Covid news - live: UK ‘not prepared for new wave’ as XBB.1.5 cases soar
The UK is not prepared for another Covid wave, experts are warning, as the spread of “highly infectious” subvariant XBB.1.5 continues in the UK.
University of Warwick virologist Professor Lawrence Young told The Independent that the UK is not at all prepared for another wave if the highly transmissible sub variant continues to spread reapidly.
People have been urged to wear masks and remain at home if feeling unwell as the new variant coronavirus XBB.1.5 has led to concerns about the rise in Covid-19 cases.
The XBB.1.5 is the highly transmissible version of Covid that caused cases to surge in the UK last winter. The variant is thought to constitute at least 4 per cent of Covid viruses being sequenced.
People arriving from China into Britain have been asked to present a negative Covid test before entry. However, a Cabinet minister announced that travellers testing positive for coronavirus after arriving from China will not be forced to quarantine.
The UK Department for Health and Social Care said China had been slapped with the new rules because of “a lack of comprehensive health information”, as Chinese state media continue to downplay the severity of the current outbreak.
Key Points
China hits out at ‘unacceptable’ Covid restrictions imposed on its travellers
70% of Chinese megacity infected with Covid, doctor says
Is Omicron variant XBB.1.5 fuel spreading rapidly in the UK?
China slapped with new entry rules due to ‘lack of comprehensive health information’
UK not prepared for further Covid waves
15:04 , Thomas Kingsley
The UK is not prepared for another Covid wave, experts warn, as the spread of “highly infectious” subvariant XBB.1.5 continues in the UK.
The strain has caused a surge of cases in the US, with some experts concerned that its mutations could see it trigger a similar spike in the UK by dodging the wall of immunity built up from previous waves and vaccine roll-outs.
University of Warwick virologist Professor Lawrence Young told The Independent’s Thomas Kingsley that the UK is not at all prepared for another wave if the highly transmissible sub variant continues to spread at a fast pace amid rising rates of flu infection.
“We didn’t have enough public health messaging around the flu jab. We’ve now got a perfect storm of different respiratory infections going around at the moment and that’s inevitably going to result in more pressure on the NHS,” Professor Young said.
“All the information so far shows that whilst this is a very infectious variant and while it can escape the protections from previous vaccination and past infection but there’s no evidence it’s causing more severe disease compared to other Omicron variants but the fact that it’s spreading more and more rapidly, particularly in the US, is very concerning.
“It’s reaching out to more vulnerable people.”
EU offers help, prepares to counter China's Covid crisis
14:00 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
The EU yesterday said it has offered China help to deal with its Covid-19 crisis, including the donation of vaccines, as the bloc seeks to coordinate how authorities should check incoming passengers from China for any new variants.
Several member nations announced individual efforts over the past week. At the same time, the EU's European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control insisted that the situation in China didn't pose an immediate overall threat to health.
“The variants circulating in China are already circulating in the EU, and as such are not challenging for the immune response” of EU citizens, it said in its latest impact study.
Covid-positive China arrivals won’t need to isolate, says minister
13:45 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Arrivals from China who test positive for Covid will not be forced to quarantine, the transport secretary Mark Harper has confirmed.
The senior Tory MP’s comments confirmed details – first revealed by The Independent – that testing will be voluntary for those arriving at Heathrow - the only UK airport with direct flights from China offering tests.
Mr Harper, asked if those who test positive after arriving in the UK will be required to quarantine, told LBC: “No, because what we are doing is we are collecting that information for surveillance purposes.”
Adam Forrest reports.
Covid-positive China arrivals won’t need to isolate, minister confirms
Editorial | The government should declare a national emergency in the NHS
13:25 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
One of the many galling statistics about the NHS crisis is that the number of people who die because of delays in ambulance and emergency care – between 300 and 500 a week – is around the same as current deaths from Covid-19 or cerebrovascular disease (stroke), and 10 times the number who perish in road traffic.
