Minggu, 05 Desember 2021

Covid: Travel changes too late to halt potential new wave - scientist - BBC News

Passengers push their luggage past signage displaying the way to a Covid-19 test centre, in Terminal 5 at Heathrow airport in London,
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The latest travel rule changes are "a case of shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted," a scientist advising the government has said.

Prof Mark Woolhouse said the new rules had come "too late" to make a "material difference" to a potential wave of the Omicron variant in the UK.

The changes include pre-departure tests for people arriving in the UK and Nigeria going on the travel red list.

No 10 said the changes were due to a rise in travel-linked Omicron cases.

From 04:00 GMT on Tuesday travellers aged 12 and over will be required to show proof of a negative PCR or lateral flow test taken no earlier than 48 hours before departure.

Health Secretary Sajid Javid said the measures were temporary.

Nigeria will also be added to the travel red list of countries from Monday, which means UK or Irish nationals, or UK residents returning from the country must quarantine in a hotel for 10 days.

But the latest changes have been described by the travel industry as a "hammer blow", with the Business Travel Association warning livelihoods would be "devastated".

Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab accepted the latest measures might "upset or disrupt" some people, but insisted it was right for ministers to take "incremental steps" early to avoid "bigger disruption" to travel and the economy.

Prof Woolhouse, a member of the government's Scientific Pandemic Influenza Group on Modelling (Spi-M), told the BBC's Andrew Marr that while imported cases of the Omicron variant were "important", community transmission of the variant would be the driver of a next wave.

He added the numbers of UK Omicron cases were currently "quite small" and he strongly suspected the absolute number was "more in the hundreds than the thousands".

But he warned Omicron was "spreading pretty rapidly" in the UK, and if current trends here and in South Africa continued in the coming weeks and months, it could even replace the Delta variant around the world.

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Asked about Prof Woolhouse's comment the new restrictions had come too late, Mr Raab said there would always be "Goldilocks criticism that we've done too much or we've done too little".

He said ministers would stay "eternally vigilant" to the risks associated with the Omicron variant and that measures, including adding countries to the travel red list, were intended to prevent its "reseeding" in the UK.

Citing this week's drop in the number of Covid hospital admissions and deaths and the "success" of the vaccination rollout, he said: "We have steadily and steadfastly created the resilient defences which means we can enjoy Christmas."

But Dr Katherine Henderson, president of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine, said hospitals were already struggling to cope because of winter pressures, and warned the NHS would be in a "very, very difficult position" if the new variant led to a surge in hospital admissions.

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It comes as the UK Health Security Agency reported on Sunday a further 86 cases of the Omicron variant across the UK, taking the total so far to 246.

Scientists have raised concerns the heavily-mutated variant may be more transmissible than the dominant Delta strain and be able to escape immunity from vaccines.

Ten southern African countries had already been added to the UK's travel red list, because of fears about Omicron - South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Lesotho, Eswatini, Angola, Mozambique, Malawi and Zambia.

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'I don't think people have certainty any more'

Dennis Mclean and his partner Janet on a previous holiday
Dennis Mclean

Denis Mclean has booked a holiday to Tenerife leaving on 27 January but he's thinking about cancelling because of the new rules.

"When they announced we'd have to have a PCR test on the way back within two days, I thought that's manageable.

"But now they want you to do another one 48 hours before you return and it's just the extra cost."

He says he's worried about the rules changing again if they do actually go, but also concerned about rebooking for a later date due to the uncertainty.

"We've waited over two years to have another holiday, and I know there are more important things in life but we gave them up in the pandemic because that's what you had to do," he says.

"Sure, variants come along and we've got to tackle that, but I don't think people have certainty any more and it's a shame."

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Former Prime Minister Tony Blair has called for a new global set of travel rules to encourage countries to continue sequencing Covid variants without fear of facing a travel blacklist.

