Thursday, March 4

Tag: uk

UK to receive 10 million AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine doses from India’s Serum Institute
3Mar By News RoomNo Comments
Highlights, India, World

UK to receive 10 million AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine doses from India’s Serum Institute

The UK will receive 10 million AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine doses made by the Serum Institute of India (SII), the UK government said in a statement yesterday. SII, the world's largest vaccine manufacturer by volume, is mass producing the AstraZeneca vaccine, developed with Oxford University, for dozens of poor and middle-income countries. “The UK has ordered 100 million doses of AstraZeneca's Covid-19 vaccine, of which 10 million doses will come from the Serum Institute of India,” a UK government spokesperson told Reuters. Reuters reported in February that Britain's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) was auditing the manufacturing processes at SII to pave the way for the AstraZeneca vaccine to be shipped from there to the UK. The move is likely to st...
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UK requests UN Security Council meeting on Myanmar
3Mar By News RoomNo Comments
World

UK requests UN Security Council meeting on Myanmar

Britain has requested a new United Nations Security Council meeting on coup-hit Myanmar for Friday, diplomatic sources told AFP yesterday, as security forces have stepped up their use of violence against demonstrators in the Southeast Asian nation. The meeting would be behind closed doors at 1500 GMT, according to London's proposal, the same sources said, as were the Council's discussions a day after the military's February 1 ouster of civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi. The Security Council subsequently voiced “deep concern” over the coup, and called in a draft statement for the “release of all detainees” including Suu Kyi. On Monday, China's diplomatic mission to the UN, traditionally reluctant for the Security Council to discuss Myanmar told AFP that there was a “general agreement ...
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UK to focus on age, not occupation for next vaccines
1Mar By News RoomNo Comments
World

UK to focus on age, not occupation for next vaccines

Britain’s next phase of coronavirus vaccines will be administered based on age rather than occupational risk, an advisory group said Friday, sparking anger from police and teachers who said they should get priority. Speaking at a televised press conference on Friday, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said Britain’s Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) had opted to offer the jab based on age “in order to save most lives”. “This is the fastest and simplest way to roll out the jab. Our moral duty is to put saving lives first, and that’s what we’ve done,” he said. Britain has vaccinated 19 million people, 35 per cent of all adults, with at least one dose and says it plans to finish the whole population by the end of July. It is aiming to give the first dose to people ov...
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Nirav Modi can be extradited to India, rules UK court
25Feb By News RoomNo Comments
Highlights, India, World

Nirav Modi can be extradited to India, rules UK court

The Westminster Magistrates' Court in London, United Kingdom on February 25 allowed fugitive economic offender Nirav Modi's extradition to India. He has been behind bars in a London prison. The UK court accepted that there was prima facie evidence of fraud against the 49-year-old. The district judge also accepted the Indian government’s claim that the jeweller was threatening witnesses and tampered with evidence. Medical arrangements in India for Nirav Modi are acceptable and he will not be denied justice if he is extradited to India, the judge ruled. Nirav Modi had contested his extradition to India on charges of fraud and money laundering in the estimated $2 billion Punjab National Bank (PNB) scam case. The legal battle in the UK court went on for two years. The magistrates' ...
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UK’s PM eyes end to lockdown as vaccines reach one-third of adults
22Feb By News RoomNo Comments
World

UK’s PM eyes end to lockdown as vaccines reach one-third of adults

Prime Minister Boris Johnson is set today to start unwinding England’s third and — he hopes — final coronavirus lockdown, as a quickening UK-wide inoculation drive relieves pressure on hard-hit hospitals. In a statement to parliament, Johnson is expected to confirm the reopening of all English schools on March 8 in the first big step towards restoring normal life, nearly a year after he imposed the first stay-at-home order. The Conservative prime minister, who was accused of acting too late and relaxing curbs too early last year, says he will lay out a “cautious but irreversible” plan to ensure no more lockdowns. “Today I’ll be setting out a roadmap to bring us out of lockdown cautiously,” he said in a Downing Street release, ahead of his House of Commons appearance and a televised ...
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PM Modi meets COP26 President, discusses India-UK cooperation on climate change agenda
16Feb By News RoomNo Comments
Highlights, India

