UK
We expect UK to promote interests of climate vulnerable countries: Hasina
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday said Bangladesh expects the UK to promote the interests and priorities of climate vulnerable countries to international platforms.
She said this when COP26 President-Designate Alok Sharma met her at her official residence Ganobhaban.
PM’s Press Secretary Ihsanul Karim briefed reporters after the meeting.
Read: COP26: Alok Sharma discusses climate issues with FM
He said they discussed various issues like the climate change situation, its global adverse impacts, mitigation and Climate Change Fund and Covid-19 pandemic.
Sheikh Hasina said Bangladesh is going to be the worst affected like some other countries across the globe due to the climate change even though the carbon emission of these countries are very negligible. “We’ll be affected massively,” she said.
Hasina said the government has taken various programmes to increase the renewable energy use in mitigating the demand for power.
She said there are currently some 5.8 million solar power connections in Bangladesh.
The Prime Minister said her government and the Awami League as a party are engaged in massive tree plantation to improve the environment of the country.
Read:Alok Sharma in city to discuss climate issues ahead of COP26
Talking about the Covid-19 pandemic and vaccination, the Prime Minister said the government has adopted various measures to run the economy apart from containing the coronavirus infection although Bangladesh is a densely populated country.
Covid: WHO renames UK and other variants with Greek letters
Dhaka, June 1 (UNB)--From now on the WHO will use Greek letters to refer to variants first detected in countries like the UK, South Africa and India.
According to BBC, the UK variant for instance is labelled as Alpha, the South African Beta, and the Indian as Delta.
The WHO said this was to simplify discussions but also to help remove some stigma from the names.
Read: India's COVID-19 tally reaches 28,175,044 with 127,510 new cases
Earlier this month the Indian government criticised the naming of variant B.1.617.2 - first detected in the country last October - as the "Indian variant", though the WHO had never officially labelled it as such.
"No country should be stigmatised for detecting and reporting variants," the WHO's Covid-19 technical lead, Maria Van Kerkhove, tweeted. She also called for "robust surveillance" of variants, and for the sharing of scientific data to help stop the spread.
Letters will refer to both variants of concern, and variants of interest. A full list of names has been published on the WHO website.
These Greek letters will not replace existing scientific names. If more than 24 variants are officially identified, the system runs out of Greek letters, and a new naming programme will be announced, Ms Van Kerkhove told STAT News in an interview.
"We're not saying replace B.1.1.7, but really just to try to help some of the dialogue with the average person," she told the US-based website. "So that in public discourse, we could discuss some of these variants in more easy-to-use language."
Read: Global Covid cases top 170.5 million
On Monday, a scientist advising the UK government said the country was in the early stages of a third wave of coronavirus infections, in part driven by the Delta, or Indian variant.
It is thought to spread more quickly than the Alpha (UK; Kent) variant, which was responsible for the surge in cases in the UK over the winter.
Vietnam, meanwhile, has detected what appears to be a combination of those two variants. On Saturday, the country's health minister said it could spread quickly through the air and described it as "very dangerous".
Boris Johnson, fiancée Carrie Symonds wed in London
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his fiancée Carrie Symonds married Saturday in a small private ceremony in London, U.K. newspapers reported.
Johnson’s office declined to comment on reports in the Mail on Sunday and the Sun that the couple wed at the Roman Catholic Westminster Cathedral in front of a small group of friends and family.
The Sun said senior staff in Johnson’s 10 Downing St. office were unaware of the wedding plan.
Under current coronavirus restrictions in England, weddings can be attended by a maximum of 30 people.
Read:Brexit trade talks with EU in ‘serious situation’: Boris Johnson
Johnson, 56, and 33-year-old Symonds, an environmental campaigner, announced their engagement in February 2020 and have a son together, 1-year-old Wilfred.
The marriage would be Symonds’ first and Johnson’s third. He has at least five other children from previous relationships.
The last British prime minister to marry in office was Lord Liverpool in 1822.