He told BBC Radio 4's The World This Weekend: "What you will find is as this proceeds, and as we realise that you're going to have to have proof of vaccination that's credible and authentic, if you don't have agreed set of standards and agreed sharing of data, it's going to be much, much harder to get the global economy moving again."

'It's already here'

Travel industry bosses said they had not been given sufficient warning of the travel rule changes.

Clive Wratten, chief executive of the Business Travel Association, said: "The introduction of pre-departure testing with little warning is a hammer blow to the business travel industry."

"Public safety is a priority, but businesses will fail, travellers will be stranded and livelihoods devastated by the lack of coherent plans from government," he added.

Airlines UK said the change was a "premature" move that would "hit industry and passengers before we see the full data" on the effect of the Omicron variant.

The trade body added that previous experiences showed "blanket restrictions do not stop the importation of variants", adding the variant was "already here".

Travel association Abta called for the government "to step up to save jobs and businesses" and for the cost of PCR tests to be reduced.

Currently, travellers need to self-isolate until they test negative within two days of arriving into the country.

The government has said the change to the rules followed new analysis from the UK Health and Security Agency that indicated the window between infection and infectiousness may be shorter for the Omicron variant.

This increases the effectiveness of pre-departure testing as it is more likely to identify positive cases before travel, the government added.

Covid cases have been rising in the UK since the beginning of November, with 43,992 recorded on Sunday.

However, deaths and hospital admissions are falling. The UK recorded 54 deaths within 28 days of a positive test on Sunday, although the number of deaths recorded over the weekend tend to be lower because of reporting delays.

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2021-12-05 16:11:04Z
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UK Omicron cases reach 246 after 86 new infections reported, according to latest figures - Sky News

A further 86 cases of the new Omicron COVID variant have been reported in the UK, taking the total to 246.

This compares with a total of 160 yesterday - an increase of more than 50%.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), which publishes the figures, says 18 of the cases are in Scotland, taking its total up to 48.

Latest COVID updates from UK and around the world

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Tests will be required before flying to UK

The figures come as one expert told Sky News the UK could face "more stringent measures" after Christmas to counter the spread of the new variant.

Professor Sir David Spiegelhalter said the emergence of Omicron in the UK was "appalling timing" as the next few weeks are "one of the highest risk periods... with a lot of indoor socialising".

He said that the government "would love not to disrupt Christmas", but he warned: "What happens after Christmas is another matter."

More on Covid-19

Although the UK is still waiting for real-world data on the new variant, Professor Spiegelhalter, a statistician at the University of Cambridge, said that currently it does not appear to have as much of a risk of severe disease.

And he also praised the booster vaccines for "saving very large numbers of lives".

HEALTH 
Coronavirus - Thu Dec 2, 2021
A member of staff updates the total number of COVID-19 vaccinations administered at a vaccination site in Liberty Shopping Centre, Romford, east London, as the Government accelerates the Covid booster programme to help slow down the spread of the new Omicron variant. Picture date: Thursday December 2, 2021.
Image: The booster jab rollout has been expanded to tackle Omicron

Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab also told Sky News, "the government wants people to enjoy Christmas this year", adding that employers should take a "common sense" approach to office parties.

And there are warnings the NHS will be in a "very, very difficult position" if the Omicron variant were to lead to a surge in hospital admissions.

The president of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine, Dr Katherine Henderson, said hospitals were already struggling to cope as they enter winter.

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How can Omicron transmission be reduced?

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"It is pretty spectacularly bad now, it will get worse - and if the new variant becomes a thing in terms of numbers and translates into hospitals admissions we are going to be in a very, very difficult position," she said.

"We will always still be there. We still want patients to come, but we do have to help people to understand that really at the moment the service is so stretched that an extra push could be very, very difficult."

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2021-12-05 14:23:01Z
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Storm Barra set to batter UK as thousands of homes still without power nine days after Storm Arwen - Sky News

The second major storm of the winter - named Barra by the Irish Met Office - is set to batter the UK on Tuesday.