PM Modi meets COP26 President, discusses India-UK cooperation on climate change agenda

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday met Alok Sharma, President of the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26), and held discussions on India-UK cooperation on climate change agenda and upcoming COP26. "PM @narendramodi met COP26 President-designate @AlokSharma_RDG today. Discussions on India-UK cooperation on climate change agenda and COP26 were held. PM @narendramodi conveyed best wishes to the UK for the successful organisation of the climate summit," Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said in a tweeted. Earlier today, Union Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Prakash Javadekar also met Alok Sharma and discussed important issues, for negotiations to be held in Glasgow later this year. "I showcased him and told him abou...
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UK: Tougher travel rules to contain spread of Covid come into force
15Feb By News RoomNo Comments
World

UK: Tougher travel rules to contain spread of Covid come into force

The UK's tougher new travel rules to contain the spread of Covid-19 variants came into effect from Monday, involving compulsory hotel quarantines for anyone returning to England from one of the 33 high-risk "red list" countries. Those arriving will have to pre-book and pay 1,750 pounds to spend 10 days quarantining in government-sanctioned hotels, covering the cost of the hotel, transport, and two separate tests post-arrival. Extremely serious breaches of the new norms could result in a 10-year jail term and fines of up to 10,000 pounds. Those who have not visited a "red list" country, such as India, must still quarantine for 10 days at home and complete two mandatory Covid-19 tests on the second and eighth day after arriving. “With the emergence of new variants, we must go furthe...
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Brazil confirms UK variant in two coronavirus patients
15Feb By News RoomNo Comments
World

Brazil confirms UK variant in two coronavirus patients

Brazil has confirmed cases of the UK variant of the novel coronavirus in two states and in the federal district of Brasília, according to a statement from the health ministry yesterday. The government said it has not yet confirmed cases of the South African variant. Two of the confirmed cases of the UK variant were reported in the state of Goiás after sequencing test samples taken on December 31, according to the state’s health department on Friday. In that statement, Goias authorities said the two people who have caught the UK variant live on the outskirts of the federal capital Brasília. The World Health Organisation has said the UK variant has now been found in more than 70 countries. Brazil has the world’s highest number of coronavirus deaths after the United States and ...
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New Zealand in coronavirus lockdown as UK variant cases reported
15Feb By News RoomNo Comments
World

New Zealand in coronavirus lockdown as UK variant cases reported

A coronavirus outbreak that sent New Zealand’s biggest city into a snap lockdown over the weekend involved the more transmissable UK variant, health officials confirmed today, the first time the strain has been detected locally. Auckland’s nearly two million residents were plunged into a new three-day lockdown yesterday after three new Covid-19 cases were detected in the city. Genome sequencing of two the cases — all three are immediate family — revealed they were the B1.1.7 variant. The source of the cases remains unknown, authorities said, adding they were scanning international genome databases for a match. “We were absolutely right to make the decision to be extra cautious because we assumed it was going to be one of the more transmissible variants,” Prime Minister Jacinda Arder...
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UK media watchdog fines Khalsa TV for violence, terror references
13Feb By News RoomNo Comments
World

UK media watchdog fines Khalsa TV for violence, terror references

The UK’s media watchdog has imposed a total fine of 50,000 pounds on Khalsa Television Ltd or KTV in Britain for broadcasting a music video and a discussion programme that was an indirect call for British Sikh to commit violence and also contained a terror reference. The Office of Communications (Ofcom), the UK government-approved media regulatory authority, issued the order on Friday following its findings dating back to February and November 2019. Its order also includes a direction for the channel to broadcast a statement of Ofcom’s findings on a date and in a form to be determined by the watchdog and also for KTV not to repeat the music video or the discussion programme found in breach of its rules. “Ofcom has imposed financial penalties of 20,000 pounds and 30,000 pounds on Khalsa ...
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UK bans direct flights from UAE, shutting world’s busiest international route
29Jan By News RoomNo Comments
World

