Category: UK News

Omicron Would Be Dominant Variant In London Within 48 Hours: UK Official

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Omicron Would Be Dominant Variant In London Within 48 Hours: UK Official

At least one person has died in the United Kingdom after contracting the Omicron coronavirus variant, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday, the first publicly confirmed death globally from the swiftly spreading strain. Since the first Omicron cases were detected on Nov. 27 in Britain, Johnson has imposed tougher restrictions and on Sunday cautioned that the variant could overcome the immune defences of those inoculated with two shots of vaccines. Britain gave no details on the death other than the person had been diagnosed in hospital. It was not…

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UK To Remove All Countries From Covid Travel Red List On Wednesday

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UK To Remove All Countries From Covid Travel Red List On Wednesday

The British government will remove all 11 countries from its COVID-19 travel red list from Wednesday because there is now community transmission of Omicron in Britain, Health Secretary Sajid Javid told parliament. The new Omicron variant was first detected in southern Africa and Hong Kong. The British government added 11 African countries to its red list from late November, meaning that only UK citizens or residents arriving from those nations were allowed in and then had to quarantine in a hotel. “Now that there is community transmission of Omicron in…

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First death from Omicron variant in UK confirmed

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First death from Omicron variant in UK confirmed

At least one person in the UK has died with the Omicron coronavirus variant, the prime minister has said. Boris Johnson said the new variant was also resulting in hospital admissions, and the “best thing” people could do was get their booster jab. Health Secretary Sajid Javid told MPs Omicron now represented 20% of cases in England. The PM has set a new target for all adults in England to be offered a booster by the end of the month. Mr Johnson said people needed to recognise “the sheer pace…

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Boris Johnson apologizes for Christmas party blunder: PM’s Former Press Secretary Allegra Stratton Resigns

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Boris Johnson apologizes for Christmas party blunder: PM’s Former Press Secretary Allegra Stratton Resigns

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson apologised and his adviser resigned on Wednesday after a video surfaced showing his staff laughing and joking about a party in Downing Street during a Christmas COVID-19 lockdown last year when such festivities were banned. For more than a week, Johnson and his team have repeated that no rules were broken in late 2020 after the Mirror newspaper reported there had been several parties – including a wine-fuelled gathering of 40 to 50 people – to mark Christmas. On Wednesday, he said he was furious about…

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Storm Barra: Weather warnings for most of UK as gales and snow hit

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Storm Barra: Weather warnings for most of UK as gales and snow hit

Strong winds, heavy rain and snow have hit parts of the UK, as Storm Barra sweeps across the country. Most of the UK was covered by severe yellow weather warnings on Tuesday – with only the far north of Scotland escaping the worst weather. Gales and blizzards have been reported, with wind gusts reaching 86mph at Aberdaron in Gwynedd. About 3,200 homes in north-east Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales have lost power. But Storm Barra is not expected to be as bad as its predecessor, Arwen, which hit the UK…

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PM Boris Tells Ministers: “Early Indications Suggest Omicron More Transmissible Than Delta”

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PM Boris Tells Ministers: “Early Indications Suggest Omicron More Transmissible Than Delta”

Early signs indicate that the Omicron variant of COVID-19 is more transmissible than the Delta variant currently dominant in the United Kingdom, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson told his Cabinet ministers on December 7. Johnson’s official Number 10 Downing Street spokesperson told reporters in an account of the Cabinet meeting that Johnson reiterated it was still too early to draw conclusions on the wider impact of the new variant, which would depend on whether it causes severe illness. Johnson’s comments come as the UK recorded 101 more Omicron cases on…

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UK & Australia Say AUKUS Pact Over hyped, Allay Fears

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UK & Australia Say AUKUS Pact Over hyped, Allay Fears

Australia and Britain on Thursday defended their nuclear submarine deal with the US amid concerns it could escalate tensions in the region and spark an arms race. UK Minister for Armed Forces James Heappey said there “has been a lot of overhyping” of the pact known as AUKUS. He said the UK and the US have been sharing such technologies for decades and that Australia’s decision to join was merely to develop its own submarine capability. The pact will provide Australia with nuclear reactors to power its submarines but the…

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70 Million Pound Investment, Economic Deals: UK On Minister’s India Visit

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70 Million Pound Investment, Economic Deals: UK On Minister’s India Visit

The UK will invest GBP 70 million green tech infrastructure projects across India, and also fund GBP 11.5 million in two venture capital funds aimed at supporting India’s transition to cleaner energy, it said. India and the UK are expected to sign a series of tech and infrastructure deals during a two-day visit by the UK Foreign Secretary starting today. The visit will also be used to strengthen the economic and security ties between the two countries, the British government said. During her visit, UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss will…

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UK’s Covid-19 cases rises above 50,000: Doctors call for restrictions again, But Boris govt says “NO” to fresh curbs

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UK’s Covid-19 cases rises above 50,000: Doctors call for restrictions again, But Boris govt says “NO” to fresh curbs

The United Kingdom (UK) is witnessing a fresh surge in daily cases of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19). For more than a week, the country has recorded over 40,000 cases. On Thursday, the daily tally crossed the 50,000-mark with 52,009 people testing positive for the virus, the highest single-day increase since July 17. As many as 115 patients died from related complications, while another 29,000 recovered during the day. At present, the UK has 14,44,489 active cases, while the cumulative tallies stand at 86,41,221 infections, 1,39,146 deaths and 70,57,586 recoveries. On…

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UK’s Queen Elizabeth Spent Night In Hospital, Says Buckingham Palace

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UK’s Queen Elizabeth Spent Night In Hospital, Says Buckingham Palace

The Queen attended hospital on Wednesday afternoon for some preliminary investigations and returned to Windsor Castle on Thursday, said the Buckingham Palace. London:  Queen Elizabeth II spent a night in hospital for tests after being forced to cancel a visit to Northern Ireland this week, Buckingham Palace said on Thursday. “Following medical advice to rest for a few days, The Queen attended hospital on Wednesday afternoon for some preliminary investigations, returning to Windsor Castle at lunchtime today (Thursday), and remains in good spirits,” a statement said. Britain’s domestic Press Association…

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