Politicians sent congratulations after the news was reported. Northern Ireland First Minister Arlene Foster tweeted: “Huge congratulations to Boris Johnson & Carrie Symonds on your wedding today.”
Read:Boris Johnson self-quarantining after contracting Covid-19 infected MP
The reported nuptials come after a tumultuous political week for Johnson, who was accused by former top aide Dominic Cummings on Wednesday of bungling the government’s response to the coronavirus and being “unfit for the job.” On Friday, an ethics inquiry found the prime minister acted “unwisely” in renovating his Downing Street apartment without knowing where the money had come from, though it cleared him of misconduct.
Rise in UK coronavirus cases stoke concerns over 3rd wave
The number of new coronavirus infections in the U.K. hit a near two-month high Friday as British regulators authorized the use of the single-dose vaccine from Johnson & Johnson.
The latest authorization, which takes the number of vaccines in the U.K.’s armory to four, comes amid growing speculation that the new variant of the virus first identified in India may prompt the British government to delay its next planned easing of lockdown restrictions in England.
Government figures showed that another 4,182 new confirmed cases were reported across the U.K., the highest daily figure since April 1. The cases bring the total number of confirmed infections reported over the past seven days to 20,765, a 24% increase from the previous week. The rise prompted scientists to say the U.K. is now in the midst of a third wave of the pandemic.
The number of cases remains well below the daily high of nearly 70,000 recorded in mid-January, during the peak of the second wave, but but the upward trend has raised questions about the U.K. government’s plan to lift all remaining social restrictions on June 21. The government, which has lifted restrictions in stages and allowed pubs and restaurants to resume indoor service last week, has said it will make a decision on the next planned easing on June 14.
Read:European regulators OK Pfizer vaccine for children 12-15
The variant identified in India is believed to be responsible for up to 75% of new cases in the U.K. and more transmissible than the previously dominant strain of the virus.
Critics argue that the Conservative government is to blame for the variant’s seeding in the U.K. They say officials acted too slowly to impose the strictest quarantine requirements on everyone arriving from India, which is in the midst of a catastrophic resurgence of the virus.
Many scientists say the increase in cases is no surprise but that the rapid rollout of vaccines will provide a firewall in a country that has seen Europe’s highest virus-related death toll at more than 127,500. While the most vulnerable people should have vaccine protection, there are worries the virus could spread widely among younger adults.
As of Friday, 58% of the British population has received at least one vaccine dose and around 35% have gotten two shots. The U.K. vaccination program started with the oldest age groups and aims to have offered a jab to all adults by the end of July.
“It seems almost certain that we will face a third episode of rising COVID-19 infections,” said James Naismith, a professor of structural biology at the University of Oxford. “It seems likely that the Indian variant will mostly confine itself to the unvaccinated younger population. It is much less likely to cause serious disease in this group. However, less likely is not the same as zero. With large enough numbers of infections, appreciable numbers will get seriously ill.”
Also Friday, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency said the vaccine by Johnson & Johnson met “the expected standards of safety, quality and effectiveness.” The regulator previously authorized the two-dose regimens developed by Pfizer/BioNTech, AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford, and Moderna.
Read:Vietnam finds new virus variant, hybrid of India, UK strains
The regulator said the vaccine developed by J&J subsidiary Janssen has been shown to be 67% effective overall in preventing COVID-19 infection and 85% effective in preventing severe disease or hospitalization. It can be be stored at refrigerator temperatures of 2 to 8 degrees Celsius (36 to 47 F), which the regulator said makes it “ideal for distribution to care homes and other locations.”
Details of which groups will get the vaccine have yet to be determined. There was speculation it might only be administered to older adults after it was linked to reports of rare blood clots.
The Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine looks set to be used as part of the country’s planned booster program in the fall. The British government has amended its order from last year of 30 million J&J doses to 20 million.
“As Janssen is a single-dose vaccine, it will play an important role in the months to come as we redouble our efforts to encourage everyone to get their jabs and potentially begin a booster program later this year,” Health Secretary Matt Hancock said.
