, Reuters reports.
The new model projection factored in the spread of the more contagious Omicron variant, assuming it is 25% more contagious than the Delta variant and factored in varying degrees of protection offered by vaccines.
Updated
A bailout package worth about £1bn for businesses losing trade because of the Omicron surge was announced by the British chancellor, Rishi Sunak, on Tuesday.
The funding will primarily help firms in the leisure and hospitality sector in England, and follows concerns that they have faced cancelled bookings and plummeting custom since the government implemented its Covid plan B.
My colleagues Andrew Sparrow and Richard Partington have the full story.
Hundreds of far-right protesters gathered in Romania’s capital, Bucharest, on Tuesday to oppose a bill that would introduce “green certificates” in workplaces, which authorities hope will limit the spread of coronavirus infections and prevent another collapse of the country’s health care system, AP reports.
The protest was attended by various rightwing groups including supporters of Romania’s nationalist AUR party, which holds seats in parliament.
Romania, a European Union nation of about 19 million, faced its deadliest wave of coronavirus infections and deaths in October and November when intensive care units across the country were overwhelmed with Covid-19 patients, and hospital morgues ran out of space.
In response to the unfolding disaster, authorities tightened restrictions in late October, and daily coronavirus cases have since dropped to their lowest since August.
Authorities are concerned another surge is on the cards, after Romania confirmed more than a dozen cases of the Omicron coronavirus variant.
Romania’s new coalition government is discussing a bill that would require people going into their workplaces to present green certificates – available to those with proof of full vaccination, those who have recovered from Covid-19, or those who have a negative test.
They would be introduced after three consecutive weeks of an increasing Covid-19 infection rate, and once a certain incident rate is exceeded.
Only 40% of Romania’s population, or 7.7 million people, have received two doses of a coronavirus vaccine. About 2 million of those have also received the booster dose.
Over the winter holidays, hundreds of thousands of Romanians living abroad are expected to return home, which prompted authorities to implement on Monday passenger locator forms to improve the traceability of infections. In 24 hours, more than 100,000 forms have been filled out.
Updated
Germany’s Robert Koch Institute for infectious diseases recommended on Tuesday that “maximum contact restrictions” should be imposed immediately, to curb a surge in infections caused by the Omicron variant.
Among the body’s other recommendations, which applied through mid-January 2022, were restricting travel only to what was absolutely necessary, accelerating the vaccination campaign and ensuring that enough free coronavirus tests were available, Reuters reports.
Federal and state leaders are expected to meet later on Tuesday to decide on new measures, which are likely to include contact restrictions even for the vaccinated and those who have recovered from an infection, but a nationwide lockdown seemed to be off the agenda on Tuesday morning.
The RKI reported 23,428 new infections on Tuesday, and 462 deaths, taking Germany’s total to 108,814.
Paul Hunter, professor in medicine at the University of East Anglia (UEA), said the previous rapid increase in cases in England appears to be slowing and, if that is true, there is no need for a lockdown.
Meanwhile, Prof Hunter told PA Media that measures such as social distancing and lockdowns “never ultimately prevent infection unless eradication is a possibility”.
He said:
What they do is flatten the curve and delay the inevitable. Sometimes that is sufficient if the epidemic would overwhelm the health service, or if effective new treatments or vaccines are coming.
No new treatments or vaccines are likely to come soon so the issue is all about flattening the peak.
But if you flatten the peak you prolong the epidemic, or as we say, ‘the area under the curve remains the same’.
Prof Hunter said if Omicron cases continue to double every two days “then it would not be long before we got to seriously high numbers that would eventually put the NHS under a dreadful strain and under some predictions could ultimately overwhelm the NHS.”
Under some modelling scenarios, high hospital admissions are “pretty much locked in” and “a lockdown after Christmas would probably be too late”, he said, but at the lower end of the predictions, hospital admissions would not overwhelm the NHS.
He added:
If restrictions are not needed then they would only delay illness and prolong the impact on health services as well as the other negative impacts that lockdowns have on our wellbeing.
Prof Hunter said the “latest data suggests that total case numbers, and therefore Omicron, may already have plateaued or even peaked”.
Indeed, infection numbers may have fallen slightly in the last few days.
Updated
Transmission of the Omicron variant in the UK is “eye-wateringly high”, though there is still uncertainty about its impact on the NHS and whether the situation warrants further restrictions, a leading expert has said.
Sir Jeremy Farrar, director of the global charitable foundation Wellcome and a former government adviser, said “we’re in the most difficult, most uncertain time, perhaps of the whole pandemic, certainly since March of 2020.”
The government is expected to release further details on Tuesday about supporting firms struggling due to the advice for people to rethink some of their Christmas plans.
Farrar told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme:
Omicron is spreading unbelievably fast. It is a phenomenal variant, transmission is eye-wateringly high, but there is great uncertainty.
What is it going to lead to in terms of pressure on the health system, people going to hospital, people dying, but also what impact is it going to have on the broader society, staff absences, the ability to have functioning other services? So there is great uncertainty.
My personal view is that I think we can wait at the moment until there are more restrictions formally placed, but each of us can do a lot of things today that would make the chances of further restrictions lighter.
More data will be available today and tomorrow and I would act on those if transmission is rising still and if hospitalisations are going up across the country.
He said that, until recently, Omicron was doubling every two days and it was not yet known if that was levelling off.
People were already changing their behaviour and workplaces were breaking up for the Christmas break, meaning previous predictions of between 6 and 10 million cases by the New Year were “unlikely to happen”, he said.
Nevertheless, Farrar warned of a potential impact on essential workers, including nurses, doctors and teachers, if transmission is not curbed.
He said:
At the moment, with the incredibly difficult policy and political decisions that need to be made, this is a time of great uncertainty, but I think waiting for that data for the formal decisions doesn’t mean to say that all of us can’t do what we can do over the coming days and weeks to reduce the chance of transmission and all of our sectors suffering and the economic damage that comes from that.
There is data coming out today and if it does show the transmission is continuing to rise and if hospitalisations in London and across the rest of the country are starting to rise, then the government will have to act before Christmas.
Updated
In New York City, nearly 42,600 people citywide tested positive from Wednesday through Saturday last week, compared with fewer than 35,800 in the entire month of November, AP reports.
The city has never had so many people test positive in such a short period of time since testing became widely available.
On Saturday, the state of New York recorded the highest number of daily Covid cases since the pandemic began.
Governor Kathy Hochul urged New Yorkers to not be complacent, get vaccinated and boostered once eligible and wear a mask.