If it weren’t for the danger of hyperbole, it would be right to call the current crisis an epidemic.
Behind the statistics lie heart-rending stories of extremely ill, vulnerable people, often elderly, dying at home or in the back of an ambulance for lack of resolve to deal with the crisis. Although now widespread and taken for granted, this is not normal, even though it is becoming normalised.
Read the editorial here.
Editorial: The government should declare a national emergency in the NHS
How news of ‘mystery illness’ in Wuhan first broke three years ago
12:45 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Three years ago on New Year’s Eve, The Independent broke a story about a “mystery illness” that had struck 30 people in Wuhan, China.
There was limited information about the illness, except that most of those who were sick had visited a seafood market in the city.
Early reports speculated the sickness was similar to the respiratory disease Sars which killed nearly 800 people.
Little did they know, it would be so much worse, resulting in more than 6.6m deaths worldwide.
Maryam Zakir-Hussain writes.
Covid: How news of ‘mystery illness’ in Wuhan first broke
Is UK on the brink of a new Covid wave?
12:25 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Scientists in the US believe XBB.1.5 is at least in part to blame for the rise in hospital admissions in New York.
Whether the subvariant will trigger a new Covid surge in the UK is uncertain, but reports suggest a rise in cases is likely.
There is potential for some respite, however, with medical officials suggesting that the winter outbreaks of influenza and other respiratory viruses could temper the threat of a new, rampant Covid wave.
Read more here.
What is XBB Covid? New Omicron variant that has led to surge in cases
South Korea makes mandatory Coivid test on arrival for China passengers
11:45 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
South Korea yesterday made coronavirus tests on Chinese arrivals mandatory, joining a growing list of countries imposing restrictions amid concerns over a wave of infections.
Travellers from China are required to undergo a PCR test upon arrival. From 5 January, arrivals can submit a negative result from a PCR test taken no more than 48 hours before departure, or a negative rapid antigen test no more than 24 hours before departure.
A total of 2,189 people have arrived from China since 2 January. The 590 test results so far showed that 136 people, or 22.7 per cent, were infected with Covid-19, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency.
What is XBB Covid? The new Omicron variant that has led to surge in cases
11:25 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
New Covid variants are sparking fresh health concerns as Omicron relatives XBB and XBB.1.5 have seen a surge in cases in countries worldwide.
It comes as UK-based health experts have suggested that up to 9,000 people are dying from Covid a day in China, where infections have dramatically risen following the country’s end to strict isolation rules.
The surge has prompted the UK and US governments to require all passengers arriving in the respective countries from China from 5 January to return a negative Covid result before travelling.
Maryam Zakir-Hussain has more.
What is XBB Covid? New Omicron variant that has led to surge in cases
China arrivals banned from England without negative Covid test
10:45 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
All travellers coming from China into England will be required to show a negative Covid-19 test before departing from 5 January, Downing Street has confirmed.
No 10 said Rishi Sunak’s government will shortly set out the full details regarding new rules for travellers entering the UK from China and from Hong Kong.
The prime minister’s official spokesman said: “We’re working on the final details of the implementation of the policy, and that includes on Hong Kong, and we will update in due course.”
Adam Forrest reports.
China arrivals need negative Covid test to enter England from 5 January
Airline group slams China Covid travel restrictions
10:25 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
The head of the world's biggest airline trade body IATA has criticised travel restrictions against travellers from China, arguing that such measures had proven to be ineffective in preventing the spread of Covid-19.
"It is extremely disappointing to see this knee-jerk reinstatement of measures that have proven ineffective over the last three years," said director general Willie Walsh.
New Zealand says Covid test not required for Chinese arrivals
09:45 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
The New Zealand government today announced that it would not require travellers from China to produce a negative Covid-19 test.
The Pacific nation’s Covid-19 minister Ayesha Verrall, said in a statement that a public health risk assessment had concluded visitors from China would not contribute significantly to the number of cases in the country.
“There is minimal public health risk to New Zealand,” she said.
