Tag Archives: Britain

The Guardian reports: The UK has recorded a dramatic jump to more than 53,000 Covid-19 cases – its biggest ever daily case count, one day after it crossed 40,000 cases for the first time. Cases have been on the rise as the fast-spreading variant of the coronavirus makes its presence felt. The UK recorded 53,135 new daily infections, as well …

The Guardian reports: British scientists are trialing a new drug that could prevent someone who has been exposed to coronavirus from going on to develop the disease Covid-19, which experts say could save many lives. The antibody therapy would confer instant immunity against the disease and could be given as an emergency treatment to hospital inpatients and care home residents …

The Washington Post reports: In one of Queen Elizabeth II’s most memorable speeches, she referred to the year of 1992 as an “annus horribilis,” a Latin term for horrible year. During her televised Christmas broadcast last year, she described 2019 as “quite bumpy,” after a string of tumultuous events that shook Britain and the monarchy. While the queen has not …

Reuters reports: More than 4,500 lorries, among a huge backlog of trucks stranded for days in the British port of Dover, crossed the Channel on Friday after extra troops were deployed to step up coronavirus testing, a minister said. Ferry services between Dover and the French port of Calais resumed on Thursday, ending a blockade France had imposed for several …

USA Today reports: The United States will require air passengers traveling from the United Kingdom to provide a negative coronavirus test within 72 hours of departure, the CDC  announced late Thursday. The move comes as a growing number of countries banned British travelers amid the rapid spread of a new variant of coronavirus in London and elsewhere. Earlier this week, …

The Independent reports: Boris Johnson has confirmed that UK and EU negotiators have finally agreed a Brexit trade deal, just eight days before the transition period was due to end – in a historic move for Britain. It follows a press conference given by EU Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and former chief negotiator Michel Barnier just moments ago …

The Associated Press reports: Negotiators from the European Union and Britain worked through the night and into Christmas Eve to put the finishing touches on a trade deal that should avert a chaotic economic break between the two sides next week. Trade will change regardless come Jan. 1, when the U.K. leaves the bloc’s single market and customs union. But …

The BBC reports: Germany’s Lufthansa is airlifting fresh fruit and vegetables to the UK on Wednesday as firms seek to beat the lorry chaos at sea ports. The airline said it is carrying 80 tonnes of food from Frankfurt to Doncaster Sheffield Airport for grocers including Tesco and Sainsbury’s. Almost 3,000 lorries remain stuck in Kent despite moves to re-start …

The New York Daily News reports: Gov. Cuomo is calling on New York hospitals and labs to specifically test for a new highly contagious COVID mutation found in the United Kingdom. The governor, who a day earlier worked out a deal with airlines requiring travelers from England report a negative coronavirus test before flying to the Empire State, said he …

Reuters reports: Britain formally left the European Union on Jan. 31 after its 2016 referendum, busince then it has been in a transition period under which rules on free travel and trade remain unchanged. That period ends on Dec. 31. Fourteen European countries, including Portugal and Spain, will grant Britons arriving before Dec. 31 the right to five years of …

The Wall Street Journal reports: The U.K. was braced for potential food shortages and disruption to manufacturing Monday if France continued a ban on freight as well as people traveling from Britain in an effort to stop the spread of a new strain of the coronavirus. The move to bar entry from the U.K., announced by Paris late Sunday, cuts …

The New York Post reports: Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Sunday called it “reprehensible” and “grossly negligent” to allow UK travelers to fly into JFK Airport without being tested despite a contagious new mutation of the coronavirus shutting down London. “Right now, this variant in the UK is getting on a plane and flying to JFK,” Cuomo said in a call …

CBC News reports: Canada joined several European nations by halting flights from the U.K. on Sunday in an effort to prevent a new, potentially more contagious strain of the coronavirus from spreading to this country. CBC News obtained a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) issued by Transport Canada stating that all commercial, private and charter flights transporting passengers from the U.K. …

Politico Europe reports: EU countries are moving to halt travel from the United Kingdom over concerns about a new, infectious strain of the coronavirus. The Netherlands announced a flight ban Sunday from the U.K. while Belgium will impose a 24-hour stop on all travel from Britain to Belgium. Italy’s Foreign Affairs Minister Luigi Di Maio also said Sunday that in …

The Guardian reports: Police will be asked to block families from driving out of tier 4 areas and extra officers will be deployed at railway stations to clampdown on non-essential journeys, it has been announced, following crowded scenes at transport hubs in the capital. The new tier 4 measures imposed from Sunday in London and the south-east indefinitely prohibit non-essential …

Bloomberg News reports: Prime Minister Boris Johnson imposed a full lockdown on London and large parts of southeast England and told the public across the country to avoid travel, in a desperate attempt to stop a new strain of coronavirus that is spreading rapidly in the U.K. After emergency talks with his most senior officials, Johnson canceled plans to ease …

The Guardian reports: Rupert Murdoch has become the latest public figure to have the coronavirus vaccine, visiting his local GP’s surgery late on Wednesday to receive his first dose. A convoy of Range Rovers delivered the 89-year-old billionaire to a dedicated vaccine centre in Henley, Oxfordshire, where normal hours are understood to have been extended at the last minute. An …

The Associated Press reports: Following a sharp spike in new infections — another 25,161 were recorded Wednesday, the highest since Nov. 14 — families are being urged to consider the rules as the outer limits of what they can do. “Have yourselves a merry little Christmas and, I’m afraid, this year I do mean little,” British Prime Minister Boris Johnson …

The Sunday Times reports: Supermarkets are this weekend stockpiling food and other goods after being told by ministers that a no-deal Brexit is on the cards. Food producers have warned there will be shortages of vegetables for three months and emergency planners predict that no-deal would spark panic-buying on a scale that could dwarf the coronavirus crisis. In a sign …

The Express reports: Chief Scientific Adviser Sir Patrick Vallance admitted that it may still be a long time before the world gets back to normal despite the distribution of coronavirus vaccines. While speaking on Sky News he said that in the UK there could be a significant step back to normality as early as spring. However, he noted that even …