This is not March 2020. This is not December 2020. We have the tools to defend ourselves from COVID.
— Kathy Hochul (@GovKathyHochul) December 20, 2021
Get vaccinated. Get the booster once you are eligible. Wear a mask.
Our administration is taking action to give all New Yorkers tools to stay safe. We're making $65 million available to help counties combat rising cases, expand vaccine & booster efforts, increase testing, and enforce our temporary mask-or-vaccine requirement.
— Kathy Hochul (@GovKathyHochul) December 21, 2021
There is no clear picture of how many people got the virus during the city’s first surge in the spring of 2020.
Updated
US president plans free home tests to avoid Omicron lockdown
US president Joe Biden plans to avoid a lockdown and instead increase support for hospitals, improve access to Covid-19 testing through hundreds of millions of rapid at-home tests and expand the availability of vaccines that can reduce the risks from the Omicron variant.
A senior administration official, insisting on anonymity, provided details on the proposals Biden will announce in his speech Tuesday afternoon, the Associated Press reports.
The administration is prepared to deploy an additional 1,000 troops in medical professions to hospitals as well as direct federal medical personnel to Michigan, Indiana, Wisconsin, Arizona, New Hampshire and Vermont.
There are also plans to send out additional ventilators and equipment from the national stockpile besides expanding hospital capacity to handle infected patients.
The government will purchase 500m rapid at-home tests to be delivered for free to the homes of Americans who request them, and put up new testing sites and use the Defense Production Act to help manufacture more tests.
In a preview of Biden’s speech, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said at Monday’s press briefing that the president doesn’t plan to impose any lockdowns and will instead be encouraging people to get vaccinated – and, if they’re eligible, to get their booster shot.
“This is not a speech about locking the country down. This is a speech about the benefits of being vaccinated,” Psaki told reporters.
Biden’s top medical adviser, Dr. Anthony Fauci, said over the weekend that Biden will issue “a stark warning of what the winter will look like” for unvaccinated Americans.
Psaki said Biden has tested negative twice since Sunday and will test again on Wednesday, after he had been in close contact with a staff member on Air Force One who later tested positive for Covid-19.
There are 40 million eligible but unvaccinated American adults. Psaki said the president plans to appeal to survival instincts.
“Our health experts assess that you are 14 times more likely to die of Covid if you have not been vaccinated versus vaccinated,” she said Monday.
The Omicron variant has already become the dominant strain in the US, accounting for nearly three-quarters of new infections last week.
Early studies suggest that the vaccinated will need a booster shot for the best chance at preventing an omicron infection but that even without the extra dose, vaccination should still largely protect people from serious sickness or death.
Updated
About one in four local authority areas in the UK are recording their highest rate of new Covid-19 cases since mass testing began in summer 2020, new analysis shows.
PA Media reports:
The areas include two-thirds of authorities in London, more than half in south-east England and nearly a half in eastern England.
Most of the rest of the country has yet to reach record levels, however, with only a handful of areas in the north and west seeing rates at an all-time high.
The figures, which have been compiled by the PA news agency, show that:
• 21 of the 32 local authorities in London now have record Covid-19 case rates, with the capital accounting for the top 10 highest rates in the UK and 20 of the top 25.
• Four London areas have rates above 2,000 cases per 100,000 people: Lambeth (2,461.4), Wandsworth (2361.9), Hackney and City of London (2,096.8) and Southwark (2,064.0)
• In south-east England, 37 of the 64 local authorities are now seeing record rates, led by Elmbridge (1,384.7), Reigate and Banstead (1,317.3) and Epsom and Ewell (1,271.6), all of which are in Surrey.
• 21 of the 45 local authorities in eastern England have record case rates, including St Albans (1,311.3) and Cambridge (1,177.0).
These are not the highest rates in the region, however – Brentwood (1,460.3) and Thurrock (1,342.2) in Essex are higher, though this is slightly below the record for both areas, which was set during the second wave of the virus last winter.
• 12 of the 40 areas in the East Midlands are at a record high, led by South Northamptonshire (970.8), Broxtowe in Nottinghamshire (917.8) and Charnwood in Leicestershire (916.6)
All figures are for the seven days to 16 December, as data for more recent days is still incomplete.
In total, 102 of the 377 local authority areas in the UK (27%) are now recording their highest Covid-19 case rates since mass testing was rolled out across the country in May and June 2020.
Figures for case rates in the early months of the pandemic are not directly comparable, as only a small number of people were being tested, mostly in hospitals and care homes.
Of the 102 areas, only 11 are outside the south and east: six in north-west England (Bury, Cheshire West and Chester, Manchester, Salford, Stockport and Trafford); three in Scotland (East Lothian, Edinburgh and West Lothian); one in Northern Ireland (Ards and North Down); and one in the West Midlands (Newcastle-under-Lyme).
The contrast between the south and east and the north and west reflects the way the Omicron variant of Covid-19 has spread in recent weeks – in particular, how London was the first area of the UK where Omicron became the dominant variant of the virus.
Although nine in 10 local authorities in the UK are recording a week-on-week rise in rates, most areas in the north and west of the country have yet to hit levels seen during the second wave of the virus.
But this could change in the days and weeks ahead, once Omicron has become the dominant variant in all parts of the country.
Updated
Weekly registered deaths with Covid-19 in England and Wales have fallen to their lowest level in two months, new figures show.
Seven hundred and 64 deaths were registered in the week to 10 December where “novel coronavirus” was mentioned on the death certificate, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said, accounting for 6.4% of all deaths registered over this seven-day period.
This was a 4% decrease in the number of deaths compared with the previous week when 792 deaths were recorded.
It is the lowest number of weekly deaths registered since the week to 15 October, when the total was 713.
It is too early to see what impact the rapid spread of the Omicron variant will have in the weekly ONS data on Covid-19 deaths.
Overall, England registered 3,185 deaths due to Covid-19 in November 2021, an increase of 774 compared to October, the ONS said.
In Wales, there were 302 deaths due to Covid-19 in November 2021, compared with 284 deaths in October.
The figures also show that 65 care home resident deaths involving Covid-19 in England and Wales were registered in the week to December 10, down slightly from 67 in the previous week.
In total, 44,406 care home residents in England and Wales have had Covid-19 recorded on their death certificate since the pandemic began.
The ONS figures cover deaths of care home residents in all settings, not just in care homes.
A total of 173,525 deaths have occurred in the UK where Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificate, the ONS said.
