Covid: What's life like for unvaccinated people in the UK?

 

About five million adults in the UK still haven't had a Covid vaccine, according to government figures and ONS population estimates.

Covid vaccines offer very high levels of protection against infection and are safe.

Leicester's director of public health, who took the city through the UK's first local lockdown, is warning unvaccinated people about the impact their behaviour could have on others.

Some of those who've chosen not to be jabbed have been speaking to the BBC's community affairs correspondent, Adina Campbell.

How Britain is responsible for a third of the world's lost taxes

Tax havens cost governments at least $245bn a year in lost revenue – and many of these havens are British. In fact, the country is leading the world in hiding legitimate money and laundering dirty cash. So how did we get here, and how has Britain managed to preside over a third of the world's lost taxes?

Pressure on UK as new coronavirus spreads and dozens of countries impose travel bans

 Boris Johnson's government is under intense pressure, with the new variant coronavirus spreading rapidly and dozens of countries banning travel from the UK.

The UK’s scientific advisers are warning that even tougher restrictions will be needed to contain the new strain of the virus.

New warnings over care homes as coronavirus cases rise

 A charity that represents care providers in England has warned that the UK government’s coronavirus testing regime has "serious problems."

How Britain’s role in slavery and empire shaped modern America - BBC News

Two months after the killing of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis, which sparked protests around the world, there’s fresh scrutiny of America’s history of slavery — and how it influences the country to this day.

Second wave of pandemic may be underway in Europe warns Boris Johnson

There are signs of a second wave of the coronavirus pandemic in parts of Europe according to Boris Johnson, who's been defending his government's handling of the crisis and the sudden imposition of quarantine on travellers from every part of Spain. The Spanish prime minister is among those criticising the decision. Pedro Sánchez said tourists in most regions of Spain are less at risk from coronavirus than in the UK.

How British suffragettes fought for the vote

In 1913, suffragette Emily Davison disrupted a major horse race in the name of winning British women the vote.

British suffragettes in the early 20th century used spectacle and drama to draw attention to their fight to win women the vote. They delivered public speeches, marched, displayed colorful banners, and got thrown in jail, all in an effort to pressure legislators to extend suffrage to women.

Coronavirus will remain a threat “for a very long time” warn leading scientists

People in the UK and across the world will be living with coronavirus for a “very long time” according to leading scientists who were giving evidence to MPs. Professor Chris Whitty, England's chief medical officer, defended his advice to the government on tackling the pandemic. He said that mass testing had to be abandoned because of capacity issues and also defended the timing of lockdown in the UK

UK suspends extradition treaty with Hong Kong

The UK government will suspend its extradition treaty with Hong Kong "immediately and indefinitely". Announcing the move, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said the UK "wants a positive relationship" with China.

The Syrian girl who fled civil war for a new life in the UK

For the past few years we’ve been following the life of a Syrian refugee, Rouaa, who's now 9 years old.

She was born in the year the Syrian conflict started - a civil war that’s led to the world’s biggest refugee crisis.

The Darfur migrants still seeking safety and economic security in UK

It is 17 years since the Darfur conflict began in western Sudan. It led to hundreds of thousands of deaths and charges of genocide against Sudan's former president.

Britain's colonial legacy in Ireland under spotlight after Black Lives Matter protests

Continuing controversy over the future of some public statues, and protests by the Black Lives Matter movement, are shining a new light on aspects of Britain’s imperial past.

Millions in Hong Kong to gain rights to live and work in UK

Up to 3 million people in Hong Kong are to be granted new rights to live and work in the UK. The decision follows China's imposition of a new security law which makes it a crime to undermine Beijing's authority.

Massive Prehistoric Monument Found at Stonehenge // Ancient Britain Archaeology

Deprived areas bear brunt of coronavirus pandemic

Coronavirus has hit the most deprived parts of England and Wales twice as hard as wealthier areas, according to official figures. Urban regions, which are more densely populated, were worse affected than rural areas.

Hong Kong protesters seek refuge abroad | DW News

Hong Kong has been rocked by anti-government protests since last June. More than 8000 people have been arrested and hundreds of protesters have fled to evade prosecution. The majority of them have found refuge in Taiwan. With Beijing pushing for a controversial national security law for Hong Kong, it's likely more protesters will take the same path. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has vowed to offer millions of Hong Kong residents a pathway to UK citizenship if China imposes the new security law which would clam down on human rights. The territory was promised a high degree of autonomy and rights under the terms of a 1997 handover treaty from Britain to China in 1997.

Coronavirus: Guernsey first part of British Isles to remove most lockdown restrictions - BBC News

The Channel Island of Guernsey is set to become the first part of the British Isles to remove nearly all lockdown restrictions. Guernsey hasn't had any new case of Covid-19 for over three weeks. Schools there will be reopening, with distancing measures, from early June. The island’s tourism industry has been losing millions of pounds since the pandemic began.

Coronavirus: PM must explain 10,000 deaths in care homes says Labour leader

The prime minister must account for official figures, showing 10,000 “unexplained” deaths last month, in care homes in England and Wales. The challenge was made by the Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, who said the UK government had been “too slow to protect people in care homes”.

Scum Bags Always Appear During Major Disasters

Need to make a quick profit? Are you unscrupulous, have few ethics and just as morals? Then profiting off the coronavirus pandemic while working for the government makes you a perfect candidate for the scumbag awards.

David Singleton who is the head of procurement for the U.K.'s National Health Service decided that he just wasn't making enough money at his current position so, thinking to exploit the coronavirus pandemic for profit do to the lack of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) set up a company which sells ppe all in an effort to improve his financial situation.


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Asked about the findings of the investigation, Singleton said he disclosed his business to superiors in the NHS, in accordance with the rules, and was told there was “unlikely to be a conflict”.

A website for Singleton’s company, Sure Stock, which marketed PPE to private sector and NHS clients, made no reference to Singleton or his role in the health service. But in a phone call with an undercover reporter posing as a potential client, Singleton confirmed he was running the business. He said he was trading as a “sales agent” between suppliers and buyers of PPE.

Asked later whether he was exploiting his NHS expertise and contacts, Singleton said in a statement that he was not “directly involved” in responding to the PPE shortage in the NHS “as my role does not involve purchasing or procuring of these products”.

However, information collated by the Guardian, including internal NHS email evidence, suggests Singleton may have been involved in procuring PPE supplies. Asked to respond to a request for comment about the email evidence, Singleton replied “no comment” and hung up the phone. The NHS declined to comment on the email evidence.

Trump blames China; UK mourns victims; First countries ease restrictions

The British public will hold a minute's silence today to pay tribute to frontline workers who've died after contracting Covid 19. The government has announced it will make a 60,000 pound compensation payment to families of health workers and social care staff who die fighting the outbreak. After years of underfunding, and now a severe lack of personal protective equipment, the pandemic has laid bare the crisis within the UK's national health system.