Weather warnings have been issued for wind and snow as thousands of homes are still without power nine days after Storm Arwen.

Forecasters say the further bad weather may hinder efforts to reconnect properties.

Jim Muir and his wife Belinda, who live at Honeyneuk Farm, Maud, Aberdeenshire, were left without power for over a week following Storm Arwen
Image: Jim Muir and his wife Belinda were left without power for over a week in Aberdeenshire

Speaking during a visit to Durham, Energy Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said it was "totally unacceptable" that thousands of homes remain without power.

"It's wrong and bad for people to be off power for such a long time," he told the BBC.

"As I've said, for 99.5% of people they're back on, but for the ones that are still having to put up with this - this is unacceptable."

Mr Kwarteng added that a review will be carried out and if energy firms are found to have failed to invest in infrastructure then "there could be enforcement action".

More on Storm Arwen

But shadow environment secretary Jim McMahon said it "beggars belief" that the loss of power to so many homes has been not been considered a "national priority".

He told Sky News' Trevor Phillips on Sunday programme: "I firmly believe had this been the case where 20,000 properties were without power in Surrey or in London, the government would absolutely have treated it with more seriousness.

"For people in County Durham who I spoke to, they felt isolated, they felt angry and they felt forgotten."

Fresh warnings for high winds across the UK come into force from 9am on Tuesday and could mean more power supply problems and disruption to transport, the Met Office said.

A warning for snow on the same day covers the North of England and Scotland. Again the Met Office says there is a chance of power outages and a "slight chance" rural communities could be cut off.

Heavy rainfall on Saturday meant hundreds of properties that had power restored were again without supply in Northumberland, a local councillor told Sky News.

Latest national data showed 4,025 homes were without power across northern England and Scotland on Sunday, down from 4,700 homes on Saturday, according to industry body the Energy Networks Association.

Thousands of homes remained without power nine days after Storm Arwen struck. Pic: Northern Powergrid
Image: Thousands of homes remained without power on Sunday morning. Pic: Northern Powergrid

Ed Miliband, the shadow climate change secretary, said it was "completely outrageous" that thousands of people have been without power for more than a week, after the storm hit on 26 November.

"People are being left in the most appalling circumstances and there has been an absence of government leadership," Mr Miliband said.

"We need an urgent investigation to understand what went wrong, and to ensure that our power systems are never again this vulnerable to extreme weather events."

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'I was so cold I thought I wouldn't survive'

Boris Johnson said he was "concerned" at the number of homes still without power as he held calls with local leaders and Lt Col Mark Steed, who is coordinating the military involvement in the response.

The prime minister tweeted: "I am grateful for the tireless efforts of the emergency teams and volunteers on the ground but remain concerned that... households are still without power.

"I reiterated to those I spoke to that the government is ready to further support their work in any way we can."

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'We feel a bit forgotten up here' - Tim Farron

Steven Bridgett, a councillor in Rothbury in Northumberland, said about 150 properties in the area were without power on Saturday but the number had soared again after "significant rainfall and wind" overnight.

"That pretty much wiped out all of the good work that had been achieved over the last three or four days," he told Sky News.

"We're now back up to about 600 properties that are still without power.

"We've got significant surface water flooding happening in this area as well. Some of the roads are starting to flood.

"We've pretty much had constant rainfall now for 12 to 14 hours.

"It started off as snow then it progressed into heavy rainfall with wind."

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What it's like to live without electricity

Mr Bridgett praised the response from the local council and emergency services but believes a "major incident" should have been declared earlier.

He said essentials including water, batteries and logs were available for affected residents at collection points in Rothbury and Whittingham.

"We've had significant flooding, we've had significant winter storms, we've had a week with no gas - we are a pretty tough and resilient community in this area," Mr Bridgett added.