Updated
Summary
Here is a round-up of all the day’s top Covid news stories from around the world:
- The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that holiday festivities would in many places lead to “increased cases, overwhelmed health systems and more deaths” and urged people to postpone gatherings.
- Covid vaccine maker Moderna does not expect any problems in developing a booster shot to protect against the Omicron variant of coronavirus and could begin work in a few weeks, chief executive Stephane Bancel said in an interview.
- Catalonia is preparing to become the first Spanish region to reinstate serious limitations given the latest spike in infections in a country that is among the world leaders in vaccination.
-
New Zealand plans to shorten the gap between second Covid vaccine doses and boosters, as well as pushing back the phased reopening of its borders.
- Germany looks set to introduce new contact restrictions around New Year’s Eve, as chancellor Olaf Scholz and the federal heads of state meet this afternoon to discuss ways to protect the country’s essential services from being overwhelmed by an anticipated new wave driven by the highly infectious Omicron variant.
- In Australia, a NSW man who absconded from hotel quarantine in Hobart and sparked a three-day lockdown across southern Tasmania has been sentenced to five months’ jail for breaching public health orders.
-
Thailand will reinstate its mandatory Covid quarantine for foreign visitors and scrap a quarantine waiver from Tuesday, the Reuters news agency reported.
-
India has recorded 200 cases of the Omicron coronavirus variant across 12 states, mostly in the western state of Maharashtra and the nation’s capital New Delhi, the health ministry said on Tuesday.
- Concerns are growing in Spain as the country prepares to enter the Christmas season without a clear plan. The sixth wave of Covid has sent infection rates soaring – the number of cases per 100,000 people hit 609 on Monday, up from 381 a week ago and 290 a fortnight ago.
- People hopping over the border to Belgium and Germany to avoid the Dutch lockdown are filling the neighbouring countries’ restaurants and shops despite calls for them to “stay away”.
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Hungary has decided to rejoin the European Union’s Covid vaccine procurement process to shield its population from the Omicron variant, ordering 9.5m doses of the jab developed by BioNTech and Pfizer.
That’s it from me, Tom Ambrose, for today. I will be back tomorrow morning but, for now, I am handing over to my colleague Jedidajah Otte, who will be bringing you all the latest coronavirus news throughout the day.
Catalonia is preparing to become the first Spanish region to reinstate serious limitations given the latest spike in infections in a country that is among the world leaders in vaccination.
Health authorities have asked the courts to authorise a battery of measures including a new nightly curfew between 1am and 6am, a limit of 10 people per social gathering, the closure of night clubs, and capping restaurants at 50% of seating indoors and stores, gyms and theatres to 70% capacity.
If approved by the courts, they would take effect on Friday and last for 15 days in the north-east region surrounding Barcelona.
Regional health chief Josep Argimon said that the measures are needed because of the arrival of the more contagious omicron variant. “Infections have grown 100% over the past week,” he said.
Updated
People hopping over the border to Belgium and Germany to avoid the Dutch lockdown are filling the neighbouring countries’ restaurants and shops despite calls for them to “stay away”.
Since Mark Rutte, the Dutch prime minister, announced the closure of hospitality and non-essential shops from Sunday, border regions have experienced a rush of visitors.
While the hospitality industry in the Netherlands is shuttered, Belgium has resisted scientists’ calls for stricter measures, with restaurants open until 11pm to customers who can prove full vaccination. The German Länder, or states, have been given the power to close restaurants but such measures are generally yet to be enforced.
At a meeting with the governor of the Belgian province of Antwerp, Cathy Berx, on Monday, local mayors expressed their concern about the potential spread of the Omicron variant due to border-hopping.
Berx said: “Letting this happen is the shortest route to a closure of the catering industry, and nobody wants that. And so the friendly but firm appeal is: don’t come to cafes or restaurants in the province of Antwerp now.”
Germany looks set to introduce new contact restrictions around New Year’s Eve, as chancellor Olaf Scholz and the federal heads of state meet this afternoon to discuss ways to protect the country’s essential services from being overwhelmed by an anticipated new wave driven by the highly infectious Omicron variant.
A draft proposal, seen by several German papers, proposes banning gatherings of more than ten people, closing clubs and discotheques and holding larger sports events behind closed doors from at least 28 December.
Children under the age of 14 are exempt from the rule, while unvaccinated people are already only allowed to meet no more than two people from outside their own household.
Germany’s rates of new infections and deaths have dropped over the last week, but the government’s council of scientific advisers has warned the expected spread of the Omicron variant will soon create “extreme pressure” not just on hospital’s emergency care unit but critical infrastructure like police, fire services and delivery services.
The new measures come as the country continues to debate the introduction of a general vaccine mandate in the spring, with parliament likely to hold a free vote on the subject early in the new year.
Justice minister Marco Buschmann, of the Free Democratic party (FDP), said there would likely be three motions that delegates will vote on: a general mandate that would see fines for those who continue to resist vaccination, an outright rejection of a general mandate, and a compromise whereby a vaccine mandate would be phased in by age groups.
Chancellor Scholz and finance minister Christian Lindner have indicated their support for a general mandate, while a group of around 30 FDP delegates have said they would outright reject a general mandate.
Updated
Concerns are growing in Spain as the country prepares to enter the Christmas season without a clear plan. The sixth wave of Covid has sent infection rates soaring – the number of cases per 100,000 people hit 609 on Monday, up from 381 a week ago and 290 a fortnight ago.
The surge is already putting some hospitals and medical centres under strain. Although the proportion of ICU beds occupied by Covid patients stands at 15.5% nationally, it rises to 25% in the Basque Country and almost 30% in Catalonia.
The prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, has urged people to remain calm but called an emergency meeting of Spain’s regional presidents on Wednesday afternoon to discuss the response. Some regional administrations are already taking their own measures. On Monday, the Catalan government said it was seeking legal permission to introduce a curfew between 1am and 6am that would begin on Friday and last for two weeks. It also plans to close nightclubs and limit gatherings to 10 people.
In Madrid – where the regional president, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, has fiercely resisted restrictions, arguing they are too damaging economically – school authorities have called on the regional government to “urgently” consider shutting schools two days before the end of term to help counter the spread of infections.
Doctors in the capital and the surrounding region have also warned that immediate action must be taken to stave off collapse as the highly infectious omicron strain accounts for 60% of new infections.
