Fines for tampering with electricity meter range between SR5000 and SR100000 New amendments made in Electricity Law    Saudi Arabia deports 8,051 illegal residents in a week    Saudi Arabia is among world's top donors with assistance worth SR528 billion    GCC – Japan negotiations make progress in sealing free trade agreement    Inzaghi hails Al Hilal's fearless Club World Cup run    UNRWA calls for urgent fuel delivery to Gaza to prevent shutdown of basic services    Syria rules out foreign borrowing as central bank hails post-Assad recovery    Pakistan army kills 30 militants in cross-border clash near Afghanistan    State of emergency declared in Crete after wildfire devastates Ierapetra    OPEC+ further accelerates oil output hike by 548,000 bpd in August    Football world mourns Diogo Jota and brother André Silva at funeral in Portugal    Al Hilal exit Club World Cup after narrow defeat to Fluminense    Saudi Arabia tops global ICT Development Index for 2025    Hotel occupancy in Saudi Arabia rises to 63% as tourism workforce tops 983,000 in Q1 2025    Alkhorayef Commercial Company partners with XSQUARE Technologies to elevate logistics automation in Saudi Arabia    Portugal and Liverpool FC winger Diogo Jota dies in car accident in Spain    Michael Madsen, actor of 'Kill Bill' and 'Reservoir Dogs' fame, dead at 67    BTS are back: K-pop band confirm new album and tour    Michelin Guide launches in Saudi Arabia with phased rollout in 2025    'How fragile we are': Roskilde Festival tragedy remembered 25 years on    Sholay: Bollywood epic roars back to big screen after 50 years with new ending    Ministry launches online booking for slaughterhouses on eve of Eid Al-Adha    Shah Rukh Khan makes Met Gala debut in Sabyasachi    Pakistani star's Bollywood return excites fans and riles far right    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Johnson expected to announce delay to full reopening in England
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 14 - 06 - 2021

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is on Monday expected to announce that England's remaining COVID-19 restrictions will not be lifted on June 21 as planned.
Johnson told British media from the G7 summit in Cornwall on Sunday that the government "is looking at the data".
"The road map was always cautious but irreversible and in order to have an irreversible road map, we've got to be cautious," he added.
Foreign Minister Dominic Raab stressed that the government doesn't "want to yo-yo back in and out of measures" during an interview with the BBC on Sunday.
"We've got to be data and evidence-driven," he went on, highlighting that the "critical link" between transmissions and hospitalizations" is "probably the most sensitive right now".
England's four-step easing program planned for all remaining restrictions on businesses — including pubs, restaurants and nightclubs —and on large events and performances — including weddings and funerals — to be lifted on June 21.
But the UK has experienced a surge of new COVID-19 cases in recent weeks, blamed on the spread of the Delta variant.
Nearly 7,500 new infections were recorded on Sunday across the UK, bringing the weekly tally to more than 50,000 — a near 50% rise on the previous week.
This is despite the country having one of the highest vaccination rates in the world with 78.9% of the adult population having received at least one dose and more than 56% now fully inoculated.
British health authorities say the variant — which first emerged in India — is up to 60% more transmissible than the original strain and now represents over 90% of new cases in the UK.
They also stressed last week that although vaccination prevents the risk of severe disease, it does not eliminate it completely or prevent transmission.
The main opposition Labour party backs a delay but blamed the government for not taking steps against the Delta variant earlier.
"The scientific advice is pretty clear that we can't have a lifting of the lockdown at the minute. There needs to be more of a delay," shadow international trade secretary Emily Thornberry told Sky News.
"Now you wonder what on earth did they think they were doing by not closing the borders at the time that they should have. I have no doubt there was no scientific advice telling them not to close the borders because they should have particularly when the Delta variant started.
"You wonder why it was that they kept the border open for example with India and yet closed the border with Pakistan and Bangladesh," she added.
Some MPs from Johnson's Conservatives have meanwhile criticized a delay. Mark Harper wrote on Twitter that "the effectiveness of our vaccines at preventing hospitalization means unlocking on June 21could proceed safely."
"Any decision to delay will be a political choice," he went on, warning that "delaying June 21 will send a clear message to employers and workers that, when COVID cases increase this (and every) autumn and winter, they cannot rely on the government to keep our society open." — Euronews


Clic here to read the story from its source.