A man makes safe fallen masonry from a property, which has damaged a nearby car, on Gloucester Avenue in Roker, Sunderland, after gusts of almost 100 miles per hour battered some areas of the UK during Storm Arwen. Picture date: Saturday November 27, 2021.
Image: Storm Arwen hit on 27 November, with strong winds causing this damage in Sunderland

The Met Office issued yellow weather warnings for rain in parts of the north east of England and a yellow warning for snow for parts of the south east of Scotland overnight from Saturday into Sunday.

With work still ongoing to restore power, forecasters predict low temperatures of between 4C (39F) and 6C (43F) accompanied by some gale-force winds for the region over the coming days.

A band of rain and snow is expected on Monday, along with more wind.

Monday lunchtime

From Tuesday, the UK is set to see continued wind, rain, and snow, with a likelihood of more strong gusts, although not as strong as Arwen, into Wednesday.

Simon Partridge, a meteorologist at the Met Office, said the expected weather conditions were "not helpful" for the work to reconnect power supplies and get to remote areas.

"It's certainly not ideal, and the higher locations certainly will be seeing some more snow in the coming days," he added.

Royal Marines Pic: MoD
Image: Royal Marines visit storm-hit areas in Aberdeenshire. Pic: MoD

Energy regulator Ofgem has warned it will take enforcement action against network companies which failed to restore power to customers quickly enough following the storm.

It has also agreed with firms to lift the £700 cap on compensation which could be given to customers.

The change will allow those affected to claim £70 for each 12-hour period they are left without power, after an initial £70 for the first 48 hours.

Nearly 300 military personnel from the British Army and Royal Marines were deployed to offer support and were conducting door-to-door checks on vulnerable people in their homes.

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2021-12-05 12:11:15Z
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Arthur Labinjo-Hughes: National investigation to be launched over six-year-old's murder - Sky News

There will be a national investigation into the murder of six-year-old Arthur Labinjo-Hughes.

It comes as deputy prime minister Dominic Raab told Sky News: "The most vulnerable in our society need to have the maximum protection."

The boy, from Solihull, West Midlands, was poisoned, starved and beaten by step-mother Emma Tustin, 32, and his father Thomas Hughes, 29, in a prolonged campaign of "evil abuse".

A review will look into how social services and local authorities liaise with the criminal justice system to learn the lessons from Arthur's death in June last year.

He was left with an unsurvivable brain injury while in the sole care of Tustin, with the boy's body also covered in 130 bruises.

The wider investigation will run alongside a review of the jail sentences of Arthur's step-mother and his father.

Tustin was sentenced to a minimum 29 years in prison for Arthur's murder, while Hughes was jailed for 21 years for manslaughter after encouraging the killing of his son.

More on Arthur Labinjo-hughes

The national investigation will also go beyond an independent local safeguarding review that is already under way.

Speaking to Sky News about the case, Mr Raab, who is also justice secretary and is a father of two young boys, said he "can't begin to imagine how anyone could be that cruel".

"We've had those sentences for the two parents, the Attorney General has made clear she wants to have them reviewed where we have a mechanism for doing so," he told the Trevor Phillips On Sunday show.

"There will be a local safeguarding review which will look at the local authority's actions - whether any lessons could have been picked up earlier, whether any warning flags could have been put up earlier.

"And the prime minister has made clear, as well as that, we want to see how social services and the local authorities liaise with the criminal justice agencies and what lessons further we can learn."

The Department for Education is expected to make a formal announcement of the national investigation later on Sunday.

Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi is due to make a House of Commons statement on the case on Monday.

The Sunday Times reported that a wide-ranging investigation would be expected to consider whether to introduce safeguarding guidelines for at-risk children should there be future national lockdowns.

Mr Raab told Sky News there were "multi-dimensions" to cases of child cruelty.

"There's the fact that the individuals responsible for any of this cruelty could be so callous," he said.

"There is also the local authority response. I would say that I think the social workers on the front line do an incredible job.

"As part of the pandemic response, we've invested close to £5bn in giving local authorities the support they need.

