LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Britain’s unemployment rate has jumped to 4.5 percent as the coronavirus pandemic continues to destroy jobs, official data showed on Tuesday. The reading for the June-August period compared with an unemployment rate of 4.1 percent for May to July, the Office for National Statistic said in a statement. Early estimates for September meanwhile “suggest that there is little change in the number of payroll employees in the UK; up 20,000 […]
Tag: UK
UK PM says second wave ‘inevitable’ as more curbs imposed
by Jitendra JOSHI / Joe JACKSON Agence France Presse Britain is seeing a second wave of the coronavirus outbreak, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Friday, as millions more people faced new restrictions and the government warned that another national lockdown could be imminent. “There’s no question, as I’ve said for several weeks now, that we could expect and are now seeing a second wave coming in,” said Johnson as he toured the site of […]
UK reserves up to 190 million vaccine doses from Valneva
PARIS, France (AFP) — Britain has secured access to up to 190 million doses of a potential coronavirus vaccine from Valneva in deal worth as much as 1.37 billion euros, the French-Austrian vaccine firm said Monday. It had already been disclosed in July that the British government had reserved 60 million doses of Valneva’s inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccine under development. The firm said it expects to begin trials of the two-dose vaccine in December and if […]
UK police launch hunt for suspect after mass stabbing
by Joe JACKSON, with Phil HAZLEWOOD in London Agence France Presse BIRMINGHAM, United Kingdom (AFP) — Detectives in Britain’s second city of Birmingham on Sunday launched a hunt for a knifeman who killed one and critically injured two in a series of random stabbings over several hours. Five others suffered minor injuries in the attacks, which happened at four separate locations in the busy city centre between 12:30 (2330 GMT Saturday) and 2:30 am. […]
DOST proposes zoning procedures, standard compensation for PHL COVID vaccine trial volunteers
(Eagle News) – The Department of Science and Technology has recommended zoning procedures for the various COVID-19 vaccine trials that the Philippine will join in efforts to find a solution against the virus pandemic. DOST Secretary Fortunato dela Peña said this as he also revealed another recommendation for a “standard rate” of compensation for Filipinos who will volunteer in the various vaccine clinical trials. The various vaccine clinical trials that the Philippines will participate […]
Breakthrough’ treatment slashes virus death risk: study
by Patrick GALEY Agence France Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — An aerosol-based treatment could drastically reduce the number of new coronavirus patients dying from the disease or requiring intensive care, according to preliminary results released Monday by a British biotech firm. In a randomized trial of 100 patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19, those who received an inhaled formula of the protein interferon beta were at 79 percent lower risk of developing severe disease […]
Second virus wave in UK could see 120,000 deaths: study
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — A second coronavirus wave in Britain this winter could see 120,000 deaths in hospitals alone in a “reasonable worst-case scenario”, scientists warned on Tuesday. The Academy of Medical Sciences report, commissioned by the government’s chief scientific adviser Patrick Vallance, urged immediate action to mitigate a second wave. With hospitals also battling seasonal flu cases, a second wave could eclipse the current outbreak resulting in up to 120,000 deaths between September […]
UK royal residences reopen after virus shutdown
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Some of Queen Elizabeth II’s royal residences will reopen to the public later this month after closing during the coronavirus shutdown, the Royal Collection Trust announced Wednesday. Windsor Castle, west of London, where the 94-year-old monarch has been staying since the start of the pandemic, will be open for pre-booked, timed visits from July 23. The Royal Mews and the Queen’s Gallery at her London home of Buckingham Palace will […]
UK ‘increasingly likely’ to see +40C temperatures
by Kelly MACNAMARA Agence France-Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — Temperatures in Britain could exceed 40 degrees Celsius every three or four years by 2100 if greenhouse gas emissions continue unabated, research published Tuesday has found, as climate change increases the likelihood of scorching heat waves. The modelling study by Britain’s Meteorological Office found that emissions are dramatically increasing the likelihood of extremely warm days in the UK, particularly in the southeast. Without climate change, a […]
UK slave trader’s statue toppled in anti-racism protests
by Dmitry ZAKS Agence France-Presse LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Protesters tore down the statue of a notorious British slave trader Sunday and dumped it in a harbour on the second day of demonstrations against George Floyd’s death. Footage showed a few dozen people tie a rope around the neck of Edward Colston’s statue and bring it to the ground in the southwestern city of Bristol. They stamped on it for a few minutes before […]
COVID-19 deaths worldwide surpass 400,000 as global infections near 7 million
(Eagle News) — Coronavirus deaths worldwide reached almost 402,000 on Monday, June 8, as virus cases also neared 7 million with infections still rising in most countries. The United States still leads countries in number of COVID-19 cases and deaths. Based on the virus dashboard of Johns Hopkins University, US COVID-19 cases reached 1,938,842 while virus-related fatalities hit 110,482. Brazil is second to the US in terms of cases with 672,846 confirmed infections, and […]
UK records lowest death toll of lockdown as restrictions ease
by Charlotte DURAND and Dmitry ZAKS Agence France Presse LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Younger children went back to schools in England on Monday as Britain began to stir back to life, while the government reported the lowest coronavirus death toll since the start of the national lockdown in late March. Outdoor markets also swung open their gates and car showrooms tried to lure back customers and recoup losses suffered since Britain effectively shut […]