China says Covid entry restrictions by countries unreasonable
08:45 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
China on Tuesday hit back at governments who have imposed travelling restrictions on the country by arguing that Covid-19 measures should be "science-based" and warned of possible “countermeasures”.
More than a dozen countries, including the UK and the US, have made it mandatory for travellers from China to show a negative Covid test before arrival.
“Some countries have taken entry restrictions targeting only Chinese travellers,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said.
“This lacks scientific basis and some practices are unacceptable," the spokesperson added.
She reportedly warned that Beijing could take "countermeasures based on the principle of reciprocity”.
Read more here.
China says Covid entry restrictions lack scientific basis and are unreasonable
Chinese national goes missing in South Korea after testing Covid positive
07:45 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
South Korean authorities are trying to track down a Chinese national who tested positive for Covid-19 on arrival but went missing while waiting at a quarantine facility.
The person tested positive after arriving at Incheon International Airport near Seoul yesterday night and was transferred to a nearby hotel to await admission to quarantine.
The missing person has been placed on a wanted list, health official Kim Joo-young, said. The person, who has not been identified, could be subject to up to one year in prison, or 10 million won (£6,539) in fines if convicted of violating the law.
Is Omicron variant XBB.1.5 fuel spreading rapidly in the UK?
07:30 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
New Covid variants are sparking fresh health concerns as Omicron relatives XBB and XBB.1.5 have led to a surge in cases in countries worldwide.
The XBB.1.5 is the highly transmissible version of Covid that caused cases to surge in the UK last winter. The variant, which was first detected around New York state in late October, is behind 40 per cent of all Covid infections in the US.
It is estimated that the XBB.1.5 is spreading more than twice as fast as the BQ.1.1 variant, which is one of the common variants found in the UK, The Guardian reported.
The variant has an unusual mutation known as F486P that is helping it spread at a rapid speed.
The variant has been detected in the UK, with surveillance suggesting it makes up at least 4 per cent of the coronavirus being sequenced
How long can you test positive for Covid?
06:45 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
For nearly three years, the Covid-19 pandemic brought the world to a standstill as the virus spread around the globe.
Cases have begun to rise again, with warnings that Covid will once again put even more pressure on the NHS over this festive period.
The last major spike of the pandemic, while restrictions were still in place, came courtesy of Omicron. The variant spread rapidly around the world after being discovered in southern Africa last November and has since produced a series of sub-variants.
Omicron proved to be less severe but more transmissible than its predecessor Alpha and Delta variants, with total daily case numbers in England rocketing to a then-pandemic-high of 218,724 on 4 January, before gradually falling away, bar a revival inspired by its first sub-variant, BA.2, in March.
Joe Sommerlad has more.
How long can you test positive for Covid and when are you infectious?
EU presses for negative Covid report for China passengers
05:45 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
The EU is moving towards making it mandatory for passengers from China to test negative for Covid-19 in order to enter the bloc nations.
The EU health advisers yesterday agreed on a draft opinion that includes masking recommendations and increased wastewater monitoring and suggests discussing Covid testing.
A strong majority of countries back pre-departure tests, Bloomberg quoted a commission spokesperson as saying.“Unity remains our strongest tool against Covid,” the EU’s health commissioner, Stella Kyriakides, tweeted.
EU ambassadors will meet today to discuss the recommendations.
People urged to wear masks and stay at home if unwell
04:45 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
People have been urged to wear face coverings and remain at home if feeling unwell, as an already crisis-stricken NHS faces down multiple waves of winter illnesses.
With children returning to school at a time when high levels of flu, Covid-19 and scarlet fever are all being reported, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has issued fresh guidance in a bid to minimise the diseases’ spread.
Parents have been urged to keep children at home if they are unwell and have a fever, with adults told to only go out if necessary and wear face coverings if they are ill and avoid visiting vulnerable people.
Andy Gregory reports.