The Official College of Madrid Doctors said trying to control the spread of the variant through nothing but testing and isolation risked collapsing the region’s primary care system. It called for restrictions on the number of people allowed in enclosed spaces such as bars and restaurants, and caps on social gatherings. The college also said that the vaccination of school-age children needed to be brought forward to help arrest the spread of the new strain.
Updated
Hungary has decided to rejoin the European Union’s Covid vaccine procurement process to shield its population from the Omicron variant, ordering 9.5m doses of the jab developed by BioNTech and Pfizer.
Prime minister Viktor Orbán also told a news conference on Tuesday that he expected the European Commission would publish a clear stance before the end of the year including nuclear energy in its “sustainable finance taxonomy”, a rulebook that will restrict which activities can be labelled as climate friendly investments.
Updated
Rail operators in the UK have blamed coronavirus-related staff shortages for widespread cancellations during the Christmas getaway.
A number of firms are running reduced timetables due to workers being off sick or isolating, PA Media reported on Tuesday.
CrossCountry said it is “expecting widespread disruption to our services this week”.
It went on: “Please pull your journey forward to sooner rather than later to get to your end destination as early as possible.”
Dozens of trains are being cancelled by the company each day, and many others have fewer carriages than usual.
Cancellations have been made on several of its routes, including Manchester to Bournemouth via Birmingham; Bristol to Paignton, Devon; Cardiff to Nottingham; and Birmingham to Stansted airport.
Avanti West Coast told passengers: “The pandemic is unfortunately resulting in some staff shortages. We’re doing everything we can to run our full timetable but there may be some short-notice cancellations.”
The firm has removed all peak ticket restrictions over the Christmas period in a bid to spread demand.
Govia Thameslink Railway said a train crew shortage means there will be a reduced service across the Southern, Thameslink and Great Northern network until the end of the day on Christmas Eve.
Greater Anglia said it has removed trains from its timetables due to falling passenger numbers “as people follow advice to work from home”.
It added: “We also have to plan for our staff being affected by the Omicron variant, especially as we’re already starting to see the early signs of its impact, to ensure we can continue to provide a reliable service.”
Updated
In Australia, a NSW man who absconded from hotel quarantine in Hobart and sparked a three-day lockdown across southern Tasmania has been sentenced to five months’ jail for breaching public health orders.
Much of the island state, including the capital, was forced into lockdown on 15 October after Timothy Andrew Gunn, 31, returned a positive coronavirus test having spent time in the community.
He had been directed to quarantine at Hobart’s Travelodge hotel for two weeks when he landed several days earlier on a flight from Melbourne.
Gunn told emergency staff he had been in Queensland for the 14 days before arriving when he had in fact spent time in NSW. Tasmania had banned travel from NSW at the time.
Gunn had earlier pleaded guilty to failing to comply with the lawful direction of an emergency management worker, and knowingly providing false or misleading information.
He was sentenced in Hobart magistrates court on Tuesday to five months’ jail, with two of those suspended.
Updated
The UK government borrowed £17.4bn in November, outstripping economists’ predictions and suggesting debt could far overshoot officials’ forecasts if the Omicron coronavirus variant slows the economy as expected.
It was the highest November borrowing since comparable records began 30 years ago, barring last year. Last year, during the furlough scheme, the Treasury under Rishi Sunak set successive peacetime records for monthly borrowing as it covered the costs of 80% of salaries for millions of people as well as support schemes for businesses.
Significant borrowing has continued in 2021, with £136bn borrowed between April and November, according to data published on Tuesday by the Office for National Statistics. That was the second highest since records began in 1993.
Updated
Thailand reinstates mandatory Covid quarantine
Some breaking news has just come in from Thailand.
The country will reinstate its mandatory Covid quarantine for foreign visitors and scrap a quarantine waiver from Tuesday, the Reuters news agency reported.
The move was confirmed by a government spokeswoman who said the action was being taken due to concerns over the spread of the Omicron variant of coronavirus.
Updated
Germany’s leaders are set to decide on new restrictions to come in after Christmas aimed at slowing the spread of the new Omicron variant of Covid, but plans so far fall short of a full lockdown.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Germany’s 16 state governors plan to consult later on Tuesday after the government’s new panel of experts called for action to be taken within days and said that nationwide measures are needed, “in particular well-planned and well-communicated contact restrictions”.”
Officials have said that nightclubs will likely be closed regardless of local infection rates, on which closures currently depend. There are likely to be further restrictions on crowds at major events, while new contact restrictions are expected to be introduced for vaccinated people — with gatherings reportedly to be capped at 10 people.
Restrictions already in place target mainly the unvaccinated, with proof of vaccination or recovery required to enter non-essential stores among other things.
Updated
There would be “economic consequences” to further Covid restrictions, a UK government minister has stated as he said Parliament is not yet due to be recalled to discuss new measures.
Steve Barclay told BBC Breakfast: “The Prime Minister has given a commitment that where there are additional regulations bought forward that Parliament would be recalled in order that Members of Parliament can scrutinise and debate those issues, but we are not at that stage.
“We are looking closely at the data and we need to recognise there are economic consequences to further restrictions.”
He also said that the government will “say more” about its discussions with business leaders calling for more financial support later on Tuesday
He added: “There is much that we still don’t know but we are still looking at that data on what are very finely-balanced decisions.”
Moderna could be ready to develop Omicron booster 'in weeks'
Covid vaccine maker Moderna does not expect any problems in developing a booster shot to protect against the Omicron variant of coronavirus and could begin work in a few weeks, chief executive Stephane Bancel said in an interview.
Moderna hopes to start clinical trials early next year on a vaccine to protect against the fast-spreading Omicron variant but for now is focusing on a booster dose vaccine.
“It only needs minor adjustments for Omicron. I don’t expect any problems,” Bancel said in an interview with the Swiss newspaper TagesAnzeiger published on Tuesday. The company was awaiting important information on the variant to begin development.
“That will take another week or two,” Bancel said. “It will take a few months before we can produce 500m doses after [regulatory] approval. But our capacities are much higher today than a year ago,” he said.
If approval bodies such as the US Food and Drug Administration and Switzerland’s Swissmedic require further studies, that would add at least three months.
“Some authorities want a study, others are still undecided. In my opinion, it depends very much on how severely the disease progresses,” he said.
Updated
Iran’s top diplomat to Yemen died on Tuesday after reportedly contracting coronavirus, Iranian state TV has said, just days after he was abruptly recalled from his mission in the war-torn nation.
