Covid: Doctors call for rapid rollout of vaccines
Technology
New UK variant ‘may be more deadly’ Emerging evidence suggests the variant that emerged in the UK may be more deadly as well as spread faster.
Education Secretary Gavin Williamson has said he “certainly hopes” schools in England can fully reopen before Easter, while Downing Street refused to be drawn on whether this would happen by then.
“There is no time to waste when it comes to tackling the crises we face,” he tweeted as he headed to the White House following his inauguration.
image copyrightAFP Joe Biden is preparing to be sworn in as the 46th US president, ending one of the most dramatic political transitions in American history. He is due to take the oath of office at about 12:00 local time (17:00 GMT). Outgoing President Donald Trump, who has not formally conceded to Mr Biden, is
Mr Trump also granted clemency to more than 140 others in his final hours in office.
A total of 4,266,577 people have now received the first dose of a vaccine, according to the latest government figures.
Figures from BBC Radio 4’s File on 4 show there were over 10,400 reports of this type of abuse from 2015 to 2019 – equivalent to an average of 40 a week.
Cases of coronavirus have fallen by almost a quarter across the UK in the last week, showing that the current lockdown is having an effect. But hospital admissions are still rising. Ten hospital trusts across England have reported having no spare critical care beds – despite extra capacity being added. The BBC’s Clive Myrie has
It comes as 10 new mass vaccination hubs open across England.
Half of all over-80s have now been vaccinated, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said. “Each jab brings us one step closer to normal,” he said.
Blackburn Cathedral and St Helens Rugby Ground are among the venues chosen to join the seven hubs already in use.
The latest figures come ahead of Monday’s change in travel rules for the UK, with all travel corridors closing, meaning arrivals from every country will have to quarantine.
All travel corridors will close from 04:00 GMT on Monday. After that, arrivals to the UK will need to quarantine for up to 10 days, unless they test negative after five days.
Dutch government quits over welfare fraud scandal Mark Rutte’s cabinet resigns after families were wrongly accused and many faced financial problems.