- A growing number of countries are stepping up restrictions on travel to and from the UK
- It comes after the UK reported a more infectious coronavirus variant
- Countries including Germany, Italy, Belgium, Ireland, Turkey and Canada are suspending UK flights
- France has closed its border with the UK for 48 hours, with no lorries or ferry passengers able to sail from the port of Dover
- PM Boris Johnson will chair a meeting of the government's emergency committee later
- European Union member states are due to meet in Brussels to discuss a co-ordinated response on travel bans for Britain
- The easing of Northern Ireland's coronavirus rules over Christmas will be reduced from five days to one
- On Sunday, the number of recorded daily infections in the UK reached an all-time high of 35,928 new cases
- Globally there have been 77m confirmed cases since the outbreak began, and 1.7m deaths
Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the coronavirus pandemic. We’ll be bringing you all the latest developments in the UK and around the world. Here are the main UK headlines this morning:
- UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson will chair a meeting of the government's emergency committee later after France closed its border with the UK for 48 hours
- A growing number of countries have introduced travel bans on the UK after a new coronavirus variant has led to a sharp increase in cases in south-east England
- Nations including Germany, Italy, Belgium, the Irish Republic, Turkey and Canada are suspending UK flights
- The government in Northern Ireland has announced the relaxation of coronavirus rules over the festive period will be reduced from five days to just Christmas Day when three households will be allowed to mix
- Coronavirus cases in the UK rose by 35,928 on Sunday- nearly double the number recorded seven days previously
UK calls emergency meeting as Europe shuts doors
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson will chair a meeting of the government's emergency committee later after France closed its border with the UK for 48 hours.
The move, announced on Sunday, means no lorries or ferry passengers will be able to sail from the port of Dover.
France is among a growing list of countries to suspend travel links because of the prevalence of a new variant of coronavirus in the UK which has led to a sharp rise in cases.
The travel ban has led to warnings of possible disruption to food supplies over Christmas. But supermarkets have insisted their warehouses are well-stocked.
What else is happening around the world?
Here's a reminder of today's other global headlines:- Lawmakers in the US have agreed to a package of pandemic aid worth around $900bn (£660bn) after months of wrangling. The money includes support for businesses and employment programmes
- Sydney has become cut off from the rest of Australia, as all other states and territories introduce travel bans for the city due to an outbreak
- Thailand is seeing its worst coronavirus outbreak so far, after hundreds of cases were linked to the country's biggest seafood market
- Denmark is to dig up four million mink that were culled because of a mutated form of coronavirus. They will now be incinerated instead to avoid pollution, the government says
UK transport secretary wants to find 'quick resolution' with France
UK Transport Secretary Grant Shapps says it is "important" to find a resolution with France "as quickly as possible" after it banned freight hauliers and passengers from the UK entering the country.He told BBC Breakfast that his French counterpart, who he spoke to last night, is also keen to get it resolved quickly.
He says it is also in France’s interests to find a solution and he will be speaking to the French transport minister again this morning.
Shapps adds that most goods come into the UK in containers - 80% - these are "unaccompanied freight" which are not subject to the ban. He also points out that only France have banned hauliers – other EU nations have not.