The Associated Press reports:
State-run media in Iran said Ambassador Hassan Irloo had become infected with the coronavirus in Yemen, where a conflict between Iran-backed Houthi rebels and a Saudi-led military coalition has raged for six years. Authorities said he was flown out of the country for urgent medical treatment in Iran over the weekend.
However, The Wall Street Journal earlier reported that Irloo was being removed from his post over growing strains between Iran and the Houthis, who seized Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, and much of the country’s north in 2014. In an effort to oust the Iran-backed rebels on its southern border, Saudi Arabia intervened in the war months later with a U.S.-backed bombing campaign.
Iran’s foreign ministry has denied that his departure was the result of tensions with the Houthis.
Houthi spokesman and chief negotiator Mohammed Abdul-Salam offered his condolences on Monday. He said earlier this week that the ambassador had departed Sanaa on an Iraqi flight made possible despite a Saudi air blockade on the capital through “an Iranian-Saudi understanding via Baghdad.”
Hello, I’m Tom Ambrose and I will be bringing you all the latest Covid news over the next couple of hours.
Let’s start with the news that New Zealand plans to shorten the gap between second Covid vaccine doses and boosters, as well as pushing back the phased reopening of its borders.
Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins told reporters the government has agreed to a “suite of precautionary measures” in light of the threat posed by the omicron strain of the coronavirus.
The gap between a second vaccine dose and a booster will be shortened from six to four months, meaning 82 percent of vaccinated New Zealanders will be due for a booster by February.
New Zealand’s strict border regulations so far have been successful in keeping omicron from spreading in the community. The only cases reported so far have been in travelers who are in managed isolation and quarantine.
“Public health advice suggests that soon every case coming into our border, into our managed isolation facilities, will be the omicron variant,” Hipkins said. “We already know that booster vaccinations significantly lift an individual’s immunity, reducing the spread and the severity of Covid-19.”
Updated
India has recorded 200 cases of the Omicron coronavirus variant across 12 states, mostly in the western state of Maharashtra and the nation’s capital New Delhi, the health ministry said on Tuesday.
The country’s tally of Omicron cases has nearly doubled within a week, but there have been no deaths reported so far. In less than 40% of cases, patients either fully recovered or were discharged, the data showed.
India has been accelerating its vaccination campaign amid fears of potential surges in infections, with at least one dose given to 87% of the eligible 944 million adults.
India recorded 5,326 new Covid-19 infections in the past 24 hours, the lowest overnight tally in more than one and a half years. Overall, the country has reported 34.75 million cases, the second-highest behind only the United States.
Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya told parliament on Monday that 80% of Omicron cases were asymptomatic.
Lockdown party inquiry could expand to cover No 10 garden event
Bereaved families have accused Boris Johnson of showing “flagrant disregard” for the public as ministers struggled to explain the justification for a wine and cheese event in Downing Street at the height of lockdown.
A Cabinet Office inquiry into other alleged government parties in breach of Covid rules could be expanded after the Guardian published an image showing the prime minister alongside his wife and up to 17 staff in the Downing Street garden in May 2020.
Amid growing fury over the photograph, Johnson said on Monday: “Those were meetings of people at work, talking about work.” Labour dismissed Downing Street’s explanation and said it amounted to evidence of law-breaking.
The Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice group said the lack of any signs of work, with red wine and a cheeseboard visible rather than laptops or pens, showed Johnson “presided over a culture of believing that the rules applied only to other people”.
Read the full story here.
Kuwait will require travellers arriving to the country to have a Covid booster shot if more than nine months have passed since their vaccination, the government communication centre said in a tweet on Monday.
The procedures are to be followed for those arriving to Kuwait as of 26 December, the announcement said.
Kuwait will also require incoming travellers to quarantine at home for 10 days unless they receive a negative PCR test for the coronavirus within 72 hours of their arrival.
New year ‘too late’ for extra Covid rules in England, scientists say
Scientists have reacted with dismay to Boris Johnson’s decision not to impose fresh restrictions to curb the spread of Omicron, emphasising that waiting until the new year would “almost certainly be too late to have a material impact on the epidemic”.
Because the rate of growth in infection rates may already have plateaued or fallen by then, it may also be too late to know what impact those restrictions would have had if they had been introduced earlier. “We are damned if we do and damned if we don’t,” said Paul Hunter, a professor of medicine at the University of East Anglia.
The prime minister announced after a cabinet meeting that he would not be introducing any further Covid restrictions for now, adding: “The situation is extremely difficult and the arguments either way are very, very finely balanced.”
Data on the hospitalisation rate for those infected with the Omicron variant would be kept under “constant review”, he said, with government sources hinting that further restrictions were likely after Christmas, possibly starting a week tomorrow.
Read the full story here.
Hello it’s Samantha Lock with you on the blog today as we unpack a busy day of Covid announcements and government changes over the Omicron variant.
The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that holiday festivities would in many places lead to “increased cases, overwhelmed health systems and more deaths” and urged people to postpone gatherings.
“An event cancelled is better than a life cancelled,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters.
In a blow to those wanting to join in on the celebrations in England’s capital, London mayor Sadiq Khan has announced the New Year’s Eve celebration event scheduled in Trafalgar Square will not go ahead because of the surge in Omicron cases.
The event was set to host 6,500 key workers and members of the public but has been cancelled “in the interests of public safety,” Khan said.
Here’s a wrap-up of the day’s news so far.
- The Omicron variant is spreading faster than Delta and is causing infections in people already vaccinated or who have recovered from Covid, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) says.
- Travellers to Hong Kong from Britain will have to initially quarantine in a government camp from Tuesday, joining 12 African nations and the United States on the city-state’s strictest entry tier, Agence France-Presse reports.
- Australian prime minister Scott Morrison has rejected a return to Covid lockdowns.
- New Zealand has announced a suite of measures to strengthen its defence against the Omicron variant, including pushing back the start of its quarantine-free border reopening for its citizens returning from Australia to the end of February.
- The Chinese city of Xi’an began testing millions of residents for the coronavirus on Tuesday after the detection of 42 new cases.
- Singapore has detected a cluster of three Covid-19 cases linked to a gym, its ministry of health said late on Monday.
- The White House says US president Joe Biden had close contact with a staff member who later tested positive for the coronavirus and is experiencing symptoms of Covid-19.
- Health officials in Texas say the state has recorded the first death related to the Omicron Covid variant. It is believed to be the first known recorded Omicron death in the United States.
- Omicron is now the dominant version of the coronavirus in the US, federal health officials said on Monday, racing ahead of Delta and other variants and accounting for 73% of new infections last week.