People urged to wear masks and stay at home if unwell as NHS in crisis
China reports five new Covid deaths
03:48 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
China on Wednesday reported five new Covid-19 related deaths, compared with three a day earlier, the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention said.
The official death toll now stands at 5,258
China state media plays down severity of Covid surge
02:45 , Natalie Crockett
State media in China has played down the severity of a surge of Covid cases on Tuesday as its scientists briefed the World Health Organization.
The global body had invited the scientists to present data on viral sequencing at a technical advisory group meeting and has asked China to share data on hospitalizations, deaths and vaccinations.
A spokesperson said the agency expected a “detailed discussion” about circulating variants in China and globally and it is expected to give an update on Wednesday.
China’s abrupt U-turn on Covid controls as well as the accuracy of its case and mortality data, have come under increasing scrutiny at home and abroad.
China’s foreign ministry labelled travel entry curbs imposed by some countries as “simply unreasonable”, saying they “lacked scientific basis”.
“We are willing to improve communication with the world,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning told reporters in Beijing.
“But ... we are firmly opposed to attempts to manipulate the epidemic prevention and control measures for political purposes.”
Covid travel restrictions return – the new rules explained
01:45 , Natalie Crockett
Covid travel restrictions are back. From 5 January, every traveller flying from mainland China to England will need to provide a negative test result before being allowed on the plane. It is not yet clear what kinds of tests will be acceptable, but the previous policy was to allow lateral flow/rapid antigen tests as well as more reliable and expensive PCR tests.
In addition, travellers flying direct from China to Heathrow may be invited to take a second test on arrival. The government says as many as 20 per cent of arriving passengers will be checked, though they are able to decline the invitation.
The government announced the measures on Friday night – a day after saying there were no plans to reintroduce Covid testing.
Our travel correspondent Simon Calder explains what it all means.
Covid travel restrictions return – the new rules explained
Potential for imported Covid cases from China ‘low’, says European health body
00:45 , Natalie Crockett
The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said last week it did not recommend measures on travellers from China.
It said the variants circulating in China were already in the European Union, that EU citizens had relatively high vaccination levels and the potential for imported infections was low compared to daily infections in the EU, with healthcare systems currently coping.
Despite the health body’s stance, most European Union countries favour introducing pre-departure testing for travellers from China, the European Commission said on Tuesday.
“The overwhelming majority of countries are in favour of pre-departure testing,” a Commission spokesman said.
“These measures would need to be targeted at the most appropriate flights and airports and carried out in a coordinated way to ensure their effectiveness,” he said.
The Commission on Tuesday prepared a draft proposal for the talks, which included a recommendation for mask-wearing on flights from China, wastewater monitoring for planes arriving from China, testing at airports and increased EU vigilance on testing and vaccination.
“This will now be revised and adopted based on the input of (EU) Member States,” the Commission spokesman said, adding more talks on the measures would take place at another meeting of EU health officials on Wednesday afternoon.
EU to try again for coordination on China Covid policies
Belgium to test wastewater on planes travelling from Covid-hit China
Tuesday 3 January 2023 23:45 , Natalie Crockett
Belgium will test wastewater from planes arriving from China for new Covid variants as part of new steps to prevent the spread of the virus as infections in China surge, the government announced on Monday.
“This will be an additional monitoring objective to verify that the data we receive from China is accurate,” Steven Van Gucht of the Sciensano national public health institute told Reuters.
Most EU countries back Covid pre-departure testing for flights from China
Tuesday 3 January 2023 22:45 , Natalie Crockett
Most European Union countries favour introducing pre-departure Covid testing for travellers from China, the European Commission said on Tuesday.
The common EU approach emerged after a meeting on Tuesday of the Health Security Committee, an EU advisory body of national health experts from the EU’s 27 countries.
It follows Beijing’s plans to lift travel restrictions on its citizens despite a wave of Covid infections in the country.
