The Times - UK (2021-11-11)

the times | Thursday November 11 2021 19

News

People older than 65 who fail to have a
coronavirus booster shot could be
barred from cafés, restaurants and
long-distance trains, the health secre-
tary has suggested.
Sajid Javid said that he could not rule
out following France’s regime of health
passes for over-65s. After December 15
they will be required to show that they
have had a booster as evidence they
have been fully vaccinated or taken a
recent negative test.
Javid was asked by Sky News if mak-
ing a booster jab part of a Covid pass
was “something that you might look at”.
He replied: “We’re not looking at that
yet. I think, in due course, we will have
to look at what constitutes vaccination
but at this point the most important
thing is that anyone that’s eligible gets
out there and gets their booster.”
Pressed further on whether the UK
could take a similar approach to France,
he said: “I can’t rule that out. We know
now that the vaccines do wane and it’s
important that, where it’s necessary,
those people get a top up. I think it’s
something we have to keep under re-
view.”
Covid passes are being extended in
Wales for use in cinemas and theatres
from Monday, while Scotland requires
proof of double vaccination for crowd-
ed venues and the vaccine passport
scheme is likely to be extended to pubs
and gyms in an attempt to control Cov-
id infection rates in the run up to
Christmas.
Westminster has drawn up similar
plans as part of its “plan B” should there
be a surge in coronavirus hospital ad-
state coach during rehearsals for Saturday’s Lord Mayor’s Show. The parade is back after being cancelled last year due to Covid missions and deaths in England. If in-

europe

Coronavirus deaths rose 10 per

cent in Europe in the past week,

making it the only world region

where Covid cases and deaths are

steadily increasing, the World

Health Organisation said. It was

the sixth consecutive week that

infections has risen across Europe.

russia

Officials in St Petersburg, Russia’s

second biggest city, have made

vaccination mandatory for workers

over the age of 60, as the country’s

official death toll exceeded

250,000. Russia reported another

record number of daily deaths,

with 1,239 fatalities in the past

24 hours. It is now also the world

leader for weekly Covid 19

fatalities, overtaking the United

States.

thailand

Thailand will set aside up to

500,000 doses of Covid vaccines

for foreign workers as it prepares

to welcome them back to the

country to ease a labour shortage,

a government minister said

yesterday. The government plans

united states

The NFL fined the Green Bay

Packers American football team

$300,000 and its quarterback

Aaron Rodgers and receiver Allen

Lazard $14,650 each for failing to

follow Covid-19 rules. The fines

come a week after Rodgers, who is

unvaccinated, tested positive, and

made unfounded claims about

vaccines. On Tuesday he said he

took responsibility for making the

“misleading” comments.

to allow workers from Myanmar,

Cambodia and Laos to re-enter the

country beginning next month.

italy

Italy has banned protests in cities

and town centres against the

country’s Covid-19 health pass. The

protests, at times violent, have

become more prolific since Italy

made the pass mandatory for all

workers in October, and have been

blamed for spreading infections.

Covid deaths

in Europe

rise by 10%

Global cases

250,847,

Global deaths

5,064,

Countries reporting most deaths

US

Brazil

India

Mexico

Russia

Peru

UK

1 2 3 4 5 6 8

757,

609,

461,

290,

244,

200,

142,

Most new cases

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

US

Germany

UK

Russia

Turkey

Ukraine

Poland

79,

41,

39,

37,

28,

20,

13,

World update

Deaths per million population

( 16 )

( 13 )

( 7 )

( 10 )

( 14 )

( 5 )

( 24 )

( 31 )

( 40 )

( 23 )

( 11 )

( 6 )

( 4 )

( 9 )

1 ,23 4

1 , 299

1 , 431

1 , 367

1, 296

1 , 523

1 , 048

949

797

1 ,0 57

1 ,

1 , 460

1,

1 , 374

Rank Now Jan 31

6,

3,

3,

3,

3,

2,

2,

2,

2,

2,

2,

2,

2,

1,

Peru

Bulgaria

Bosnia & H.