Eyeing variant, France mulls tighter limits for UK tourists
France may introduce stricter coronavirus restrictions for British visitors when tourism reopens this summer to prevent the spread of a worrying virus variant first detected in India and causing concern in Britain, authorities said Sunday.
The possibility of tighter restrictions for British tourists was raised Sunday by Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian.
The minister suggested that Britain could be put in a health category of its own, somewhere in between the strictest measures that France is imposing on visitors from India and 15 other countries, and more relaxed requirements being readied for visitors from the European Union and some other countries.
Without giving specifics, Le Drian said “health measures that are a bit stronger” could be applied for British tourists.
The minister indicated that the government in Paris is watching how the situation develops before making up its mind.
Read:Clinic helps long-haul patients in London’s “COVID triangle”
“We hope that the variant can be controlled in a country which experienced real failures during the pandemic,” he said.
“However, the arrival of the Indian variant and the increase of cases of Indian variant in the United Kingdom pose a problem and so we are vigilant about this (and) in contact with the British authorities,” he added.
“It won’t be the red treatment if we have to do it. It will be an intermediate treatment,” the minister said. “But it is not excluded — this springs to mind because of British tourists — that we have health measures that are a bit stronger.”
From Sunday, Germany already started requiring people arriving from the U.K. to go into quarantine for 14 days. The decision announced last Friday responded to the spread in Britain of the Indian variant.
Under the tighter rules, airlines and others will also only be able to transport German citizens and residents from Britain.
Sturgeon: Scotland independence vote matter of when, not if
Scotland’s leader told British Prime Minister Boris Johnson Sunday that a second Scottish independence referendum is “a matter of when, not if,” after her party won its fourth straight parliamentary election.
Johnson has invited the leaders of the U.K.’s devolved nations for crisis talks on the union after the regional election results rolled in, saying the U.K. was “best served when we work together” and that the devolved governments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland should cooperate on plans to recover from the coronavirus pandemic.
But Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s first minister and leader of the Scottish National Party, told Johnson in a call that while her immediate focus was on steering Scotland to recovery, a new referendum on Scotland’s breakup from the rest of the U.K. is inevitable.
Sturgeon reiterated “her intention to ensure that the people of Scotland can choose our own future when the crisis is over, and made clear that the question of a referendum is now a matter of when — not if,” her office said.
Also Read:EU says US stand on patent virus waiver is no ‘magic bullet’
Earlier, she said she wouldn’t rule out legislation paving the way for a vote at the start of next year.
Final results of Thursday’s local elections showed that the SNP won 64 of the 129 seats in the Edinburgh-based Scottish Parliament. Although it fell one seat short of securing an overall majority, the parliament still had a pro-independence majority with the help of eight members of the Scottish Greens.
Sturgeon said the election results proved that a second independence vote for Scotland was “the will of the country” and that any London politician who stood in the way would be “picking a fight with the democratic wishes of the Scottish people.”
Johnson has the ultimate authority whether or not to permit another referendum on Scotland gaining independence. He wrote in Saturday’s Daily Telegraph that another referendum on Scotland would be “irresponsible and reckless” as Britain emerges from the pandemic. He has consistently argued that the issue was settled in a 2014 referendum where 55% of Scottish voters favored remaining part of the U.K.
But proponents of another vote say the situation has changed fundamentally because of the U.K’s Brexit divorce from the European Union. They charge that Scotland was taken out of the EU against its will. In the 2016 Brexit referendum, 52% of U.K. voters backed leaving the EU, but 62% of Scots voted to remain.
Also Read: UK’s Johnson faces criticism over Scotland trip in lockdown
When asked about the prospect of Johnson agreeing to a second Scottish referendum, Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove said Sunday “it’s not an issue for the moment” and stressed that the national priority is on recovering from the coronavirus pandemic.
Gove argued that the SNP’s failure to secure a majority in the Scottish Parliament was in marked contrast to the party’s heights of power in 2011, when it won a 69-seat majority.
“It is not the case now — as we see — that the people of Scotland are agitating for a referendum,” he told the BBC.
