20 things that happened w/b 27th December #coronavirus
• EU launches mass vaccination programme
• Boxing Day footfall two-thirds lower than normal
• 999 calls in London exceeding spring peak
• South Africa passes 1 million cases
• British skiers flee Swiss quarantine
• more hospital beds occupied than in April
• first NHS patient has second jab
• NHS faces unprecedented pressure
• Essex declares major health incident
• Oxford vaccine approved & set for mass roll-out
• many more areas raised to tier 3 or tier 4
• only the Scilly Isles in tier 1 (nobody in tier 2)
• secondary school term to start two weeks late
• second doses to be delayed (from 2 to 12 weeks)
• "Covid loves a crowd" - stay home on NYE
• new variant raises R by 0.4-0.7
• police break up New Year parties
• 'nail-biting' weeks ahead for NHS
• all London schools to remain closed
• India approves Oxford vaccine
Worldwide deaths: 1,750,000 → 1,830,000
Worldwide cases: 80,000,000 → 84,000,000
UK deaths: 70,405 → 74,570
UK cases: 2,256,005 → 2,599,789
Vaccinations: 963,208 → 1,296,432
FTSE: down 1% (6502 → 6460)
20 things that happened w/b 20th December #coronavirus
• 17 million Britons enter tier 4 lockdown
• daily cases at record high
• Dover/Eurotunnel closed to accompanied freight
• 40 countries ban travel from the UK
• supermarkets say no short term shortages
• Joe Biden vaccinated on live TV
• new variant is 'everywhere' in UK
• 3000 lorries now stuck in Kent
• first cases in Antarctica
• France reopens border for those who test -ve
• calls to use single vaccine dose, not two
• tough restrictions on arrivals from SA
• 2% of Londoners have the virus
• schools may need to close in January
• Trump blocks coronavirus stimulus package
• no Christmas gatherings for 43% of England
• Queen's broadcast - "you are not alone"
• SE England & East Anglia → tier 4
• mainland Scotland & NI back into lockdown
• new variant detected across Europe
Worldwide deaths: 1,680,000 → 1,750,000
Worldwide cases: 76,000,000 → 80,000,000
UK deaths: 67,075 → 70,405
UK cases: 2,004,219 → 2,256,005
Vaccinations: 650,714 → 963,208
FTSE: down ½% (6529 → 6502)
20 things that happened w/b 13th December #coronavirus
• think carefully about Christmas risk (NHS)
• legal battle over closure of Greenwich schools
• London, most of Essex & some of Herts → tier 3
• new virus variant may be causing faster spread
• month-long lockdowns in Germany/Netherlands
• pressure to review 5-day Christmas bubbles
• redundancies hit a record high
• 130,000 vaccinated in first week
• Wales advises smaller Xmas bubbles
• Scotland advises shorter Xmas bubbles
• PM advises a merry little Christmas
• 11,000 missing +ve tests in Wales
• furlough scheme extended by a month
• French president tests positive
• tier 3 spreads across SE England
• schools overwhelmed by new testing plans
• 90% of hospital beds are full
• new virus variant 70% more transmissible
• tier 4 lockdown in London & SE England
• elsewhere Christmas restricted to one day
Worldwide deaths: 1,600,000 → 1,680,000
Worldwide cases: 71,300,000 → 76,000,000
UK deaths: 64,026 → 67,075
UK cases: 1,830,956 → 2,004,219
Vaccinations: 650,714
FTSE: down ¼% (6546 → 6529)
20 things that happened w/b 6th December #coronavirus
• overcrowded Nottingham Xmas market closes
• vaccine rollout 'a marathon not a sprint'
• Trump's chief lawyer admitted to hospital
• stay-at-home order in California
• cases rising in Wales (not rest of UK)
• record grocery sales in November
• first NHS patient receives vaccine
• world watches Margaret Keenan, 90, get her jab
• Oxford vaccine is safe and effective
• calls for London to enter tier 3
• a few patients allergic to Pfizer vaccine
• record daily death toll in US
• economic rebound slows further
• NHS waiting lists 100× longer than normal
• Canary Isles back on quarantine list
• France introduces curfew after 8pm
• self-isolation reduced from 14 to 10 days
• vaccine not a short-term solution (WHO)
• 5-day Xmas break a mistake, experts say
• highest restrictions eased in Scotland
Worldwide deaths: 1,520,000 → 1,600,000
Worldwide cases: 66,100,000 → 71,300,000
UK deaths: 61,014 → 64,026
UK cases: 1,705,971 → 1,830,956
FTSE: down 0.06% (6550 → 6546)