"Because one of the things we know about lockdown, whilst lots of families enjoy having more time together, for those who are the victims of domestic abuse, it has been a vey serious time, some of those risks have been magnified."

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2021-12-05 09:44:19Z
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Sabtu, 04 Desember 2021

Arthur Labinjo-Hughes: Boris Johnson set to announce wide-ranging inquiry into murder of six-year-old - Sky News

Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected to announced a wide-ranging inquiry into the murder of six-year-old Arthur Labinjo-Hughes in an effort to avoid a repeat of the tragedy.

The investigation will involve police, schools, social services and probation watchdogs, and is intended to learn lessons from what happened, The Sunday Times reports.

The probe is likely to consider whether guidelines should be put in place to help protect at-risk youngsters in the event of future national lockdowns, the newspaper said.

Speaking on Friday during a campaign visit in Shropshire, the prime minister vowed to leave "absolutely no stone unturned" to establish what went wrong.

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PM: 'Hard to read about appalling case of Arthur'

Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi is due to make a Commons statement on the case on Monday.

On Saturday, the Attorney General's Office confirmed the sentences of Arthur's killers are set to be reviewed "to determine whether they were too low".

The boy, from Solihull, West Midlands, was poisoned, starved and beaten by step-mother Emma Tustin, 32, and his father Thomas Hughes, 29, in a prolonged campaign of "evil abuse".

More on Arthur Labinjo-hughes

He was left with an unsurvivable brain injury in June last year, after being left in the care of his father's girlfriend, who was jailed for life with a minimum sentence of 29 years on Friday. Hughes was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to 21 years in prison.

Tributes left outside the home of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes in Solihull, West Midlands. Emma Tustin was jailed for life with a minimum term of 29 years at Coventry Crown Court on Friday for cruelly starving, poisoning and then murdering her six-year-old stepson Arthur Labinjo-Hughes. Picture date: Saturday December 4, 2021.
Image: Tributes have been left outside the home of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes in Solihull
Conservative MP for Solihull Julian Knight leaves flowers outside the home of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes in Solihull, West Midlands
Image: Conservative MP for Solihull Julian Knight leaves flowers outside the home of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes in Solihull, West Midlands

After the MP for Solihull, Julian Knight, said the sentences were too lenient and should be appealed to make them longer, the attorney general's office confirmed they would be reviewed.

"The Attorney General's thoughts are with those who loved Arthur," said a statement.

"I can confirm that the sentences given to Emma Tustin and Thomas Hughes have been referred to the Attorney General for review to determine whether they were too low."

CCTV has been released by West Midlands Police of Tustin and Thomas Hughes eating ice cream in their home while Arthur starved just out of sight.

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Video released by the police shows Arthur's father and step-mother eating ice cream and another video of Tustin eating McDonalds

It came as Chelsea FC paid tribute to Arthur before their game against West Ham on Saturday.

More tributes were paid by Coventry City, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Birmingham City - while Aston Villa will do the same during Sunday's clash with Leicester.

A child protection boss has also said the six-year-old should have been a top priority for social services but was "missed" during the coronavirus lockdown.

It emerged during the couple's trial that Arthur's grandmother had pictures of his bruises and asked social services to visit him, but staff said they had "no safeguarding concerns".

Wendy Thorogood, director of association of Child Protection Professionals, told Times Radio he "should" have been a priority for local services.

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Body camera footage of Emma Tustin lying to police

"You would have expected them to actually look at his history, but unfortunately they go on what they see at the moment in time," she said.

"I would have expected any assessment to really take account of the grandmother's photos, I would have expected joint conversations and real conversations [with Arthur]... and that appears to have been missed."

Arthur and his father moved in with Tustin at the start of the COVID lockdown in March last year, Coventry Crown Court was told.

He did not return to school when it reopened at the beginning of June.

