30th December 2021

Summary for Thursday, 30th December

• Health officials say eight million lateral flow kits will be sent to pharmacies before New Year's Eve
  
• There are shortages of the rapid tests and PCR slots in many parts of the UK
  
• PM Boris Johnson urges people to test if they can before they see in the New Year
  
• Northern Ireland's testing system is being changed to cope with a shortage of tests
  
• Fully-vaccinated people in NI should now only book a PCR test if a rapid test is positive
  
• Meanwhile, Nightingale surge "hubs" are being prepared at hospitals across England
  
• More than 10,000 people are in hospital in England with coronavirus at the moment - the highest figure since March
  

Good morning and welcome

Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the coronavirus pandemic.
Here are some of the headlines on this Thursday morning:

• Eight million lateral flow tests are to be distributed to pharmacies by New Year’s Eve, health officials say, amid concerns about a shortage of tests
  
• The prime minister has urged people to take a rapid test before going out to celebrate the end of 2021 but some people are having difficulty getting hold of the kits
  
• In Northern Ireland testing guidance has been changed to cope with the demand for PCR tests, with fully-vaccinated people identified as close contacts of someone with Covid now told to take lateral flow tests and only book a PCR slot if they test positive
  
• Kent MP Sir Roger Gale said he had spoken to Health Secretary Sajid Javid and was told there was "a world shortage of lateral flow & PCR test supplies"
  
• US President Joe Biden says he has committed $137m to expand the production of at-home Covid tests and would use "our military authority" to meet demand
  
• Coronavirus "surge hubs" are to be set up at hospitals across England in preparation for a potential wave of Omicron admissions, the NHS says
  
• Another record number of Covid cases was reported in the UK on Wednesday and NHS medical director Prof Stephen Powis says the service is on "war footing"
  
• The combination of Delta and Omicron variants is driving a dangerous tsunami of Covid-19 cases, the World Health Organization (WHO) chief says.
  
• The UK reported another record rise with more than 183,000 daily Covid cases on Wednesday.
  
• More than 90% of community Covid cases in England are the now Omicron variant, according to the latest data from the UK Health Security Agency.
  
• Paris, France, is set to reimpose wearing face masks outdoors again in this week in a bid to slow the spread of the Omicron variant, police said on Wednesday.
  
• Anti-vaxxers stormed a Covid testing centre during a ‘freedom’ rally in Milton Keynes, appearing to believe it was a coronavirus vaccine centre.
  
• Argentina reported a daily record of 42,032 new cases on Wednesday.
  
• France registered a national and European record for new infections reporting 208,000 coronavirus cases in the previous 24 hours, up from its previous record of almost 180,000 set the day before.
  
• The German health minister, Karl Lauterbach, said on Wednesday that the number of new Covid cases has been under-reported and the actual incidence rate of infections is about two or three times higher than the officially reported figure.
  
• More than 44,000 people in the US could die of Covid-19 in the next four weeks, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
  
• Portugal reported a new record of 26,867 Covid cases over the last 24 hours on Wednesday, up from 17,172 the previous day, although daily deaths dropped to a fraction of early 2021 peaks.
  
• Cuba will give booster shots to its entire population in January, according to a report in state-run media.
  

Officials look to distribute tests ahead of New Year's Eve celebrations

There is a scramble to bolster the UK’s coronavirus testing system ahead of New Year’s Eve, with the prime minister advising people to take a lateral flow test before going out to celebrate.
There are currently no home-delivery slots left for lateral flow tests though the government website shows some home PCR tests are available for key workers or the public. Earlier they were also unavailable.
But there are also no PCR test slots available at sites in England or Northern Ireland – some are available in Scotland and parts of Wales.
UK Health Security Agency chief executive Dr Jenny Harries says she recognises there are issues across the country but says there are good supplies and officials will be endeavouring to get them to "the right places".
The UKHSA says eight million lateral flow tests will be made available to pharmacies by New Year’s Eve and people wanting PCR tests should keep checking the website as more slots are being made available every day.
Conservative MP Sir Roger Gale tweeted yesterday that he had been told by Health Secretary Sajid Javid there is a "world shortage of lateral flow & PCR test supplies" but said the UK was buying "all that’s available".

Positivity rate 'through the roof' - testing lab boss

Demand for testing is "higher than ever", the boss of a lighthouse testing lab says.
Chris Hughes, managing director of of Perkin Elmer, tells BBC Radio 5 Live: "The issue is demand is higher than ever but the good news is capacity in the network is increasing - more was added in December and there are plans to add more in January.
"You’ve seen the numbers from Omicron, it’s an extremely transmissible strain of the virus so more people are getting symptoms and we’ve seen the positivity rates of those tests go through the roof as well."
It takes about 10 hours to process a PCR test, he says, but that can rise to 12 hours when there is huge demand.
When a sample arrives at the lab it first has to be neutralised so it is "no longer a risk to anybody". The RNA is then extracted and put through a test which detects whether Covid is present or not. If it is positive it is likely to go through a second test to check for one of the variants of concern, "Omicron being chief among those at the moment", and it may also be sent for sequencing to confirm the presence of a variant.
Hughes says there has been a huge public and private sector effort to increase capacity over the past year or so and tells people struggling to book a slot: "Be persistent, keep checking and get the test."

'Very worrying' people could mix without testing - scientist

It is "very worrying" that a shortage of Covid-19 tests could lead to people mixing over the New Year without being able to see whether they are infectious, a leading scientist says.
Prof Peter Openshaw, who sits on the New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group (Nervtag), says the conditions at a New Year's Eve gathering were "perfect" for spreading coronavirus.
Asked about the prospect of untested people mixing because of a shortage of lateral flow devices, he tells BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "We know the situations in which transmission happens and fortunately I don't think we are facing the sort of lockdown that was necessary in order to cope in the very earliest part of this year.
"But we do know that crowding together in poorly ventilated spaces, particularly if you are shouting over loud music and so on, is absolutely perfect in terms of transmitting this very, very highly transmissible virus."

Northern Ireland ministers to hold meeting on latest data

In Northern Ireland Stormont ministers will hold a virtual meeting later to review the latest Covid-19 data.
They will review the statistics and also the restrictions that came into effect on Monday.
These include table service only in bars and restaurants, 2m social distancing in offices and guidance on household gatherings.
Between midnight on 23 December and midnight on 28 December there were 22,972 positive cases identified.
This is more than double the figure for the comparable five-day period in the previous week.

'If I can't get a test I'll have to risk it when visiting my mother'

One of those who has been struggling to get hold of lateral flow tests is Janice Stephens.
She tells the BBC she has been unable to place an order for the past three days and orders made before Christmas have not arrived.
"As a four-person household we now just have seven tests left," she says. "I am a carer for my 91-year-old mother so if I can't secure some more soon I risk having to visit her without doing a test first.
"In addition should one of us test positive, there will not be enough for the rest of us to do daily lateral flow tests as currently advised."