The Scotland results have been the main focus of Thursday’s local elections across Britain. In Wales, the opposition Labour Party did better than expected, extending its 22 years at the helm of the Welsh government despite falling one seat short of a majority.
Labour’s support also held up in some big cities. In London, Mayor Sadiq Khan handily won a second term. Other winning Labour mayoral candidates included Steve Rotherham in the Liverpool City Region, Andy Burnham in Greater Manchester and Dan Norris in the West of England region, which includes Bristol.
Prince William, Kate release images to mark 10th anniversary
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge marked their 10th wedding anniversary Thursday by releasing photographs and a video offering an image of domestic bliss — a contrast to the tensions that have gripped Britain’s royal family in recent weeks.
Two photographs show Prince William, second-in-line to the throne, and the former Kate Middleton in complementary shades of blue. A video released later showed the family at play, replete with their smiling children walking near the sea.
Also read: Harry, William seen chatting together after royal funeral
William married his former university flatmate on April 29, 2011, at Westminster Abbey in a ceremony televised globally. They have three children: Prince George, 7, Princess Charlotte, 5, and Prince Louis, 3. The traditional gift for a 10th wedding anniversary is tin, a symbol of durability.
“Thank you to everyone for the kind messages on our wedding anniversary,″ the couple said on their Twitter feed. “We are enormously grateful for the 10 years of support we have received in our lives as a family.″
Also read: Prince William defends UK royal family against racism claims
The celebration comes 12 days after the funeral of Prince Philip, William’s grandfather, who died April 9 at the age of 99.
Last month, the family was rocked by an interview in which Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, alleged that palace staff had been insensitive toward Meghan and a member of the royal family had made racist comments about the couple’s first child. Harry, William’s younger brother, stepped away from royal duties last year and moved to California with his wife and son.
UK to send medical supplies to India
The UK will send medical equipment to India as the latter continues to suffer from a record surge in coronavirus cases, the British government announced Sunday, reported Anadolu Agency.
India set a new global record for daily coronavirus cases for the fourth day in a row on Sunday.
There were 349,691 new cases, taking the total to 16.96 million. Only the US has had more overall cases.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson had been due to visit India this week but cancelled his trip due to the surge in coronavirus cases there.
In a statement, he said: "We stand side by side with India as a friend and partner during what is a deeply concerning time in the fight against COVID-19.”
"Vital medical equipment, including hundreds of oxygen concentrators and ventilators, is now on its way from the UK to India to support efforts to prevent the tragic loss of life from this terrible virus.
"We will continue to work closely with the Indian government during this difficult time, and I'm determined to make sure that the UK does everything it can to support the international community in the global fight against pandemic," he added.
British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab tweeted: "Today we have sent the first of several urgent deliveries of surplus medical equipment to our friends in India to help provide life-saving care for vulnerable Covid patients. No-one is safe until we are all safe."
India is also suffering from acute shortages of oxygen. The first shipment of medical supplies from the UK will arrive in India on Tuesday morning.
The nine airplane container loads include 495 oxygen concentrators, 120 non-invasive ventilators and 20 manual ventilators. Further shipments of British medical supplies to India will also be sent.
British Health Secretary Matt Hancock said: “The heart-breaking scenes in India show once again how awful this terrible disease is.”
"We are determined to support the people of India through this very difficult time, and I am hugely grateful to those who have worked hard to make this initial delivery happen.
"This first delivery of life saving equipment will provide much needed assistance and we stand ready to do more."
Meanwhile, the UK reported its lowest number of daily coronavirus cases since early September as Britain’s successful vaccination programme continues to prevent a surge of infections despite loosening lockdown measures.
UK lauds Hasina's leadership on climate front
The United Kingdom has commended Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s leadership of the Climate Vulnerable Forum (CVF) during the lead up to the UNFCCC COP26 scheduled for November 2021 in Glasgow.
British State Minister for Foreign Affairs for South Asia, the Commonwealth and the UN Lord Tariq Ahmad of Wimbledon recalled the leadership of Hasina during a recent virtual meeting with State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam.