UK bans direct flights from UAE, shutting world’s busiest international route

Britain is banning direct passenger flights to and from the United Arab Emirates from today, shutting down the world’s busiest international airline route from Dubai to London. Britain said it was adding the United Arab Emirates, Burundi and Rwanda to its coronavirus travel ban list because of worries over the spread of a more contagious and potentially vaccine-resistant Covid-19 variant first identified in South Africa. “This means people who have been in or transited through these countries will be denied entry, except British, Irish and third country nationals with residence rights who must self-isolate for ten days at home,” UK Transport Minister Grant Shapps said on Twitter yesterday. Emirates and Etihad Airways said on their websites they would suspend all UK passenger fligh...
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UK says upholding ‘freedom and autonomy’ with new HK visas
29Jan By News RoomNo Comments
World

UK says upholding ‘freedom and autonomy’ with new HK visas

Britain’s government today vowed to stand by the people of its former colony Hong Kong against a Chinese crackdown as it prepared to launch a new visa scheme potentially benefiting millions. Holders of British National (Overseas) status — a legacy of UK rule over Hong Kong up to 1997 — will from Sunday be able to apply to live and work in the UK for up to five years, and eventually seek citizenship. Before the change, BN(O) passport holders have had only limited rights to visit the UK for up to six months, and not to work or settle. The UK says it is acting in response to a National Security Law imposed by China last year which has devastated Hong Kong’s democracy movement and shredded freedoms meant to last 50 years under the 1997 handover accord. “I am immense...
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Facebook News in UK to help ‘sustain’ local journalism
26Jan By News RoomNo Comments
Technology

Facebook News in UK to help ‘sustain’ local journalism

Facebook News launched in Britain yesterday, delivering users of the world's leading social network curated news content bought from traditional publishers that have struggled financially. The arrival of Facebook News comes after the news tab feature was rolled out in the United States in late 2019 and is part of plans to extend it worldwide. Facebook will pay publishers for their content, and the service will include input from Channel 4 News, Daily Mail Group, DC Thomson, Financial Times, Sky News and Telegraph Media Group, among others. The tech giant had already agreed deals with The Economist, The Guardian, The Independent and the Mirror. Media companies have struggled with dwindling advertising revenue and print sales as content has moved online and become available for f...
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UK extends Covid lockdown till July 17
24Jan By News RoomNo Comments
World

UK extends Covid lockdown till July 17

The British government has extended the nationwide lockdown till July 17 and has also decided to quarantine travelers from high-risk Covid-19 countries for at least 10 days as it is unable to arrest the rising numbers of new Covid variant infections. The Telegraph reported on Saturday, the British government has quietly extended lockdown laws to give councils the power to close pubs, restaurants, shops, and public spaces until July 17. Meanwhile, the Daily Mail said, Prime Minister Boris Johnson will force travellers from high-risk COVID-19 countries to quarantine in hotels for ten days, in a decision to be taken on Monday. On Friday, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the government could not consider easing lockdown restrictions with infection rates at their current hig...
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Software data shows freight groups avoiding UK, prices rising
19Jan By News RoomNo Comments
Business, World

Software data shows freight groups avoiding UK, prices rising

An increasing number of freight groups rejected contracts to move goods from France into Britain in the second week of January, while prices rose, according to data that shows the impact of Brexit and Covid-19 on UK trade. Transporeon, a German software company that provides a network for suppliers, retailers, shippers and more than 100,000 logistics service providers, said prices were up 47 per cent compared with the third quarter in 2020. Prices had been up 39 per cent in the first week of January. The third quarter of 2020 was chosen to reflect the most normal trade levels with regards to Covid-19 turbulence last year. The data also shows that freight forwarders, the companies that book lorry drivers or other modes of transport to move goods on behalf of suppliers, are rejectin...
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