70% of Chinese megacity infected with Covid, doctor says
ICYMI: 70 per cent of Shanghai infected with Covid, doctor says
Tuesday 3 January 2023 22:05 , Natalie Crockett
ICYMI: A senior doctor at one of Shanghai’s top hospitals has claimed that 70 per cent of the city’s population has been infected with Covid as China continues to battle a massive surge in cases.
The wave of cases comes after the Communist regime loosened draconian Covid restrictions overnight, overwhelming hospitals and crematoriums.
Chen Erzhen, vice president at Ruijin Hospital in Shanghai and a member of the city’s Covid-19 expert advisory panel, was quoted as saying the majority of the city’s 25 million people may have been infected.
Maroosha Muzaffar has more:
70% of Chinese megacity infected with Covid, doctor says
White House calls for greater ‘transparency’ from China’s Covid data
Tuesday 3 January 2023 20:46 , Andy Gregory
The United States has echoed calls for more transparent Covid data from Beijing, after Washington became one of the first governments to reimpose coronavirus testing requirements on people travelling from China since Xi Jinping’s “zero Covid” policy was eased.
A World Health Organisation committee was holding a virtual, closed-doors meeting with experts at China’s Centres for Disease Control and Prevention today, prior to which some scientists present had expressed hopes for a “more realistic picture” of the situation in China (see post at 4:43pm).
A White House national security council official would not comment on Tuesday’s meeting, but echoed WHO calls for more information.
“Public health experts and officials, including in the United States, have been clear it is important that the People’s Republic of China (PRC) share more adequate and transparent epidemiological and viral genomic sequence data,” the official told Reuters.
“This is in the interest of the PRC and the international community and critical to identify any potential variants.”
Fury as Rishi Sunak claims NHS ‘has funding it needs’ to tackle crisis
Tuesday 3 January 2023 20:06 , Andy Gregory
Despite repeated warnings from health leaders that immediate investment is needed to protect patients, Rishi Sunak has said the NHS has all the funding it needs to deal with the crisis engulfing hospitals.
But critics said claims the NHS had enough resources were “an insult to all those suffering in hospital corridors or in the back of ambulances because the Government refused to act sooner.”
Our Whitehall editor Kate Devlin has the report:
Fury as Rishi Sunak claims NHS ‘has funding it needs’ to tackle crisis
People urged to wear masks and stay at home if unwell as pressure on NHS mounts
Tuesday 3 January 2023 19:24 , Andy Gregory
As children return to school at a time when high levels of flu, Covid-19 and scarlet fever are all being reported, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has issued fresh guidance in a bid to minimise the diseases’ spread.
Parents have been urged to keep children at home if they are unwell and have a fever, with adults told to only go out if necessary and wear face coverings if they are ill and avoid visiting vulnerable people, while an already crisis-stricken NHS faces down multiple waves of winter illnesses.
You can read more on the UKHSA’s “back-to-school advice” here:
People urged to wear masks and stay at home if unwell as NHS in crisis
Impact of China’s Covid outbreak on UK ‘likely to be minimal’, says expert
Tuesday 3 January 2023 18:55 , Andy Gregory
Any contribution of China’s coronavirus outbreak to what we see in the UK “is likely to be minimal”, an expert in mathematical statistics has suggested.
On the “complex” issue of surveillance testing, “it is worth noting that the capacity for such surveillance is always limited”, said Professor Thomas House of the University of Manchester.
But he warned that testing travellers needs to be balanced against “potential enhanced surveillance in our health and social care sectors”.
Professor Rowland Kao, an expert on veterinary epidemiology and data science from the University of Edinburgh, said that the surveillance testing could fill an “important gap”, adding: “Testing on arrival is not to prevent spread but to gather data – we know very little about what is happening in China.
“If we and other countries are able to in particular gather viral sequences, this will give us knowledge of what variants might be emerging in China.”
Fixing delays in patients leaving hospital is best way of relieving NHS crisis, says Barclay
Tuesday 3 January 2023 18:27 , Andy Gregory
Devastating delays in ambulance handovers causing issues at hospitals across the country are largely triggered “by those who are fit to leave hospital but delayed in doing so”, the health secretary has said.