Lord Ahmad took interest in hearing about Bangladesh’s priorities for COP26, including in its capacity as the representative for the climate vulnerable countries.
Also read: Bangladesh, US to work together to address challenges of climate change
He underscored the importance of protecting the Sundarbans, the world’s largest mangrove forest, from the adverse impacts of climate change.
State Minister Alam briefed his UK counterpart about the recent visit to Bangladesh by the US Special Presidential Envoy on Climate John Kerry.
He invited Lord Ahmad to visit Bangladesh during the Mujib Year, also in connection with the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Bangladesh and the UK.
Also read: Hasina's leadership to ‘amplify calls for decisive action’ on climate front
The two State Ministers discussed the latest international travel restrictions imposed in the wake of the renewed spike in corona virus infections, especially from the South African variant.
State Minister Alam urged the UK to take Bangladesh off the red list at the earliest based on factual evidence.
The two State Ministers exchanged views on the situation of the Rohingya in Bangladesh. They discussed the current impasse over their voluntary repatriation to Myanmar and their partial relocation to Bhashan Char.
Also read: Make no mistake; take action: Kerry on dealing with climate crisis together
Lord Ahmad assured his Bangladesh counterpart of the UK’s continued support on the question of the Rohingya’s safe and dignified return to Myanmar.
The two Ministers also discussed preparations for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) expected to be held physically in June 2021 in Kigali, Rwanda.
At the outset, State Minister Alam expressed deep condolences at the demise of HRH Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh and consort of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II.
Too much? BBC gets complaints over Prince Philip coverage
The U.K.’s national broadcaster switched instantly into mourning mode when Prince Philip’s death was announced Friday.
The BBC canceled its regular programming and aired special coverage hosted by black-clad news anchors throughout the day. Popular prime-time shows such as the cooking contest “MasterChef” were supplanted, and the network’s music radio stations played instrumentals and somber tunes.
Some Britons saw the BBC’s actions as a fitting mark of respect. For others, it was a bit much.
The broadcaster received so many complaints alleging its reporting was excessive that it set up a special website page for viewers to register objections if they felt there was “too much TV coverage of the death of HRH Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.” It didn’t disclose how many people had complained by Saturday.
Simon McCoy, a long-time BBC news presenter who recently left the network, suggested the wall-to-wall coverage was inordinate.
Also read: Prince Philip, husband of Queen Elizabeth II, dies aged 99
“BBC1 and BBC2 showing the same thing. And presumably the News Channel, too. Why? I know this is a huge event. But surely the public deserve a choice of programming?” McCoy said on Twitter.
The publicly funded BBC often finds itself under fire from all sides for its treatment of major national events. When the Queen Mother Elizabeth died in 2002, the broadcaster received criticism because the announcer who delivered the news did not wear a black tie.
Britain’s other TV stations also gave extensive coverage to Philip’s death at age 99 and after 73 years of marriage to Queen Elizabeth II. Commercial network ITV aired news coverage and tribute programs all day Friday in place of scheduled programming.
The BBC is under unique pressure, though, because it is taxpayer-funded. Scrutiny and questions about its role have grown in recent years as commercial rivals and streaming services give audiences more choice.
Also read: Philip, in role with no job description, was queen’s bedrock
The BBC has often irked governments with its coverage of their failings and scandals. Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Conservative administration has been especially rankled, detecting a liberal bias in the broadcaster’s coverage of issues such as Brexit.
For a time, the government refused to allow Cabinet ministers to appear on major BBC news programs, and it mulled the idea of scrapping the 159 pound ($218) a year license fee that households pay to fund the broadcaster.
BBC Director-General Tim Davie has acknowledged the organization must evolve with changing times, but says it remains essential to British society.
“We have a different purpose” than broadcasters such as Netflix, Davie told U.K. lawmakers last month. “I’m not running a business for profit. I’m running...an organization for purpose.”
Also read: Bangladesh, British Bangladeshi community lost a true friend with Prince Philip's demise: PM