- Los Angeles has called off its New Year’s Eve celebrations as the Omicron variant sweeps across the US.
- The World Health Organisation declared 2022 to be the year ‘we end the pandemic’ while sounding a new warning about the Omicron variant, arguing some events over the festive period should be postponed.
Chinese city tests millions for Covid
The Chinese city of Xi’an began testing millions of residents for the coronavirus on Tuesday after the detection of 42 new cases raised concerns of wider transmission, Agence France-Presse reports.
China is now fighting local outbreaks in several cities, including key industrial hubs in the east and south.
Authorities are intent to extinguish the flare-ups ahead of a crucial period that will see the capital Beijing host the Winter Olympics in February as well as a surge in cross-country travel during the Lunar New Year.
Xi’an - a historic northwestern city of around 13 million people -has also shut schools and large indoor recreation venues while encouraging residents to avoid going out and congregating in large groups, according to local government notices.
The museum housing the world-famous Terracotta Army - the 2,000-year-old mausoleum of China’s first emperor - said in an online statement that it had closed from Sunday “according to the needs of epidemic prevention work”, without giving a reopening date.
The president of the Australian Medical Association (AMA) Dr Omar Khorshid has called on the national cabinet to institute a national plan to tackle Omicron, while reinstating mask mandates for indoors and high-risk settings as well as density restrictions.
“Tightening public health restrictions should not be seen as a policy failure,” Khorshid said. “There is a growing consensus among key medical experts [that] we need to do more to slow the spread of Omicron.”
Khorshid described NSW premier Dominic Perrottet’s approach as “reckless”.
DIY contact tracing, watered-down check in requirements, the abandonment of mask wearing mandates, and the removal of density limits altogether [are] a recipe for disaster and by the time hospital admissions and ICU cases grow beyond whatever benchmark he is working to – it will be too late.
A much more cautious approach is required, at least until we know more about Omicron and its severity of illness. We are not going to be able to eliminate Omicron, but we can do a lot to slow its spread, reduce pressure on the health system, save lives and keep businesses open. Indoor mask mandates, mandatory check ins, density limits for venues and major sporting events, all need to be part of a stronger national response to Omicron.”
Hong Kong adds Britain to government camp quarantine
Travellers to Hong Kong from Britain will have to initially quarantine in a government camp from Tuesday, joining 12 African nations and the United States on the city-state’s strictest entry tier, Agence France-Presse reports.
Throughout the coronavirus pandemic, Hong Kong has maintained some of the world’s toughest quarantine restrictions, with curbs increasing due to the Omicron variant.
Most people arriving in Hong Kong must undergo 21 days of hotel quarantine and frequent testing before being allowed out.
However, people from countries deemed to have high Omicron infection rates must spend the first four days of quarantine in a government-run camp before seeing out the rest of their isolation in a hotel.
Britain was added to that list from midnight on Tuesday.
The other countries on the highest tier are Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa, the United States, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Will the UK face another Covid Christmas?
That’s the question Guardian science correspondent Nicola Davis attempts to answer on the latest Today in Focus episode.
The British government hasn’t cancelled Christmas – yet – but the rate of the Omicron variant’s spread should make us all reconsider our plans, Davis reports.
Last winter, after promising the nation it would get to enjoy Christmas as usual, prime minister Boris Johnson’s government made an 11th-hour U-turn, introducing new Covid-19 restrictions in a last-ditch attempt to control the virus. It was “the right decision – made at the wrong time and in the wrong way”, as the Observer put it.
This year, the government has been reluctant to be seen cancelling Christmas again. But as the Omicron variant sweeps through the country, rising case numbers are making the situation harder to ignore.
Over the weekend, Sage issued guidance suggesting that whole households should stay home if one member tests positive for Covid-19. These guidelines, however, are only recommendations. On Monday afternoon, the prime minister and his cabinet held an emergency meeting to discuss the possibility of introducing new official restrictions, but ultimately decided not to announce binding new curbs quite yet.
All this comes just days after the Guardian published a photo from a May 2020 garden party at Downing Street where Johnson and his partner can be seen apparently breaking lockdown rules. Guardian science correspondent Nicola Davis tells Michael Safi that while trust in the government has suffered, the public has consistently demonstrated a desire to adhere to measures for the collective good.
Listen to the latest Today in Focus episode here.
NHL to shut down season early amid Covid spike across league
The NHL will begin a leaguewide shutdown on Wednesday amid an increase of positive Covid-19 test results among players across the league, ESPN confirmed on Monday night.
Beginning the annual holiday break two days early means five additional games will be postponed, bringing the total this season to 49.
The league and NHL Players’ Association on Sunday said in a joint statement they were attempting to avoid a leaguewide shutdown and were making decisions on a team-by-team basis. The latest shift gives all 32 teams an extended break before players, coaches and staff can gather again Sunday to skate and undergo coronavirus testing.
Read the full story here.
Summary
It’s been a busy day with announcements from global health bodies and governments changing course on Covid plans.
Here’s a wrap-up of the day’s news so far.
- The Omicron variant is spreading faster than Delta and is causing infections in people already vaccinated or who have recovered from Covid, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) says.
- Australian prime minister Scott Morrison has rejected a return to Covid lockdowns.
- New Zealand has announced a suite of measures to strengthen its defence against the Omicron variant, including pushing back the start of its quarantine-free border reopening for its citizens returning from Australia to the end of February.
- Singapore has detected a cluster of three Covid-19 cases linked to a gym, its ministry of health said late on Monday.
- The White House says US president Joe Biden had close contact with a staff member who later tested positive for the coronavirus and is experiencing symptoms of Covid-19.
- Health officials in Texas say the state has recorded the first death related to the Omicron Covid variant. It is believed to be the first known recorded Omicron death in the United States.
- Omicron is now the dominant version of the coronavirus in the US, federal health officials said on Monday, racing ahead of Delta and other variants and accounting for 73% of new infections last week.
- Los Angeles has called off its New Year’s Eve celebrations as the Omicron variant sweeps across the US.
- The World Health Organisation declared 2022 to be the year ‘we end the pandemic’ while sounding a new warning about the Omicron variant, arguing some events over the festive period should be postponed.
Australian prime minister Scott Morrison has rejected a return to Covid lockdowns.
Ahead of a national cabinet meeting, Morrison told reporters:
We have to move from a culture of mandates to a culture of responsibility.”
We’ve got to get past the heavy hand of government and we’ve got to treat Australians like adults.”