Arthur Labinjo-Hughes with his natural mother, Olivia Labinjo-Halcrow
Image: Arthur Labinjo-Hughes with his natural mother, Olivia Labinjo-Halcrow
Emma Tustin and Thomas Hughes were found guilty of abusing and killing Hughes' six-year-old son
Image: Emma Tustin and Thomas Hughes were found guilty of abusing and killing Hughes' six-year-old son

Ms Thorogood added: "We have to remember this was under COVID, so he wasn't actually getting additional oversight from school and education.

"He wasn't on a child protection list, he wasn't one of the children that you would have considered to be a priority."

Former children's minister Tim Loughton told Sky News on Friday that we "urgently need to learn the lesson from this case".

"We still have a profession that is very stretched," he said. "But if you don't join up with other agencies and ask the awkward questions and keep at it, it's a false economy because tragedies like this will still happen.

"The question we have to ask is why the system didn't work to protect this child."

Arthur Labinjo-Hughes
Image: Arthur Labinjo-Hughes was found covered in 130 bruises

Solihull's Local Child Safeguarding Partnership has launched an independent review following the court revelations.

The social services visit in April 2020 was promoted after Arthur's paternal grandmother, Joanne Hughes, rang the out-of-hours emergency social services team to report bruising she had seen on the boy's back.

Arthur Labinjo-Hughes was killed by his father and stepmother. Pic: West Midlands Police
Image: Arthur Labinjo-Hughes was killed by his father and step-mother. Pic: West Midlands Police

But despite social workers examining him and finding a "faint" yellow bruise, they agreed with Tustin and Hughes that it was a "happy household".

In her victim impact statement, which she read in court ahead of the sentencing, Ms Hughes said Arthur, as a "happy, contented, thriving seven-year-old" would "be alive today" had her son not met Tustin.

The secondary school teacher added: "It is also clear that Arthur was failed by the very authorities that we, as a society, are led to believe are there to ensure the safety of everyone."

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2021-12-05 02:48:45Z
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Covid Scotland: Pre-departure tests to be reintroduced for people heading for UK from Tuesday - The Scotsman

The reintroduction of pre-departure tests was announced around 6pm on Saturday. Picture: Lisa FergusonThe reintroduction of pre-departure tests was announced around 6pm on Saturday. Picture: Lisa Ferguson
The reintroduction of pre-departure tests was announced around 6pm on Saturday. Picture: Lisa Ferguson

International travellers will have to provide a negative pre-departure test taken two days before travelling, the Scottish Government announced at 7pm.

They will also need a negative PCR test on or before day two after arrival, under measures agreed on a UK four-nation basis, a spokesperson said.

In addition, Nigeria has been added to the red list for international travel from 4am on Monday, with all travellers returning to Scotland from Nigeria required to quarantine in managed accommodation for ten days.

It will join ten African countries on the red list: Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Transport Secretary Michael Matheson said: “It is essential we take steps now to keep people safe, protect the roll out of the booster programme and reduce the chances of unsustainable pressure being placed on the NHS over the winter.

“We have always said it may be necessary to quickly implement fresh measures to protect public health in Scotland, particularly with regards to international travel, and these restrictions are proportionate and necessary to that aim.

“We fully understand the impact the changes will have on staff and businesses in the travel and aviation sectors, particularly as the new variant came at a time when we were beginning to see some signs of recovery. We will not keep the restrictions in place any longer than is necessary.”

UK Transport Secretary Grant Shapps tweeted: “As the scientists work to understand new Omicron variant, we need to apply additional caution until picture is clearer.

"We appreciate this will be difficult for the travel sector as we prioritise public health and protect the progress of our world-leading vax & booster programme.”

The latest tightening of travel restrictions follows pressure from Labour and scientists following the introduction this week of PCR tests, but only within two days of arrival.

Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper welcomed the move but said ministers should have moved sooner.

She said: "We badly need them to learn the lessons on the importance of acting quickly on Covid border measures rather than each time having to be put under huge pressure to finally act."

The BBC reported that the UK Government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) decided on Monday that pre-departure testing would be "valuable".