Asked why he will not give NHS staff a real-terms pay increase given the record number of vacancies, the Steve Barclay told broadcasters: “Well, because we’re focusing the funding onto the operations backlogs, for example, getting more diagnostic hubs in place, getting the surgical hubs that we are rolling out, getting the backlog from the pandemic reduced, that’s been the key priority.
“That’s where we’ve surged additional funding, but we also recognise the big pressure that we’re seeing played through in terms of ambulance handover delays. It is largely triggered by those who are fit to leave hospital but delayed in doing so and we need to free up that bed capacity and that is often about having the right social care provision to do so.
“That’s why we’ve got an extra £7.5bn going into social care over the next two years, an extra £6.6bn into the NHS to tackle that issue of patients who are fit to leave, who are often delayed in doing so. That in turn is the best way of relieving the pressure on A&E and ensuring that ambulance handover times are reduced.”
Government aiming to ‘get people out of hospital who don’t need to be there’, says Barclay
Tuesday 3 January 2023 17:58 , Andy Gregory
Speaking to broadcasters about the pressures facing A&E units, health secretary Steve Barclay has said the government is focused on “getting the people out of the hospital who don’t need to be there” in order to “speed up the ambulance handover delays”.
“It has always been part of the recognition of the pressures of Covid that that would have an impact on people seeking services during the pandemic, for example, people were more reluctant to go and see their GPs. That in particular has had an impact on cardiovascular risk,” said Mr Barclay.
“There’s other factors as well in terms of the backlogs on operations. Yes, it’s important that we get the ambulances to people quickly, as well but there’s a range of factors that have played in, particularly into those cardiovascular deaths, which is the prime issue when we’re looking at the challenge in terms of excess deaths.
“So, this is something the chief medical officer, the NHS medical director have been looking at very closely.
“It is why we are so focused on getting the people out of the hospital who don’t need to be there because that in turn will speed up the ambulance handover delays and get those ambulances back out responding to calls.”
EU says it has agreed ‘coordinated approach’ to Chinese travel
Tuesday 3 January 2023 17:28 , Andy Gregory
The European Union’s health security committee has announced that member states have agreed on a “coordinated approach” to the changing Covid-19 situation – including implications for increased travel from China.
The committee has worked on targeted measures, including pre-departure testing for travellers from China, increased wastewater monitoring and increased domestic surveillance, said EU health chief Stella Kyriakides.
Over the past week, however, EU nations have reacted unilaterally to the crisis in China, disregarding an earlier commitment to act in unity.
China appears to reject EU offer of vaccine donations
Tuesday 3 January 2023 17:01 , Andy Gregory
China has appeared to reject an offer of Covid variant-adapted vaccine donations from the European Union, announced by the EU executive on Tuesday.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said that the situation was “under control” and medical provisions “in adequate supply” – but added that China was open to “strengthening solidarity and cooperation with the international community” to better meet its pandemic challenges.
However, China can “meet the demand of anyone who wants to be vaccinated”, he said. It was not clear how many vaccines were being offered by the EU.
China has so far insisted on using only Chinese-made vaccines – which are of the inactivated virus type and not based on the Western mRNA technology – for its own population.
Virologist calls for ‘more realistic picture’ from China ahead of WHO meeting
Tuesday 3 January 2023 16:43 , Andy Gregory
Leading scientists advising the World Health Organisation have said they want a “more realistic picture” of the coronavirus situation from China’s top experts at a key meeting today.
The WHO has invited Chinese scientists to a virtual closed meeting with its technical advisory group on viral evolution, to present data on which variants are circulating in the country.
“We want to see a more realistic picture of what is actually going on,” Professor Marion Koopmans, a Dutch virologist who sits on the WHO committee told Reuters, claiming that some of the data from Beijing, such as that on hospitalisation numbers, is “not very credible”.