State and territory leaders will hold a snap meeting before Christmas to discuss the issues posed by the Omicron variant.
Morrison has been urging state leaders to avoid lockdowns and mandates.
Updated
Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau has also issued a statement of reassurance while cautioning the country is “not out of the woods yet”.
“We’re not out of the woods yet. But we’ve got your back, and we can get through this,” Trudeau said in a tweet on Monday evening local time.
“We’ve secured enough boosters for adults across Canada, we’ve got enough vaccines for kids over 5 to get their first shot, and we’re sending more rapid tests to the provinces and territories.”
We’re not out of the woods yet. But we’ve got your back, and we can get through this. We’ve secured enough boosters for adults across Canada, we’ve got enough vaccines for kids over 5 to get their first shot, and we’re sending more rapid tests to the provinces and territories.
— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) December 20, 2021
Updated
US president Joe Biden has addressed Omicron concerns in a series of tweets on Monday evening.
“Folks, Omicron cases are on the rise in the United States. I want to give you all a sense of where we are and what we know,” the president said, adding that vaccines are working.
If you’re an adult choosing to be unvaccinated, you will face an extremely difficult winter for your family and community.
Omicron cases will increase in the coming days—even among fully vaccinated individuals. If you’re vaccinated and boosted, you may still get a breakthrough case but doctors say you will likely have no symptoms or mild ones.
We still need to take precautions and remain vigilant. Listen to the advice from doctors: even if you’re fully vaccinated, you should wear a mask when indoors in a public setting. It will help protect you and others—especially kids under 5 who can’t get vaccinated yet.
We are working around the clock to increase testing capacity, vaccine availability, and support for our hospitals. I’ll have more to say on this tomorrow. In the meantime: Get vaccinated, get boosted, wear a mask. And keep the faith. We’ll get through this together.”
Folks, Omicron cases are on the rise in the United States. I want to give you all a sense of where we are and what we know.
— President Biden (@POTUS) December 21, 2021
South Korea is reporting 5,202 new confirmed coronavirus cases and 52 deaths over the last 24 hours.
A total of 1,022 people are believed to be in critical condition.
The country now requires its citizens over the age of 18 to present a quarantine pass, or proof of Covid vaccination or negative PCR test, in order to access indoor sports events, movie theatres or concert halls.
Singapore has detected a cluster of three Covid-19 cases linked to a gym, its ministry of health said late on Monday.
The variant was found in two men, aged 24 and 21, and an 18-year-old woman.
Two cases have reportedly tested preliminarily positive for the Omicron variant and the result for the remaining case is pending.
All three cases are fully vaccinated and have mild symptoms. The health ministry is now pursuing contact tracing, it added.
“All three cases had no recent travel history. Our epidemiological investigations found that they recently visited Anytime Fitness (Bukit Timah Shopping Centre) between 15 December and 17 December 2021,” the statement read.
There have been 71 confirmed Omicron cases detected in Singapore so far, with 65 imported cases and 6 local cases.
Biden had close contact with staffer who tested Covid positive
The White House says US president Joe Biden had close contact with a staff member who later tested positive for the coronavirus and is experiencing symptoms of Covid-19.
Press secretary Jen Psaki said in a statement Monday night that the staff member tested positive earlier in the day.
The statement read:
On Monday morning, a mid-level staff member, who does not regularly have contact with the President, received a positive result for a Covid-19 test.
Three days earlier, on Friday, that staff member had spent approximately 30 minutes in proximity to the President on Air Force One, on the way from Orangeburg, South Carolina to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
This staff member is fully vaccinated and boosted, and tested negative prior to boarding Air Force One, as is required for everyone traveling with the President.
This staff member did not begin to experience symptoms until Sunday, and was tested on Monday.”
Psaki added that Biden, 79, is tested regularly for the virus and has had two negative tests since Sunday. She says he will be tested again Wednesday.
Los Angeles has called off its New Year’s Eve celebrations as the Omicron variant sweeps across the US.
Organisers of the New Year’s Eve party planned for Grand Park in downtown LA nixed plans for an in-person audience, saying the event will be live-streamed instead, as it was last year.
The event, which is operated by the Music Center, had been slated to include an invite-only audience of the county’s front-line workers and first responders.
“Given the recent uptick in Covid-19 cases in the county, the Music Center/Grand Park team determined the safest route to continue with this popular annual tradition would be to eliminate a live audience,” event officials said, the Los Angeles Times reports.
NZ pushes back border reopening in wake of Omicron
New Zealand has announced a suite of measures to strengthen its defence against the Omicron variant, including pushing back the start of its quarantine-free border reopening for its citizens returning from Australia to the end of February.
Our reporter Eva Corlett has the full story below.
The government will also accelerate the booster vaccine roll-out by shortening the gap between second and third shots, meaning 82% of the vaccinated population will be eligible for it by the end of February.
The Covid-19 response minister Chris Hipkins announced travellers returning to the country will now be required to provide a pre-departure Covid test 48 hours before travel and the government is temporarily lengthening the time of stay in managed isolation and quarantine from 7-10 days.
Read the full story here.
Hipkins said: “All of the evidence so far points to Omicron being the most transmissible Covid-19 variant yet and public health advice says that soon, every case that comes into MIQ will be Omicron.”
“Covid-19 keeps throwing new curve balls and we have to respond in a way that continues to protect lives and livelihoods without putting in place restrictions and lockdowns unless absolutely necessary.”
Hipkins said the re-opening delay will be disappointing for those who had made travel plans over summer, but added that waiting until the end of February to open would increase New Zealand’s overall protection and slow Omicron’s spread.
Cabinet also confirmed that the Pfizer vaccine will be rolled out to 5-11 year olds from January 17.
Updated
Omicron infecting the vaccinated, evading some immune responses
The Omicron variant is spreading faster than Delta and is causing infections in people already vaccinated or who have recovered from Covid, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) says.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a Monday briefing:
There is now consistent evidence that Omicron is spreading significantly faster than the Delta variant.
And it is more likely people vaccinated or recovered from COVID-19 could be infected or re-infected.
WHO chief scientist Soumya Swaminathan added it would be “unwise” to conclude from early evidence that Omicron was a milder variant that previous ones.
“... with the numbers going up, all health systems are going to be under strain,” Soumya Swaminathan said.
The variant is successfully evading some immune responses, she added, meaning that the booster programmes being rolled out in many countries ought to be targeted towards people with weaker immune systems.