N. Macedonia

Hungary

Czech Rep

Brazil

Romania

Georgia

Argentina

US

Italy

UK

Spain

Croatia

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

10

15

21

23

28

Data supplied by Johns Hopkins University. US data

fluctuates because of irregular reporting by different

states. Figures as of 6pm yesterday. Sources: UK

government, Our World in Data, selected countries

News

Over-65s may have

to show proof of

booster, says Javid

Steven Swinford troduced, it would require proof of vac-

cination for indoor venues attended by

500 or more people, such as music ve-

nues. However, ministers believe that

current levels of coronavirus infection

mean that the contingency plans will

not be needed.

A leaked government analysis

showed that introducing mild Covid

restrictions for five months over winter,

including vaccine passports at night-

clubs, concerts and festivals, would cost

the economy up to £18 billion.

Booster jabs are being given to the

over 50s and people in vulnerable

groups.

The over-50s can now book their

Covid booster shot a month early after

the government decided to let people

book before they become eligible to

speed up protection before winter.

Ministers estimate that a vaccine’s

protection falls by about a third after six

months but a trial showed an extra

Pfizer jab puts it back above 95 per cent.

Nadhim Zahawi, the former vaccines

minister, said this week that he hoped

the UK would become “the first major

economy to transition from pandemic

to endemic and have an annual vacci-

nation programme”.

It has been suggested that a corona-

virus jab could be offered routinely

alongside the flu vaccine

A total of 50,336,130 first doses of

Covid-19 vaccine had been delivered in

the UK by November 9, a rise of 39,

on the previous day, government

figures show. A combined total of

10,920,416 booster and third doses have

been given, a day-on-day rise of

340,294. Separate totals for booster and

third doses are not available.

Booster jab proof, letters, page 32

LEON NEAL/GETTY IMAGES

Analysis

T

he recent story

of the

pandemic is a

tale of two age

groups (Rhys

Blakely writes). The first

is the young. The seven-

day average for daily

cases in the UK has

been falling since mid-

October largely because

the figures had been

fuelled by infections in

younger people, a large

number of whom are

now immune.

Prevalence among

schoolchildren has been

especially high, with

nearly 8 per cent of 12

to 16-year-olds infected

in the week to October

30, according to the

latest Office for

National Statistics data.

Now the wave of

natural infections seems

to be ebbing. Figures

from the ONS show a

fall in infections among

12 to 16-year-olds. The

seven-day average of

cases was 36,

yesterday, a 22 per cent

fall since October 17.

But the big

Nearing the best of times in

this tale of two age groups

fluctuations in case

levels among the young

have not been driving

hospital admissions and

deaths, Mark

Woolhouse, professor of

infectious disease

epidemiology at the

University of

Edinburgh, said: “What

really matters is what is

happening with older

and vulnerable people.”

Daily hospital

admissions in England

hit 955 on October 27

but have since been

lower. The figure for

November 6 was 688.

Professor Paul Hunter

of the University of East

Anglia, an adviser to the

World Health

Organisation, said: “I

expect that to fall

further, possibly by

quite a lot.”

In Scotland

Woolhouse says there

are signs that hospital

admissions are starting

to fall. “Booster

vaccinations are starting

to take hold,” he said.

The trend in deaths

should soon follow.

This would fit with

the most recent

modelling from the

Scientific Advisory

Group for Emergencies

(Sage), which suggests

the situation will not

get worse between now

and Christmas, and is

hopeful that it could get

considerably better.

This does not mean

the winter will not be

difficult. Hospital staff

are exhausted, bed

occupancy is high, flu

and other respiratory

infections could yet

stretch the NHS — and

Sage’s models are also

striking for their levels

of uncertainty.

But Professor

Thomas House, a

member of the Spi-M

group of modellers who

advises the government,

does not expect the

kind of steep rises in

admissions and deaths

recorded in earlier

waves. Those kinds of

Matterhorn-like peaks

are behind us, he

believes. “The rest of

the epidemic may just

be a cumulative burden,

something that’s still

quite hard to deal with,”

he said.