Displaying items by tag: United Kingdom

The UK is not meeting its current targets on limiting air pollution. Therefore, pollutants from traffic fumes, factories and industrial sites put vulnerable people at risk. Highways England is preparing to introduce reduced speed limits on four locations by the end of September. The speed limit will be reduced to 60mph for a trial period to improve roadside air quality in areas which are identified as having high levels of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) from car engines. Each location is up to 4.5 miles long and the new speed limit reductions will be operational 24 hours a day. The reduced speed limits will be assessed after a year to see if they are having an impact. Asthma UK says co-ordinated measures are required at a local, national and European level to improve air quality; it believes not enough has been done. See

Boris Johnson has warned actions to stop a second surge of coronavirus must be ‘tough now’ in order to ‘protect’ Christmas. His words came as stricter new measures are announced for areas where cases are on the rise. The PM said people have to be ‘both confident and cautious’ and that it is ‘crucial’ the country does not re-enter ‘some great lockdown again that stops business from functioning’. He told the Sun newspaper that the Government wants to protect Christmas: ‘We want everyone to have a fantastic Christmas. But the only way to make sure the country is able to enjoy Christmas is to be tough now. He wants us to grip it now and stop surges. The communities secretary said on 17 September, ‘Over the course of the day a full briefing will be made available to everybody including the councils and business community’. Earlier in the week many were sceptical of new measures: see next article.

The Government wants stronger enforcement of pandemic rules and proposed a register of environmental health officers to support councils and marshals to enforce social distancing, group gatherings and wearing masks. But a lack of detail has been criticised by councils who say rules have caused confusion. Hospitality venues’ records of contact details must be held for 21 days. Venues not following Covid-secure guidelines will be fined. Local authorities will be supported to use existing powers to close venues while police break up and fine large groups. Employers have a legal duty to ensure health, safety and welfare of employees. Marshals will help employers to meet their legal duties and the ongoing management of keeping the workplace Covid-secure). The Government’s reaction to medical advice and its attempt to stop a second wave brings the problem of people understanding and hearing. 

‘The boat is our only chance for a new life in a safe country’, said Kamal, an Iranian Christian convert who has been in Calais for 10 days with his wife Niki and their baby daughter Sava. ‘I am too tired to carry on. If they try to stop us I will drown myself’. Over 4,600 people have crossed the Dover Strait on small boats so far this year, with increased surveillance and coronavirus travel restrictions having effectively closed the more popular method of hiding in vehicles. With inflamed UK rhetoric, the UK's immigration minister is discussing ‘new, comprehensive action plans’ to stem channel crossings. Priti Patel plans to use warships to intercept migrant vessels, but a MoD official said it’s ‘completely potty, inappropriate and disproportionate’. Kamal has lost everything since leaving Iran three years ago. They were incarcerated with 300 others after seeking refuge in Slovenia, where their savings were lost to the mafia.

Rationing plans for coronavirus tests in England will prioritise NHS patients, staff, care homes and key workers - especially teachers - as the Government grapples with a surge in demand. The tiered system for booking tests would follow a similar pattern to testing at the beginning of the pandemic, with NHS patients with respiratory conditions at the top of the list and healthcare staff and those who work in education also prioritised. The new strategy will be published in the week beginning 21 September, detailing efforts for more laboratory capacity, faster testing results, and the prioritisation list for testing. There is concern that making it more difficult to book a test could ultimately hinder efforts to contain the virus. Strict enforcement could quickly become unnecessary if more laboratory capacity were opened. Boris Johnson conceded that there was not enough testing capacity and that many are ‘deeply frustrated’.

Christian, Jewish, Muslim and other faith group parents have commenced a judicial review into the new relationships and sex education curriculum. The judicial review, launched by Let Kids Be Kids Coalition, will challenge the education secretary's decision to prevent parents from withdrawing their children from relationships lessons that came into effect on 1 September. The mandatory curriculum includes transgender and LGBTQ topics. While schools are required to consult parents on the lessons content, parents do not have any right of veto. Parents voiced concern that books on sexual orientation and gender dysphoria, like 'King and King', 'And Tango Makes Three' and 'My Princess Boy' are becoming normalised in primary schools and relationships education had become ‘sex education by a different name’. They do not want children exposed to ideologies that do not reflect the family’s religious convictions and are crowdfunding to cover the legal costs of their challenge.

AstraZeneca and Oxford University’s final clinical trials for a coronavirus vaccine were put on hold after a participant had a suspected adverse reaction. AstraZeneca described it as a ‘routine’ pause in the case of ‘an unexplained illness’. The AstraZeneca-Oxford University vaccine is seen as a strong contender among dozens being developed globally. Hopes have been high that the vaccine might be one of the first to come on the market, following successful phase 1 and 2 testing. Phase 3 vaccine trials often involve thousands of participants and can last several years. Although the cause of the illness has not been confirmed, the New York Times reported the volunteer was diagnosed with transverse myelitis, an inflammatory syndrome that affects the spinal cord and can be caused by viral infections.

The proposed Internal Market Bill was published on 9th September. It addresses the Northern Ireland Protocol - an element of the withdrawal agreement designed to prevent a hard border returning to the island of Ireland. The bill proposes no new checks on goods moving from Northern Ireland to Great Britain. It gives UK ministers powers to modify or ‘disapply’ rules relating to the movement of goods that will come into force from 1st January if the UK and EU are unable to strike a trade deal. Mr Johnson defended the bill, saying it would ‘ensure the integrity of the UK internal market’ and hand power to Scotland and Wales while protecting the Northern Ireland peace process. Critics say the move will damage the UK's international reputation after a minister admitted the plans break international law. The EU president is ‘very concerned’ following the tabling of the bill in Parliament, saying such actions ‘undermine trust’ between the EU and UK.

A leading epidemiologist warned the country is at a ‘critical moment’ in the pandemic, as students prepare to return to universities. Students moving across the country could cause a wave of infection. Data showed the highest number of detected infections was in younger people. Government scientific advisors said ‘significant outbreaks’ linked to universities were likely. Pray for University administrators and lecturers to have heavenly wisdom as they take steps to minimise risks on campuses. Current strategies include online teaching, grouping students together within year groups, putting in place local testing and tracing policies and no freshers’ week for 1st-year students. The University and College Union cannot see why the government insists students move around the country and engage in unnecessary face-to-face interactions. Also, online learning ‘would remove any need to open doors and windows in the winter months as the guidance suggests’. See also NOTE:  The Students Union wants a balance between personal teaching and online teaching; not least because many have paid £ thousands for local accommodation!.

In March 2020, just before the national lockdown began, a notice appeared on the government website seeming to allow women to conduct their own medical abortions at home. Outcry followed and the notice was removed, the government website claiming that it was ‘published in error’. Website visitors were reassured that there would ‘be no changes to abortion regulations’. The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care assured the House of Commons, ‘There are no proposals to change the abortion rules due to Covid-19.’ However, now 3 months later the government said, ‘DIY abortions could be a permanent fixture in the UK’. The media reported that up to 90,000 women have used the DIY service since it was introduced in March. The government will release official statistics next week. If 90,000 abortions took place it would make DIY abortion the biggest silent killer of lockdown, more than twice as many fatalities as Covid-19. See also