“Although we are seeing a reduction in the neutralisation antibodies, almost all preliminary analysis shows T-cell mediated immunity remains intact, that is what we really require,” WHO expert Abdi Mahamud said. “Of course there is a challenge, many of the monoclonals will not work with Omicron,” she added.
US records first Omicron death in Texas
Health officials in Texas say the state has recorded the first death related to the Omicron Covid variant.
It is believed to be the first known recorded Omicron death in the United States, according to a statement from Harris County health officials.
The victim was reportedly a man in his 50s, who was unvaccinated and had underlying health conditions.
The statement read:
The death reported this afternoon was of a man between the ages of 50-60 years old who was unvaccinated and had been infected with Covid-19 previously. The individual was at higher risk of severe complications from Covid-19 due to his unvaccinated status and had underlying health conditions.”
County Judge Lina Hidalgo made the announcement during an afternoon news conference.
“My phone was ringing, I’m sure you guys noticed, and it was our public health director telling me we just had our first Omicron-related death,” she said.
Sad to report the first local fatality from the Omicron variant of COVID-19. A man in his 50’s from the eastern portion of Harris County who was not vaccinated. Please - get vaccinated and boosted.
— Lina Hidalgo (@LinaHidalgoTX) December 20, 2021
Omicron is now dominant Covid variant in US, officials say
Omicron is now the dominant version of the coronavirus in the US, federal health officials said on Monday, racing ahead of Delta and other variants and accounting for 73% of new infections last week.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention numbers showed nearly a six-fold increase in Omicron’s share of infections in only one week.
In much of the country, Omicron’s prevalence is even higher. It’s responsible for an estimated 90% of new infections in the New York area, the south-east, the industrial midwest and the Pacific north-west.
Since the end of June, the Delta variant has been the main version causing US infections. As recently as the end of November, more than 99.5% of coronaviruses were Delta, according to CDC data.
Read the full story here.
The World Health Organisation sounded a new warning about the Omicron variant, arguing some events over the festive period should be postponed.
“All of us are sick of this pandemic,” said WHO director general Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. The fastest way to do this, he said, could mean potentially cancelling or delaying holiday events.
“An event cancelled is better than a life cancelled,” he said. The WHO says there’s now consistent evidence that the Omicron strain is spreading faster than the Delta variant
Watch the video from Monday’s briefing below.
WHO declares 2022 to be the year ‘we end the pandemic’
The world must pull together and make the difficult choices needed to end the Covid-19 pandemic within the next year, the World Health Organization’s director general told reporters in Geneva.
WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus offered some hope to ending the pandemic, which already killed more than 5.6 million people worldwide, saying:
2022 must be the year we end the pandemic.”
WHO pointed towards the development of second and third generation vaccines, and the further development of antimicrobial treatments and other innovations.
The WHO’s top emergency expert, told the briefing:
(We) hope to consign this disease to a relatively mild disease that is easily prevented, that is easily treated.
If we can keep virus transmission to minimum, then we can bring the pandemic to an end.”
As end-of-year festivities approach, the UN health agency chief said countries should rein in national events linked to the holidays because allowing crowds to gather would be a “perfect platform” for Omicron to spread.
WHO warned that holiday festivities would in many places lead to “increased cases, overwhelmed health systems and more deaths” and urged people to postpone gatherings.
“An event cancelled is better than a life cancelled,” Ghebreyesus said.
It would be better to cancel events now and celebrate later “than to celebrate now and grieve later”, he added.
Since it was first reported in South Africa in November, Omicron has been identified in dozens of countries.
Hello it’s Samantha Lock back with you for today’s Covid blog as we countdown until the holiday break.
First up, some positive news to share with you.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has offered some hope to ending the Covid-19 pandemic, which has so far killed more than 5.6 million people worldwide.
“2022 must be the year we end the pandemic,” WHO director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters on Monday.
“(We) hope to consign this disease to a relatively mild disease that is easily prevented, that is easily treated,” Mike Ryan, the WHO’s top emergency expert, added. “If we can keep virus transmission to minimum, then we can bring the pandemic to an end.”
Over in the US Omicron has been found to be the dominant version of the coronavirus, federal health officials have said, racing ahead of Delta and other variants and accounting for 73% of new infections last week.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) numbers showed nearly a six-fold increase in Omicron’s share of infections in only one week.
Omicron is responsible for an estimated 90% of new infections in the New York area, the south-east, the industrial midwest and the Pacific north-west.
Here’s a quick roundup of what’s been happening so far:
- The UK government held off announcing further Covid restrictions but its prime minister, Boris Johnson, warned further measures remain on the table, with data on the threat of Omicron monitored “hour by hour”. Johnson was accused of failing to follow scientists’ advice on the need for immediate restrictions while leaving millions of people and businesses in limbo after a two-hour cabinet meeting ended with no decision on Monday.
- Schools, bars, gyms and cinemas in Quebec will close as of Monday as public health officials race to slow the spread of the Omicron variant. All non-essential workers are being asked to work from home and restaurants will have to reduce their capacity to 50% and limit their hours from 5am to 10pm.
- London’s New Year’s Eve celebration event in Trafalgar Square will not take place because of the surge in cases of the Omicron Covid variant in the capital, the city’s mayor, Sadiq Khan, has said.
- The European Union’s drugs regulator has given the green light to a fifth Covid vaccine for use, granting conditional marketing authorisation to the two-dose treatment made by the US biotech company Novavax.
- Donald Trump was greeted with boos from a live audience after revealing he has received a Covid-19 vaccine booster shot. The former US president dismissed the crowd’s negative response and claimed his administration was responsible for developing the coronavirus vaccines.
- Moderna said a booster dose of its Covid vaccine appeared to be protective against the fast-spreading Omicron variant in laboratory testing and that the current version of the vaccine would continue to be Moderna’s “first line of defence against Omicron”.
- Britain reported 91,743 new Covid cases on Monday, the second-highest figure since the start of the pandemic, as the Omicron variant continues to spread rapidly. The number of deaths within 28 days of a positive Covid test was 44.
- Queen Elizabeth will celebrate Christmas at Windsor instead of her usual choice of Sandringham over Covid safety fears, according to a palace source. The monarch usually spends the festive holiday at her estate in Norfolk and sources have said the decision was “a personal one after careful consideration and reflects a precautionary approach”.
- The Russian maker of the Covid Sputnik V vaccine is due to submit its latest data by the end of December, with manufacturing site inspections expected to follow in February, a World Health Organization official said.
- Panama has detected its first case of the Omicron variant of Covid, the Central American country’s health ministry said.