England cricket coach to miss Ashes Test while isolating

The England men's cricket team head coach Chris Silverwood will miss the fourth Ashes Test in Sydney after being forced to isolate for 10 days.
He must isolate after a family member who is part of England's touring party in Australia tested positive for Covid-19.
England have recorded seven positive cases - three support staff and four family members - since a PCR testing regime began on Monday.
Silverwood and his family will have to isolate in Melbourne where England suffered their latest defeat as they went 3-0 down on the way to losing the Ashes.
England will have a fourth round of PCR tests on Thursday before they, along with Australia, are scheduled to fly to Sydney on a chartered flight the following morning.

Covid absences having 'significant impact' - NHS Providers

Chris Hopson, the head of NHS Providers which represents trusts, says staff absences due to Covid-19 are "clearly now having a significant impact" across the whole economy and parts of the health service.
"NHS experience suggests that the impact varies considerably depending on how many staff are isolating, driven by local community infection rates; ability to rapidly source temporary replacement staff; and ability to flex existing staff to cover work of those who are absent," he says.
Some ambulance service bosses have warned that absences are meaning fewer ambulances on the street, he says, and he adds that if the pressures continue to rise then so will calls to reduce the self-isolation period to five days, as has happened in the US.
But Hopson warns there are "difficult trade offs" because of the potential for an increased infection risk both in hospitals and the community.
The shift from a 10-day self-isolation period to seven days, with two negative tests, has been approved following analysis by the UK Health Security Agency showing it offers the same level of protection, he says.
"If they were able to say the same about a reduction to five days that would be a clinching argument. But the suspicion must be that, if the science was clear, we would already know that by now."

What are the rules on self-isolation?

One of the reasons there is such high demand for lateral flow tests is because people with Covid in England can now stop self-isolating up to three days early - if they test negative twice.
Two negative lateral flow tests are needed to end self-isolating - the first no earlier than day six of isolation and a second 24 hours later.
The guidance applies whatever your vaccination status. It applies whether you have tested positive for Omicron or another variant.
However, anyone leaving self-isolation after seven days is "strongly advised to limit close contact with other people in crowded or poorly-ventilated spaces".
Here's a full reminder of the self-isolation rules.

Covid deaths remain high in Poland

Adam Easton - BBC Warsaw Correspondent
The number of Covid 19-related deaths in Poland remains high with the health minister Adam Niedzielski reporting 709 people dying with the virus in the past 24 hours.
On Wednesday, Poland reported 794 deaths, the highest since April.
Niedzielski has told Radio Zet about 75% of the people who have died were unvaccinated.
The majority of the remaining fatalities were people who were 65 or over, often with other underlying health issues.
ust over 55% of Poles have had two vaccinations, well below the EU average.
The number of new Covid-19 infections reported on Thursday was 14,350, down 16% from a week earlier, Niedzielski says.
Cases have been falling week on week since the beginning of December. However, Poland has confirmed just 25 cases of the Omicron variant, and the number of new infections is expected to begin rising again in January.

No changes expected in Northern Ireland

Chris Page - BBC News Ireland correspondent
No further changes will be made to Northern Ireland's Covid restrictions in a meeting of Stormont ministers today, the BBC understands.
They will meet virtually to review the latest data and fresh restrictions which came into effect on Monday.
Ministers are expected to discuss whether the current 10-day period of self-isolation for confirmed cases should be reduced to seven days.
A paper circulated among ministers is believed to say the Omicron variant accounts for more than 90% of Covid cases in Northern Ireland.

Covid disruption hits Southern rail services

Rail operator Southern says it is revising its timetable due to "the ongoing effect of coronavirus isolation and sickness".
As a result no direct services will go to London Victoria, Battersea Park, Clapham Junction or Wandsworth Common until 10 January.
The operator says the times of trains on all routes will be changed and, on many routes, services will be reduced.
Gatwick Express services will also be suspended.
Some services that normally start and finish at Victoria will be diverted to London Bridge but others will not run at all. There are more details on Southern's website.

Saudis reinstate social distancing at Islam's holiest sites

Workers have returned floor markings to guide worshippers at the Grand Mosque, which is built around the Kaaba

Saudi Arabia has reinstated social-distancing measures at the Grand Mosque in Mecca and Medina’s Prophet’s Mosque, the two holiest places in Islam, to curb the spread of the Omicron variant.
The state-run Saudi Press Agency cited an official as saying the measures would apply to both worshippers and those performing the Umra, or minor pilgrimage. The source also stressed the need for all visitors to wear facemasks.
The rules are in line with a directive from the Saudi government, which reimposed the mandatory wearing of masks and social distancing in all places, whether indoors or outdoors, on Thursday.
Saudi Arabia has seen a marked increase in Covid-19 cases in the past month. On Wednesday, the health ministry recorded 744 new cases - the highest number since mid-August. It has reported 554,000 in total, including 8,874 deaths, since the start of the pandemic.
So far, 67% of the country’s 35 million population has received at least two doses of a Covid-19 vaccine, while 6% has had a booster shot.
On Sunday, the government announced that all citizens, residents and visitors would be required to show proof of their booster to visit shops, malls and restaurants from 1 February.

Countries across Europe are reporting a record high number of infections as authorities scramble to stem the surge.
Samantha Lock - The Guardian
The UK, Italy, France, Spain, Portugal, Denmark, Ireland and Greece all reported new case records this week, while cases in the US also hit a new high.
Despite the surge in cases, countries across the world are easing isolation and testing rules.

• Spain reduced its Covid self-isolation period to seven days from 10 after businesses expressed fears the Omicron surge would leave them with mounting staff shortages.
  
• Italy scrapped the isolation period for people who have received three shots of a Covid vaccine and are subsequently exposed to someone who has tested positive.
  
• In England, people who receive negative lateral flow results on day six and day seven of their self-isolation period – with tests taken 24 hours apart – no longer have to stay indoors for a full 10 days.
  

In light of these decisions, the World Health Organization cautioned that slashing the mandatory isolation period for people with Covid-19 was a trade-off between controlling transmission and keeping economies up and running.
Dr Michael Ryan, executive director of the WHO’s Health Emergencies Programme, said it is not “advisable” to reduce Covid controls and warned that governments need to be “careful” about reducing restrictions.
Speaking at a WHO press conference on Wednesday, Dr Ryan said:

Even with the previous variants, most people will incubate and show symptoms or be positive within that first six days or so, and the chances then of being positive or transmitting the disease after that are lower – but it is then for governments to make that judgment call of when to allow people out of a quarantine situation with extra tests.
The most important thing at this moment is we need to be careful about changing tactics and strategies immediately on the basis of what we’re seeing in early Omicron data.”

Spain, Italy and Australia ease isolation and testing rules

Fearful of the economic impact of keeping so many people at home and a lack of staff due to long isolation times, some governments are looking at shortening the period that people have to isolate if they are Covid positive or have been exposed to someone who is positive.
Spain announced it will reduce the quarantine period for people who have tested positive for Covid-19 to seven days from 10, even as new infections hit record highs.
Italy said will scrap self-isolation rules for those coming into contact with someone testing positive for coronavirus providing they have had a booster shot, have recently recovered or been vaccinated.
The move comes after health experts urged the government to rethink its policies amid worries that the spread of the highly contagious Omicron variant could paralyse the country by forcing millions to stay at home.
Earlier this week US health authorities also released new guidance shortening the isolation period for people with a confirmed infection to five days from 10, so long as they are asymptomatic.
In England, people who receive negative lateral flow results on day six and day seven of their self-isolation period – with tests taken 24 hours apart – no longer have to stay indoors for a full 10 days.
Australia on Thursday narrowed its definition of close contacts of coronavirus cases and relaxed requirements for Covid-19 tests, as daily cases topped 20,000 for the first time in the pandemic, in a bid to relieve pressure on testing sites.
The rules are being relaxed to stop asymptomatic people being forced into isolation, especially in healthcare, hospitality and airlines, and cut long lines of people forced to get PCR tests for interstate travel or because they have been at a public site with a confirmed case.
Prime minister Scott Morrison told reporters:

With Omicron, we cannot have hundreds of thousands of Australians and more taken out of circulation based on rules that were set for the Delta variant”

From Friday, Morrison said “close contacts” will be redefined as people who live in the same household with an infected person. They would have to isolate for seven days and would only have to get a PCR test if they have Covid-19 symptoms.

Chinese police parade suspected Covid rule-breakers through streets

Armed police in Jingxi, in southern China, have paraded four alleged violators of Covid rules through the streets, state media reported, a practice that was banned but which has resurfaced in the struggle to enforce a zero-Covid policy.
The four men were accused of smuggling people across China’s closed borders, and on Tuesday they were led through the streets wearing hazmat suits and bearing placards showing their name and photos. The state-run Guangxi daily reported the action was designed to deter “border-related crimes”.

A common practice during the Cultural Revolution, public shaming has long since been banned in China, and the Communist party-affiliated Beijing News said the Jingxi incident “seriously violates the spirit of the rule of law and cannot be allowed to happen again”.

India has concerns over sharp case rises in New Delhi and Mumbai

Amrit Dhillon - The Guardian
India is on the threshold of a potential new wave of coronavirus – probably fuelled by the Omicron variant. Cases have surged by 86% in the Indian capital New Delhi in 24 hours, and doubled in Mumbai in the same period.
Although the absolute numbers remain low in both cities, the sharp rise is striking and is alarming officials. By late November, India’s capital was recording about 40 fresh infections a day. On Wednesday, it recorded 923. The last time it had recorded such a figure was in May.
The surge has prompted fresh restrictions in all public places yet huge rallies for elections in February continue to be held by all parties. The rise has injected more urgency into the efforts to vaccinate the 108 million adult Indians who have yet to receive even one jab.
So far, though, doctors have seen very few serious cases. The vast majority are asymptomatic or with very mild symptoms from which they are recovering fast. Nor is there any pressure yet on hospitals. Around 97 per cent of the 21,518 beds in Delhi earmarked for covid patients remain vacant, anecdotally suggesting the variant is more transmissible but less virulent.
Doctors say that protection through natural infection during India’s second wave, when the Delta variant raged across the country, is probably another reason for the low impact.

US cities scale back New Year’s Eve events and urge people to scrap parties

Edward Helmore - The Guardian
Americans are again facing a stay-at-home New Year’s Eve as US political leaders and senior health advisers have urged people to scrap party plans and avoid larger public events as daily cases of Covid-19 break all previous records.
In New York, attendance at the Times Square celebration known as the Ball Drop – in essence, tens of thousands of people watching a 12-foot geodesic sphere inlaid with Waterford crystals descend a long pole – has been capped at 15,000, down from pre-pandemic 60,000, with organizers encouraging revelers to watch it on TV or online.
Attendees must be fully vaccinated and wear masks. The changes are meant to “keep the fully vaccinated crowd safe and healthy as we ring in the New Year”, outgoing mayor Bill de Blasio said in a statement.
In Chicago, the Illinois governor, Jay Pritzker, has not yet imposed restrictions or shut down the city’s traditional fireworks show. But he warned Chicagoan this week that “Omicron and Delta are coming to your party”.
“You need to think twice about how many people will be gathered together, keeping social distancing if you’re at a party. And if you can’t, leave,” he added.
San Francisco has canceled its fireworks show over the Bay for the second year in a row. Mayor London Breed told residents that “we must remain vigilant in doing all we can to stop the spread of the Covid-19 Omicron variant”.

The Royal College of Nursing latest survey of nurses in the UK

In the UK, the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) has issued a report based on its latest survey of nurses, which suggests that 57% of respondents were either thinking about leaving their job or actively planning to leave.
The general secretary of the RCN, Pat Cullen, has just been on Sky News. She was asked about NHS England plans for pop-up centres to deal with Covid cases, and said:

You can set up all the hubs that you wish to set up. But if you don’t have the nursing staff to actually care for the patients that are going to be placed in those hubs, that places more challenges on the nursing workforce.
The nurses that are already providing the critical care in hospitals will be spread even more thinly across those areas, unless there’s another plan to staff those beds and care for those patients.

On the current morale in the nursing profession in the NHS, Cullen said:

Each and every nurse has paid a massive price over the last number of years. Ahead of the pandemic there were 50,000 nursing vacancies in the NHS in England. And then on top of that, we now have a situation where thousands of nurses are off isolating. So you can imagine what it’s like for those nurses that are still getting up, as we speak this morning, to start a thirteen-fourteen hour shift, caring for patients with a depleted workforce, and knowing that there’s no end to it.
It’s just relentless, and the words that they say to me on a daily basis are it has become intolerable. And, you know, throughout my 37-year nursing career, I never thought that I would see a report issued today that shows 57% of our workforce wishing to leave the profession. That certainly was never something that I thought I would see in my time.

Canada sees record daily new cases numbers in six provinces

Coronavirus infections set new one-day highs in six Canadian provinces Wednesday, prompting several provinces to impose more restrictions in hopes of containing the spread of the omicron variant.
Associated Press report that the biggest jumps were in Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia, which are the country’s most populous provinces. Quebec reported more than 13,000 new cases in the previous 24 hours, Ontario had 10,436 and British Columbia listed 2,944. Manitoba, Alberta, and Newfoundland and Labrador also set new records.
British Columbia announced it is delaying the full return to classrooms after the Christmas break to give school staff time to implement enhanced health measures. Staff and students whose parents are health workers will return to schools 3 January or 4 January as planned. All other students return 10 January.

