UK to cut virus quarantine time for travellers

Cases are rising – and in many areas, already high…We need to take targeted action. MATT HANCOCK, Health secretary of Britain

LONDON: Britain said on Friday it is to cut its period of self-isolation from 14 to 10 days for travellers arriving from overseas and people who come into contact with positive coronavirus cases.

The chief medics for the four nations of the UK said in a joint statement they were “confident” in the changes “after reviewing the evidence”.

The new measures are due come into effect in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland on Monday. They already applied to Wales. The devolved governments in Cardiff, Edinburgh and Belfast all set their own health policy and have implemented different restrictions to curb the spread of the virus.

The number of new Covid-19 cases are dropping in most of the UK, but there is a “concerning” rise in London, which is likely to place the capital in the highest Level 3 of alert with the toughest restrictions next week, when a review is conducted on December 16.

France to impose 8pm curfew from Dec 15

France will lift a six-week-long nationwide coronavirus lockdown on December 15 but impose a curfew from 8pm, including on New Year’s Eve, Prime Minister Jean Castex announced on Thursday.

Castex said that families would be allowed travel to celebrate Christmas together but said that museums, theatres and cinemas would remain closed for an extra three weeks infections begins to slowly rise again.

Calls grow for wider lockdown in Germany Calls grew on Friday for tougher lockdown measures soon in Germany as its disease control centre reported record daily cases and deaths. The Robert Koch Institute said 16 states reported 29,875 new cases, breaking the previous daily record of 23,679 cases reported the day before. The number of deaths from the virus rose by 598, to a total of 20,970. The previous daily record of deaths was 590, set on Wednesday.

Russia sees new record in daily virus deaths Russia on Friday reported a new record for daily fatalities, as the country begins a mass vaccination drive. Health officials reported 613 virus deaths over the past 24 hours, crossing the 600 mark for the first time since the beginning of the pandemic.

Deaths stood at 45,893, while infections jumped to 2,597,711.