The UK Health and Security Agency (HSA) said today a further 26 cases of the Omicron variant have been reported across the UK - 25 of them in England.

It takes the total number of confirmed cases of the variant in the UK to 160, including 30 in Scotland.

A risk assessment by the HSA rated the Omicron variant as "red" for severity of infection and "amber" for transmissibility between humans.

It said the variant was likely to reduce the protection from both naturally or vaccine-acquired immunity.

However it acknowledged there was so far "insufficient data" to reach firm conclusions and the assessment was presented with "low confidence".

HSA chief executive Dr Jenny Harries said: "We are working as fast as possible to gather more evidence about any impact the new variant may have on severity of disease or vaccine effectiveness.

"Until we have this evidence, we must exercise the highest level of caution in drawing conclusions about any significant risks to people's health.”

Read More

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Covid Scotland: 14 deaths in a day while Omicron continues to spread

The Scottish Passenger Agents’ Association (SPAA), which said it represented “truly battle weary” travel agents and firms, described the new tests as a “crushing blow”.

President Joanne Dooey said: “The confidence which was returning to international travel will be stamped out following this announcement.

“It leaves everyone currently overseas who has a scheduled return to the UK from 4am this Tuesday scrambling to find testing which meets the Scottish Government regulations.

“We expect that travel agents’ phones will be ringing off the hook with customers who wish to cancel or postpone their holidays, business trips and Christmas visits to families overseas.

"The reintroduction of pre-departure testing and the fact that countries can be placed on the ‘red list’ with less than 48 hours’ notice will plunge agents back into a chaotic world of client repatriations.

"We’re asking that the Scottish Government recognises our members need sector-specific support urgently.”

The Airport Operators Association said it would have a “devastating” impact on tourism and aviation.

Chief executive Karen Dee said: “Pre-departure tests acts as a major deterrent to travel and most of the limited remaining demand following the reintroduction of self-isolation will now fall away, just as airports were hoping for a small uplift over the Christmas holiday.

“Travel and aviation are the only sectors hit with any operating restrictions in response to the Omicron variant.”

Rory Boland, Which? Travel Editor, said: "Travellers will understand the need for government to introduce public health measures, however constantly changing rules at the last minute leaves passengers footing the bill.

"In some destinations, it will be difficult for people to secure tests at such short notice.

"For those who do test positive abroad, they should first and foremost follow local health guidelines.

"This will likely require quarantining in your existing hotel or at government accommodation.

"In some countries, travellers will have to pay for quarantine, and some travel insurance providers can help with this.

"Travellers should also check the flexible booking policy of their airline to rearrange flights."

British Airways chairman and chief executive Sean Doyle said: "The blanket re-introduction of testing to enter the UK, on top of the current regime of isolation and PCR testing on arrival, is completely out of step with the rest of the world, with every other country taking a measured approach based on the science.

"Our customers will now be faced with uncertainty and chaos and yet again this a devastating blow for everyone who works in the travel industry."

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https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMikAFodHRwczovL3d3dy5zY290c21hbi5jb20vaGVhbHRoL2Nvcm9uYXZpcnVzL2NvdmlkLXNjb3RsYW5kLXByZS1kZXBhcnR1cmUtdGVzdHMtdG8tYmUtcmVpbnRyb2R1Y2VkLWZvci1wZW9wbGUtaGVhZGluZy1mb3ItdWstZnJvbS10dWVzZGF5LTM0ODI2MDjSAZQBaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuc2NvdHNtYW4uY29tL2hlYWx0aC9jb3JvbmF2aXJ1cy9jb3ZpZC1zY290bGFuZC1wcmUtZGVwYXJ0dXJlLXRlc3RzLXRvLWJlLXJlaW50cm9kdWNlZC1mb3ItcGVvcGxlLWhlYWRpbmctZm9yLXVrLWZyb20tdHVlc2RheS0zNDgyNjA4P2FtcA?oc=5

2021-12-04 21:29:47Z
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