Hospitals in England asked to look for up to 4,000 emergency Covid beds

Rowena Mason and Aubrey Allegretti - The Guardian
NHS England confirmed that it was creating new small-scale “Nightingale” facilities with up to 100 beds each at eight hospitals across the country. The health service said it had asked trusts to identify empty spaces to accommodate beds in places such as gyms or teaching areas. NHS managers are aiming to create up to 4,000 beds as surge capacity if needed, with work on the first tranche, in temporary structures, starting this week.
A number of huge temporary hospitals, called the “Nightingales”, were built in exhibition halls in the first wave of the pandemic but were dismantled without being used to capacity.
The new approach will ask for surge capacity to be built in the grounds of hospitals to make it easier for staff to move between new and old sites and keep patients closer to diagnostics and emergency care. The first sites will be at Preston, Leeds, Birmingham, Leicester, Stevenage, St George’s in London, Ashford and Bristol.

New rules for PCR testing as demand outstrips supply due to rise of Omicron
Overnight Andrew Madden has reported for the Belfast Telegraph on the latest situation in Northern Ireland.
He writes:
On Wednesday the Department of Health reported a further 14 Covid-related deaths and 22,972 new cases of the virus in the five days from midnight on December 23 to midnight on December 28.
This is an average of around 4,600 cases each day, well above the previous daily record of 3,286. In Belfast alone, 4,195 cases were confirmed over the five-day period.
Hospitals across the region are at 94% capacity, with the South West Acute Hospital operating over capacity.
It came as the PHA published new arrangements regarding PCR testing to “protect the testing system in Northern Ireland and ensure availability of testing for those who need it”.
Fully-vaccinated close contacts will no longer have to take a PCR test. Instead, they will be advised to take a lateral flow test as soon as possible.
Read more here.

The government website used for booking a PCR test in the UK, shows (as of 8am this morning) stocks  low across all England, and none available in north east England:

French Open finalist Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova has tested positive for Covid-19, casting doubt on her place in the Australian Open beginning on 17 January.
AP reports:
The 30-year-old Russian confirmed she has the coronavirus and is isolating after arriving in Australia on Tuesday.

“I was fully vaccinated and was preparing for the start of the season in Dubai,” Pavlyuchenkova said on social media. “But we live in a very difficult and unpredictable time. Right now I am in complete isolation, in a special hotel and following all the protocols under the supervision of doctors. Now it’s important to take care of yourself and the health of others. I’ll be back on court when it’s safe for everyone.”

Prof Openshaw warns New Year's Eve will be 'absolutely perfect' to transmit virus

There are concerns over the availability of tests in the UK this morning from Prof Peter Openshaw, who sits on the New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group (Nervtag). He said the conditions at a New Year’s Eve gathering were “perfect” for spreading coronavirus.
Asked about the prospect of untested people mixing due to a shortage of lateral flow devices, PA Media quoted him telling BBC Radio 4’s Today:

I think it’s very worrying indeed. We know the situations in which transmission happens and fortunately I don’t think we are facing the sort of lockdown that was necessary in order to cope in the very earliest part of this year.
But we do know that crowding together in poorly ventilated spaces, particularly if you are shouting over loud music and so on, is absolutely perfect in terms of transmitting this very, very highly transmissible virus.

Officials and experts in low-vaccinated eastern European countries are anticipating a post-holiday explosion of Omicron-fuelled Covid-19 cases in much of the region.
Adriana Pistol, the director of Romania’s National Center for Surveillance and Control of Communicable Diseases, warned on Wednesday that the country could see a peak of 25,000 new daily cases during the expected next wave. Romania is the European Union’s second-least vaccinated member nation.
Noting that roughly 60% of Romania’s people over the age of 65 or living with chronic diseases remain unvaccinated, Pistol said: “Even if the Omicron strain does not have the same level of severity ... the health system will be overloaded anyway and reach levels recorded this year in October.”
Stephen McGrath reports from Sibiu in Romania for Associated Press that Romania saw huge lines at borders before Christmas as hundreds of thousands of citizens flocked home, many from the west. The government started requiring travellers to complete passenger locator forms as of 20 December to help track infections, but Pistol said many had failed to fill them out. Only 40% of Romania’s population of around 19 million have been fully inoculated.
“It’s very clear that the fifth wave will probably hit us in January,” Dragos Zaharia, a primary care doctor at the Marius Nasta Institute of Pneumology in Bucharest, said. “We just hope that there will be fewer deaths, fewer severe cases, and fewer hospital admissions.”

US airline JetBlue has said it is reducing its schedule through to 13 January by about 1,280 flights due to a surge in crew members falling sick from the Omicron coronavirus variant.
Carriers have been canceling hundreds of flights every day in the United States since Christmas Eve as they grapple with staff shortages due to Covid infections and bad weather in parts of the country.
“We expect the number of Covid cases in the north-east, where most of our crew members are based, to continue to surge for the next week or two,” JetBlue’s spokesperson said in an emailed statement to Reuters. “This means there is a high likelihood of additional cancellations until case counts start to come down.”

Today so far

• Prof Peter Openshaw, who sits on the UK’s New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group (Nervtag) has warned the conditions at a New Year’s Eve gathering were “perfect” for spreading coronavirus, and said a lack of availability of testing in the UK was “very worrying indeed”.
  
• At the time of writing, there were no lateral flow tests available for delivery from the UK government website. Scotland and Wales still had bookable PCR tests, but Northern Ireland had “very few available” and no region of England had any available.
  
• NHS England confirmed that it was creating new small-scale “Nightingale” facilities with up to 100 beds each at eight hospitals across the country. The health service said it had asked trusts to identify empty spaces to accommodate beds in places such as gyms or teaching areas. NHS managers are aiming to create up to 4,000 beds as surge capacity if needed.
  
• Prof Andrew Pollard, head of the Oxford Vaccine Group, said he feels “most worried” about unvaccinated people. “Those who are unvaccinated remain at risk here in the UK and in other countries around the world, so that perhaps needs to be our focus.”
  
• Chris Hopson, the head of NHS Providers, which represents health trusts has said staff absences due to Covid-19 were “clearly now having a significant impact” across the whole economy and parts of the health service.
  
• Labour’s shadow culture secretary, Lucy Powell, has repeated calls for action over viral disinformation about vaccines being spread online. She said “It’s becoming an issue for the whole of society, who might now be facing further restrictions or huge pressure on the NHS because there are people who are choosing not to have the vaccine because of myths and misinformation that they are being fed online.”
  
• Coronavirus infections set new one-day highs in six of Canada’s provinces, prompting several provinces to impose more restrictions in hopes of containing the spread of the omicron variant.
  
• In Australia, fewer people will be told to get tested for Covid, with most states backing a much narrower definition of a close contact, as a record 21,000 new daily cases were recorded nationwide.
  
• Americans are again facing a stay-at-home New Year’s Eve as US political leaders and senior health advisers have urged people to scrap party plans and avoid larger public events as daily cases of Covid-19 break all previous records.
  
• India is on the threshold of a potential new wave of coronavirus – probably fuelled by the Omicron variant. Cases have surged by 86% in the Indian capital New Delhi in 24 hours, and doubled in Mumbai in the same period.
  
• Health leaders in eastern European countries with low vaccination rates like Romania are warning of a January wave of infections after the holiday period.
  
• The World Health Organization said on Wednesday that reducing mandatory isolation periods for people with Covid-19 was a trade-off between controlling transmission and keeping economies up and running. Michael Ryan told a news conference “If people shorten the quarantine period, there will be a small number of cases that will develop disease and potentially go on to transmit, because they have been let out of quarantine earlier. But that will be a relatively small number, and a lot of people who won’t transmit will also be released from that quarantine.”
  
• Armed police in Jingxi, in southern China, have paraded four alleged violators of Covid rules through the streets, state media reported, a practice that was banned but which has resurfaced in the struggle to enforce a zero-Covid policy.
  

Self-isolation cut to seven days with negative tests in Northern Ireland

The self-isolation period for people in Northern Ireland who have tested positive for coronavirus will be reduced from 10 days to seven - provided they get negative lateral flow results on day six and seven.
The change will come into effect tomorrow.
It brings Northern Ireland into line with England but the self-isolation requirement remains 10 days in Scotland and Wales.
No further restrictions will be introduced in Northern Ireland, the country's first minister confirmed.
Paul Givan said the Northern Ireland Executive would continue to assess the data and meet again on 6 January.

UK seeing 'astronomical' number of infections - expert

The UK is still seeing very high Covid hospital admissions, despite early evidence suggesting Omicron may be milder than previous variants, the government's former chief scientific adviser says.
Prof Mark Walport tells BBC Radio 4's World at One programme that it is not yet clear whether the wave will break through to older people in the UK.
And with around five million adults in the UK still completely unvaccinated, he says the risk of being admitted to hospital remains for those individuals.
He adds that the "astronomical number of infections" in the UK also poses "terrific challenges" for the workforce, with large numbers isolating.

Give NHS staff priority access to lateral flow tests - health bodies

NHS workers must be given priority for accessing lateral flow tests, professional health bodies have said.
The British Medical Association and Royal College of Nursing said health workers must come first for rapid tests to ease staffing issues.
One cancer care worker from London said she missed several days of work after being unable to get rapid tests by online ordering or collecting from a pharmacy - even after identifying as a key worker.
There has been intermittent availability of lateral flow and PCR tests online, while pharmacies have also reported a lack of supplies.
The UK Health Security Agency has said availability is refreshed throughout the day so people should keep checking back online.
Read more.

Confusion over French travel rules for EU-based Brits

Two cross-channel operators say French Covid rules have been tightened meaning British people can no longer travel through France by road to reach their homes within the EU.
P&O Ferries and Eurotunnel say changes were made by the French on Tuesday.
But the French Interior Minister told news agency AFP there were no new rules and it was only applying restrictions introduced before Christmas.
The BBC has been told the UK government is urgently seeking clarification.
The UK Foreign Office has updated its travel advice for France to state: "The French government have indicated that UK nationals travelling from the UK who are not resident in France will not be permitted to transit France to return to their country of residence unless they are travelling by air."
Since 18 December, British citizens have needed an essential reason to travel to France, with some exemptions in place.

Three in 10 local authority areas in the UK are recording their highest rate of new Covid cases since mass testing began in summer 2020, new analysis shows.
The areas include around three-quarters of authorities in north-west England, nearly two-thirds in the West Midlands and almost half in the East Midlands.
But no London boroughs are on the list, while only a tiny number of areas in the south-east and eastern England are at record levels, suggesting the latest surge in cases may have peaked in these parts of the country.
In a similar survey in the week before Christmas, two-thirds of local authorities in London were reporting record case rates.
The new figures, which have been compiled by PA Media, show that:

• 29 of the 39 local authorities in north-west England now have record Covid-19 case rates, led by Barrow-in-Furness (1,554.1 cases per 100,000 people), Bury (1,489.7) and Warrington (1,471.4). Other areas at record levels include Blackpool, Bolton, Liverpool and Wigan.
  
• In the West Midlands, 18 of the 30 local authorities are seeing record rates, led by Stafford (1,178.7), Lichfield (1,119.9) and Cannock Chase (1,085.9).
  
• 17 of the 40 local authorities in the East Midlands have record case rates, including Chesterfield (1,189.4), Leicester (1,036.3) and Lincoln (1,087.5).
  
• London still has the highest local rates in the UK, accounting for nine of the top 10 and 17 of the top 20. Lambeth has the highest rate of all, 2,415.4, though this is down week-on-week from 3,029.1.
  
• Only one of the 11 local authorities in Northern Ireland is currently not at a record high: Armagh City, Banbridge & Craigavon.
  
• Northern Ireland also has the highest rate of the four UK nations (1,310.2), followed by England (1,226.0), Wales (1,150.4) and Scotland (1,068.2) - all of which are record highs.
  

Figures are for the seven days to 25 December, as data for more recent days is still incomplete.
In total, 112 of the 377 local authority areas in the UK (30%) are recording their highest Covid case rates since mass testing was rolled out across the country in May and June 2020.
Figures for case rates in the early months of the pandemic are not directly comparable, as only a small number of people were being tested, mostly in hospitals and care homes.
The contrast between the south and east corner of the UK, and the rest of the country, reflects the way the Omicron variant of Covid-19 has spread in recent weeks – in particular how London was the first area of the UK where Omicron became the dominant variant.
Of the 112 local authority areas with record case rates, only two are in south-east England (Cherwell and Worthing) and four are in eastern England (Bedford, King’s Lynn & West Norfolk, Mid Suffolk and South Norfolk).
In Scotland, 11 of the 32 local authorities are seeing record rates, along with eight of the 22 authorities in Wales.
In addition, 11 of the 21 local authorities in Yorkshire and Humber are at record levels, plus two of the 12 authorities in north-east England.

Seven European nations have barred Turkish passengers from entering their countries as the Omicron variant spreads, according to travel guidance by Turkey’s civil aviation authority (SHGM).
Daily Covid cases in Turkey have reached their highest level since April this week, surging to nearly 37,000, but the number is still significantly below figures reported in parts of Europe.
The SHGM’s Covid-19 travel guidance, last updated on 28 December, said the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Luxembourg, Croatia, Iceland and Switzerland would no longer accept Turkish passengers. It said Turkish passengers would need to show proof of vaccination when entering Portugal or Sweden.
“Entry cannot be made from our country,” the SHGM list said for the seven European countries, without elaborating.
The SHGM also updated travel restrictions for Iraq and Iran, saying passengers travelling to the two countries may be subject to 14-day quarantine upon entry, while other travellers would need a negative PCR test.
It was not immediately clear when the new restrictions were put in place or how long they would be in effect.
The Netherlands announced a snap Christmas lockdown earlier this month, which will be reviewed on 14 January.
Other countries have seen record number of coronavirus cases in recent weeks, working to balance restrictions while keeping economies running.
Turkey has said it was not considering new restrictions for the moment, instead urging citizens to ramp up personal measures and get vaccinated. Ankara launched a nationwide rollout of its domestic Covid vaccine, Turkovac, on Thursday.

Martti Ahtisaari, Finland’s former president and Nobel peace prize winner, is in hospital after testing positive for Covid for a second time, AFP reports.
The 84-year-old former mediator of international conflicts first contracted the illness in March 2020.
“President Ahtisaari is doing well under the circumstances, but is being treated in hospital,” his foundation said on Thursday.
The president of Finland from 1994 until 2000, Ahtisaari was awarded the Nobel prize in 2008 for his work to end conflicts in Indonesia, Namibia, Northern Ireland and the Balkans.
Suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, he announced his withdrawal from public life in September.
The former UN diplomat oversaw negotiations for reconciliation in 2005 between the Indonesian government and GAM rebels as well as Kosovo’s path toward independence.

Michael Van Gerwen slams Covid controls after shock championship withdrawal
Conor O'Donoghue - Irish Post
Darts superstar Michael Van Gerwen has lashed out at the World Darts Championship organisers after he was “disappointed, confused and angry after his withdrawal because of a positive test for Covid-19.
The three-time champion was all set to play against Chris Dobey at the Alexandra Palace. Dobey has since gotten a bye to the last 16.



The Dutchman  is asymptomatic and now becomes the third player to test postive for the virus.
He took took to  Twitter to vent his fury at the WDC rule makers
“Really disappointed, confused, angry the way how my world championship is ending,” the Dutchman wrote on Twitter.
“Never expected this outcome as I thought I did everything in my possibility to avoid it. Also ain’t got any symptoms.
“Closing this year of (sic) really quickly. Fans I’ll be back stronger!”

Fellow countryman Vincent Van Der Voort having also tested positive and being forced into isolation will now be joined by his van Gerwen in isolation.
“Of course our health is the most important thing, but you are here to win the tournament,” Van Gerwen told Dutch media outlet AD Sportwereld.
“I never saw this coming. Vincent and I have been almost nowhere. We didn’t even go to the breakfast room (at the hotel), because we thought it was too busy there.
“We get to sit here together now, but we had imagined this very differently. Again, this is really the biggest nightmare.
“I test myself here every day. I don’t know where I got it. Yet we are the loser.”

UK daily Covid figures delayed until 19:30

We normally get the latest UK Covid data at 16:00, giving updates on cases, deaths within 28 days of a test, and other stats.
The figures have been later over the festive period - and today they are not expected until an estimated 19:30 GMT.
The main UK Covid dashboard says it's because of delays in receiving deaths data for England.

How many people can get together at New Year?

With New Year's Eve now just a day away let us refresh your memory about the rules on gatherings.

• In England there are no limits affecting the number of people who can spend time with each other but ministers have urged people to be cautious and test before going out. People need to show their Covid status to gain entry to nightclubs and many other venues, while face coverings are compulsory in most indoor public venues, but are not needed in pubs or restaurants.
  
• In Scotland nightclubs must close and pubs and other hospitality venues selling alcohol must reintroduce table service. The government is advising people to limit social mixing but if they do they are advised to meet just two other households - and to use lateral flow tests before gathering. All outdoor events are limited to just 500 people for three weeks, while indoor events are limited to 200 seated people, or 100 standing.
  
• In Wales social distancing of 2m (6ft) is required in all premises open to the public and the rule of six applies in premises such as hospitality venues. Licensed premises must take additional measures to protect customers and staff, including table service and collecting contact details, and face coverings are required in hospitality settings, apart from when seated. Large events are not allowed: a maximum of 30 people are allowed at indoor events and 50 at outdoors.
  
• In Northern Ireland nightclubs have closed and dancing is banned in all hospitality venues. All indoor standing events are not allowed while in hospitality venues a maximum of six people, or 10 people from a single household, are allowed at a table (excluding aged 12 and under). Hospitality venues including pubs, cafes and restaurants can provide table service only. A maximum of 30 people from an unlimited number of households can meet indoors in domestic settings.
  
  

Russia Covid death toll climbs to world's second highest

Russia has overtaken Brazil to have the world’s second-highest death toll from the coronavirus pandemic, behind the United States, data from Russia’s state statistics service and Reuters calculations showed on Thursday.
The statistics service, Rosstat, said 87,527 people had died from Covid-related causes in November, making it the deadliest month in Russia since the start of the pandemic.
Russia’s overall pandemic death toll reached 658,634, according to Reuters calculations based on Rosstat figures up to the end of November and data from the coronavirus task force for December, overtaking Brazil which has recorded 618,800 deaths.
The death toll in the United States is higher, at 825,663 people, according to a Reuters tally, but its population is more than twice as big as Russia’s.
Reuters calculations also showed Russia recorded more than 835,000 excess deaths since the beginning of the outbreak in April 2020 to the end of November, compared to average mortality in 2015-2019.
Some epidemiologists say that calculating excess deaths is the best way to assess the true impact of a pandemic.
So far, Russia’s death toll has not been affected by the Omicron variant and was mostly caused by a surge of infections in October and November, which health authorities blamed on the Delta variant and a slow vaccination campaign.
On Thursday, Russian authorities ordered hospitals to get prepared for a possible surge in Covid cases.

The Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee, which represents NHS community pharmacies in England, says some pharmacy staff are being verbally abused when stocks of lateral flow tests run out, following “exceptionally high” levels of demand.
Richard Adams - The Guardian
Alastair Buxton, the PSNC’s director of NHS services, said:

 :Left Quotes: Public demand for test kits remains exceptionally high, and despite UKHSA delivering some two million tests to pharmacy wholesalers on some days, this is still falling short of demand.
Pharmacies are restricted to ordering one carton of tests per day, with not every pharmacy able to have one every day, and they say that any stock that does arrive is handed out very quickly given the constant demand.
Members of the public being directed to pharmacies for tests are rightly frustrated when they cannot get them, but it’s concerning that some pharmacy teams say they are still being verbally abused when this happens.
Pharmacies are getting as much stock as they can, and while we too are frustrated by this ongoing situation, we would ask people not to take their annoyance out on pharmacy teams: they are doing their best to meet demand in impossible circumstances, alongside providing other important healthcare services.

Wales loans four million rapid tests to England

The Welsh government is loaning four million lateral flow tests to England amid a shortage of supplies.
First Minister Mark Drakeford says: "Wales has a significant stock of lateral flow tests, sufficient to meet our needs over the weeks ahead."
Rapid tests have been intermittently unavailable to order online from the government website, while pharmacies have also reported patchy supplies.
There has been a surge in demand after the public were urged to take a rapid test before socialising and to enable them to leave isolation after seven days.

What must I do if I am a close contact?

The rules about testing after exposure to a positive Covid case vary depending on where you live in the UK:

• In England fully vaccinated people who come into contact with a Covid case are advised to take daily lateral flow tests (LFTs) for seven days. Unvaccinated adults must self-isolate
  
• In Scotland, if someone in your household tests positive, you should take a PCR test and isolate for 10 days, regardless of your vaccination status or test result. Non-household close contacts should take a PCR test and isolate while they wait for the result
  
• In Wales you must take a PCR test on days two and eight and self-isolate for 10 days if you are a close contact and have not been fully vaccinated or you are a close contact of a confirmed Omicron variant. Anyone else who is a close contact must also take a PCR test
  
• In Northern Ireland fully vaccinated people who are close contacts are advised to take daily lateral flow tests for 10 days. Unvaccinated people must continue to self-isolate.
  

If you have Covid symptoms or a positive lateral flow result you should book a PCR test - regardless of where you are in the UK.
People are also being advised to take a lateral flow test before visiting vulnerable people or high-risk places.
You can read more about when you should take a test here.

New Nightingale hubs will 'co-locate with hospitals'

Chris Hopson, chief executive of NHS Providers, has told the BBC new Covid surge hubs could help if there is a wave of Omicron admissions.
He says lessons have been learned from the original Nightingale hospital set-ups and these hubs will be located at existing medical centres rather than conference centres.

Highest daily Covid hospital admissions in England since February

Jim Reed - Health reporter, BBC News
A delay to death statistics in England means the government’s coronavirus dashboard is unlikely to be updated before 19:30 this evening. But NHS England has separately published its latest daily hospital data.
It shows there were 2,082 Covid admissions on 28 December in England, up 90% in a week and the highest single day figure since February. In London, still seen as the centre of the Omicron wave, there were another 456 people admitted to hospital.
The NHS does not break down that data into those who have been admitted because of symptoms directly linked to the virus and those admitted for other conditions who tested positive on arrival.
In total there are now 11,452 Covid patients being treated in English hospitals, up from 7,114 a week earlier but still well below the peak of about 34,000 last January.
The number of the most seriously ill being treated on a ventilator has risen slightly to 782 patients but is still below the level seen a fortnight ago.

As New Year’s Eve approaches, further changes are being made to coronavirus measures in different UK nations.
Both Wales and Northern Ireland have announced a cut to self-isolation rules, the same as has been introduced in England.
The PA news agency has broken down how Covid measures currently compare in the four nations.

Northern Ireland

On Thursday, it was announced the self-isolation period for confirmed Covid-19 cases will be reduced in Northern Ireland from 10 days to seven in line with England. The new rule will be subject to negative lateral flow tests on days six and seven, will apply retrospectively and take effect from Friday.
It has already been announced that nightclubs will be closed on New Year’s Eve, while dancing will also be prohibited in hospitality venues. This will not apply to weddings. People must remain seated for table service, while table numbers will be limited to six.
Ministers have also agreed that sporting events can continue with no limits on capacity, while the work-from-home message is being bolstered and legislation introduced to require social distancing in offices and similar workplaces. The guidance is for mixing in a domestic setting to be limited to three households.
The first minister, Paul Givan, said on Thursday following a virtual meeting of the Stormont Executive that no further restrictions would be introduced at this time, but that the Executive would continue to assess the data as more information emerged.

Wales

The Welsh government also announced on Thursday that the mandatory isolation period for people who test positive with Covid-19 from 10 days to seven, subject to two negative lateral flow tests on days six and seven. Initially the new rule was to be introduced on 5 January, but it will now come into force on Friday.
Current rules in Wales state groups of no more than six people are allowed to meet in pubs, cinemas and restaurants. Licensed premises can offer table service only, face masks will have to be worn and contact tracing details collected, and two-metre social distancing rules are in place. Nightclubs have been closed since Boxing Day and there is a requirement to work from home wherever possible. A maximum of 30 people can attend indoor events and a maximum of 50 people at outdoor events.
People attending weddings or civil partnership receptions or wakes are also being told to take a lateral flow test before attending.

Scotland

Events have one-metre social distancing and are limited to 100 people standing indoors, 200 people sitting indoors and 500 people outdoors. One-metre physical distancing is in place in all indoor hospitality and leisure settings. Table service is also required where alcohol is being served.
Since 14 December, people have been asked to reduce their social contact as much as possible by meeting in groups of no more than three households. Allowing staff to work from home where possible has become a legal duty on employers. Care home visits have also been limited to two households.

England

On Monday, it was announced that no further coronavirus restrictions would be imposed in England until the new year, meaning the country has the most relaxed rules in the UK.
However, Covid passes for entry into nightclubs and other venues have been in place as of 15 December. This applies to indoor events with 500 or more attendees where people are likely to stand or move around, such as music venues, certain outdoor events, such as music festivals, and any events with 10,000 or more attendees.
Face coverings have also been made compulsory in most indoor public settings, as well as on public transport, and people have been told to work from home if they can.
If a person in England has tested positive or has symptoms, they can stop self-isolating after seven days instead of 10 days if they receive two negative lateral flow test results on days six and seven. Those who are unvaccinated close contacts of positive cases must still isolate for 10 days.
England’s guidance is that people should work from home if they can. Anyone who cannot work from home should continue to go in to work but is encouraged to consider taking lateral flow tests regularly.

Fears in Ireland that lockdown looms

There are fears in Ireland that with Omicron rapidly spreading, new restrictions will be imposed in the New Year, despite the denials of government chiefs before Christmas.

Paddy Clancy - IrishCentral

The concern rose as the chief executive of the Health Service Executive (HSE) Paul Reid said on Tuesday that there is “no doubt now” that Covid-19 is “absolutely running rife in our communities.” 
Reid said there is an “unparalleled level of testing volumes coming forward,” and the HSE is seeing a positivity rate of up to 50 percent recorded in recent days in the community. 
He said on RTE’s Morning Ireland radio program, “If you think that you have Covid, it’s most likely that you have it.”

On Tuesday morning, there were 521 patients with the virus in hospital, an increase of 59 people from Monday’s figure. Of those, 92 were in ICU, up one. 

Current government advice allows people from four households to gather indoors, but with new cases topping well in excess of 10,000 per day for a number of days around Christmas Chief Medical Officer Dr. Tony Holohan earlier appealed to people not to meet anyone from other households indoors.

Holohan said, “We know that this variant is more transmissible than even the highly transmissible Delta variant. As such, please do not socialize or meet indoors with people from other households.” 

He also issued a stark warning to shoppers to avoid the annual post-Christmas sales and to shop online instead. 

With a total of over 60,000 cases in a week to Monday – most likely well over 70,000 by this mid-week – there was a record figure since the start of the pandemic of 13,765 on Christmas Day. This was in addition to 11,182 on Christmas Eve and 10,404 on St. Stephen’s Day. 

Holohan pleaded with the public to queue outside and leave any retail environment that does not feel safe and that is not adhering to the public health guidance, such as implementing social distancing measures and queuing systems, limiting numbers in-store, and ensuring staff wear masks correctly covering nose, mouth, and chin.

In addition to the mandatory public precaution measures, cases of staff illness forced the cancellation of some pantomimes.

Leopardstown’s four-day Christmas horse racing festival had to be held behind closed doors because Covid prevented many sales, hospitality, and security employees from attending work. 

On Monday, a bank holiday, thousands avoided indoor pubs and opted instead for open-air activities such as family walks and sea-surfing. 

Although Covid illnesses requiring hospital treatment rose from the high 300s a week ago to the 500s on Tuesday, they remained below 100 – 92 on Tuesday – in the intensive care units. This gave credence to Holohan’s assertion that booster vaccines offered good protection against infections with the Omicron variant. 

However, his warnings against queuing outside shops for the post-Christmas sales caused some alarm among business owners. 

Duncan Graham, managing director of Retail Excellence Ireland, feared the advice was reminiscent of last year when Ireland went into lockdown. 
He told the Irish Independent, “It feels a lot like 2020, and the last two weeks have felt like we are going back down that route.” 
*This column first appeared in the December 29 edition of the weekly Irish Voice newspaper, sister publication to IrishCentral.

Read more

• Live COVID-19 updates from Ireland and Northern Ireland
  
• Ireland’s Covid Christmas 2021 is lockdown in all but name
  
• Another Covid Christmas but this wicked virus can and must be defeated
  

A quick-glance reminder of the main stories so far today:

• The UK government will buy hundreds of millions more lateral flow tests, after days of supply issues
  
• Health unions are calling for NHS workers to be given priority for accessing rapid tests to ease staff shortages
  
• Wales and Northern Ireland have joined England in cutting the self-isolation period for people who test positive from 10 days to seven - if people get negative lateral flow results on days six and seven
  
• Two cross-channel operators said French Covid rules had been tightened meaning British people could no longer travel through France by road to reach their homes within the EU but France has since suspended the restrictions
  
• Ministers have strongly criticised a group of protesters who harassed staff at a testing centre in Milton Keynes yesterday.
  
• Prof Peter Openshaw, who sits on the UK’s New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group (Nervtag) has warned the conditions at a New Year’s Eve gathering were “perfect” for spreading coronavirus, and said a lack of availability of testing in the UK was “very worrying indeed”.
  
• At the time of writing, there were no lateral flow tests available for delivery from the UK government website. Scotland and Wales still had bookable PCR tests, but Northern Ireland had “very few available” and no region of England had any available.
  
• NHS England confirmed that it was creating new small-scale “Nightingale” facilities with up to 100 beds each at eight hospitals across the country. The health service said it had asked trusts to identify empty spaces to accommodate beds in places such as gyms or teaching areas. NHS managers are aiming to create up to 4,000 beds as surge capacity if needed.
  
• Prof Andrew Pollard, head of the Oxford Vaccine Group, said he feels “most worried” about unvaccinated people. “Those who are unvaccinated remain at risk here in the UK and in other countries around the world, so that perhaps needs to be our focus.”
  
• Chris Hopson, the head of NHS Providers, which represents health trusts has said staff absences due to Covid-19 were “clearly now having a significant impact” across the whole economy and parts of the health service.
  
• Labour’s shadow culture secretary, Lucy Powell, has repeated calls for action over viral disinformation about vaccines being spread online. She said “It’s becoming an issue for the whole of society, who might now be facing further restrictions or huge pressure on the NHS because there are people who are choosing not to have the vaccine because of myths and misinformation that they are being fed online.”
  
• Coronavirus infections set new one-day highs in six of Canada’s provinces, prompting several provinces to impose more restrictions in hopes of containing the spread of the omicron variant.
  
• In Australia, fewer people will be told to get tested for Covid, with most states backing a much narrower definition of a close contact, as a record 21,000 new daily cases were recorded nationwide.
  
• Americans are again facing a stay-at-home New Year’s Eve as US political leaders and senior health advisers have urged people to scrap party plans and avoid larger public events as daily cases of Covid-19 break all previous records.
  
• India is on the threshold of a potential new wave of coronavirus – probably fuelled by the Omicron variant. Cases have surged by 86% in the Indian capital New Delhi in 24 hours, and doubled in Mumbai in the same period.
  
• Health leaders in eastern European countries with low vaccination rates like Romania are warning of a January wave of infections after the holiday period.
  
• The World Health Organization said on Wednesday that reducing mandatory isolation periods for people with Covid-19 was a trade-off between controlling transmission and keeping economies up and running. Michael Ryan told a news conference “If people shorten the quarantine period, there will be a small number of cases that will develop disease and potentially go on to transmit, because they have been let out of quarantine earlier. But that will be a relatively small number, and a lot of people who won’t transmit will also be released from that quarantine.”
  
• Armed police in Jingxi, in southern China, have paraded four alleged violators of Covid rules through the streets, state media reported, a practice that was banned but which has resurfaced in the struggle to enforce a zero-Covid policy.
  

Germany drops quarantine mandate for UK travellers

Germany will drop quarantine demands for UK travellers from 4 January.
Previously, even double-vaccinated people needed a negative test to enter and then had to quarantine for 14 days.
The UK transport secretary, Grant Shapps, said it was a “welcome development”.
Germany has now reported thousands of Omicron cases. Uwe Janssens, who heads the German Society of Internal Medicine and Intensive Care, told German media DW infections caused by the highly-mutated strain will dominate in Germany in the weeks to come.
“It can be assumed that the omicron variant will certainly dominate in January, like in the other countries such as Great Britain, Norway, Denmark and Portugal,” Janssens said.

Eastern Europe's Covid death tolls reaches 1 million people

The number of people to die from Covid in Eastern Europe has reached 1 million, according to a tally from Reuters.
It follows Russia climbing above Brazil to become the country with the second-highest death toll, behing the US, with over 835,000 pandemic excess deaths. Russia said 87,527 people died from Covid-related causes in November, its deadliest month since the pandemic began.
(The Reuters count includes Belarus, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovakia and Ukraine.)
Omicron has yet to batter Eastern Europe – as it currently is Western Europe – but there are fears it might spark another wave imminently.

France will allow people from the UK to drive through as they return to EU countries, suspending a ban on British people returning to their homes in the EU after spending the holidays in the UK.
The UK government clarified: “The French authorities confirmed on 30 December that UK nationals who are resident in other EU member states and who have travelled to the UK for the Christmas period will be able to transit France over the New Year period in order to return home to their country of residence.”
“Transit for less than 24 hours in the international zone of an airport is listed under ‘essential reasons’ to travel,” the UK government guidance added.