“It is in the interests of China itself to come forward with more reliable information.”
Prof Koopmans said the committee has only seen a “tiny fraction” of China’s cases sequenced so far – around 700 – and called for the establishment of a global surveillance network to keep track of the virus, saying: “Right now, what we are getting is very patchy, but that has been the reality in other parts of the world as well.”
Mask guidance ‘not compulsory’ and ‘pretty longstanding’, says Downing Street
Tuesday 3 January 2023 16:26 , Andy Gregory
In addition to the government’s fresh restrictions on travel for those leaving China, UK health authorities have urged people to remain at home where possible and wear a face covering outside if they are feeling unwell.
While transport secretary Mark Harper agreed that “wearing a mask is very sensible if you are ill”, Downing Street has stressed that the UK Health Security Agency guidance is “not compulsory”.
“I think that is pretty longstanding advice,” said Rishi Sunak’s official spokesperson. “It remains health advice to the public – it is not mandatory. People need their judgment. Certainly people will continue to use their good sense, having spent a long time dealing ... with these kinds of infectious illnesses.”
Questioned whether it was really “longstanding” advice for people to wear face coverings if they are battling a cold, the No 10 official replied: “That’s not what the advice says.
“What you’ll see is, as has often been the case, if people are ill, they are advised to stay at home. Obviously people can choose to wear a mask if they wish to. It is not compulsory. This is advice from UKHSA rather than government ministers telling people what to do, as we saw during the height of the pandemic before the emergence of vaccines.”
China says Covid entry restrictions by countries lack scientific basis and are unreasonable
Tuesday 3 January 2023 16:00 , Emily Atkinson
China on Tuesday hit back at governments who have imposed travelling restrictions on the country by arguing that Covid-19 measures should be “science-based” and warned of possible “countermeasures”.
More than a dozen countries, including the UK and the US, have made it mandatory for travellers from China to show a negative Covid test before arrival. Morocco has imposed a complete ban on people arriving from China over the monumental rise in coronavirus cases plaguing the country.
Some federal governments have cited Beijing’s lack of transparency around infection data and the risk of new variants as the reason behind new regulations.
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar reports:
China says Covid entry restrictions lack scientific basis and are unreasonable
China slapped with new entry rules due to ‘lack of comprehensive health information’, says No 10
Tuesday 3 January 2023 15:55 , Emily Atkinson
Downing Street has rejected any suggestion that the new rules for Chinese travellers could signal a wider change for visitors travelling to the UK from countries with high rates of Covid.
The PM’s official spokesman said: “A part of the reason for this was because of a lack of comprehensive health information being shared.
“We’re working with the Chinese government to encourage them - we’re not alone in this - to get more information from them.”
China hits out at ‘unacceptable’ Covid restrictions imposed on its travellers
Tuesday 3 January 2023 15:50 , Emily Atkinson
Beijing has condemned the “unacceptable” introduction of Covid testing on passengers arriving from China to several countries.
Chinese officials said the entry restrictions “lack scientific basis” and threatened retaliatory action.
Foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said: “We are firmly opposed to attempts to manipulate the Covid measures for political purposes and will take counter-measures based on the principle of reciprocity.”
My colleague Liam James has the details:
China hits out at ‘unacceptable’ Covid restrictions imposed on its travellers
70% of Chinese megacity infected with Covid, doctor says
Tuesday 3 January 2023 15:45 , Emily Atkinson
As China battles a massive surge in Covid cases, a senior doctor at one of Shanghai’s top hospitals has claimed that 70 per cent of the city’s population has been infected.
The wave of cases comes after the Communist regime loosened draconian Covid restrictions overnight, overwhelming hospitals and crematoriums.
Chen Erzhen, vice president at Ruijin Hospital in Shanghai and a member of the city’s Covid-19 expert advisory panel, was quoted as saying the majority of the city’s 25 million people may have been infected.
Maroosha Muzaffar reports:
