The ministers stated that there was nothing in the data suggesting further Covid restrictions in England, despite recent spike in cases.
Edward Argar, Minister at the Department of Health and Social Care stated that he wasn’t seeing anything at the moment in data before him in the immediate circumstances that suggested a need to place further restrictions.
Argar told Times Radio that calm, cool minds are what we need. “We must look at all the data, and do our best to prevent any restriction.
Steve Barclay, Chancellor of Lancaster, said in the meantime that testing had increased and that the British people were taking “sensible steps” to protect themselves.
“We have seen significant behavior change due to Plan B. According to him, that’s the reason there’s been so much demand for testing these past weeks.
“That combined with the booster program is key to a country’s ability to avoid further measures.
The ministers’ comments come as Britain’s Covid-19 infections increased by almost 15 per cent in the space of a week, but latest figures show the number of deaths have decreased by 23 per cent.
However, Scotland’s National Clinical Director has stated that its ban on large gatherings in the face of high Covid cases may be extended into spring. This raises concerns about the impact it might have on hospitality businesses.
Pub, restaurant and nightclub bosses believe firms in Edinburgh missed out on around £20 million on Hogmanay due to coronavirus measures, but Professor Jason Leitch dismissed calls for the famous New Year street party to be rescheduled to April, saying it would be too soon for mass events.
He made these comments as Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon continues to make restrictions on hospitality businesses. These include a requirement that pubs and restaurants have only table service, and a minimum of one meter between groups.
Night clubs were closed on December 27 for at least three weeks, and officials have been warned that some hospitality businesses currently closed will not reopen due to the impact of Sturgeon’s tough restrictions in recent weeks.
Steve Barclay, Chancellor of Lancaster (pictured), said that testing had shown that the British public were taking sensible precautions to protect themselves. A minister for health said that there was nothing in the data that suggested that further Covid measures are needed in England.
Pub, restaurant and nightclub bosses believe firms in Edinburgh missed out on around £20 million on Hogmanay due to coronavirus measures. Jason Leitch (L), national clinical director, dismissed the calls for New Year Street Party to be rescheduled for April. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon’s (R) restrictions are set to remain in place until spring.
The Department of Health has released a new 137,583 Covid case in its daily update. This marks an additional 17,660 increase over the Boxing Day figures, and a 33.4 percent week-on-week rise in new cases according to New Year’s Day figures.
It is now the 12th consecutive date that new cases are above 100,000. This comes as the country gets out of the holiday season. In recent days, the week-on–week rise in new cases was as high as 72% (Dec.29).
According to the Government, the incomplete data could have been due to inconsistent reporting during the holiday period. Today’s Covid numbers for Scotland are not yet available. Also, Sunday’s are not used to update hospitalization data.
Official figures show that nearly 10% of NHS employees were sick on New Year’s Eve, as the coronavirus continues to infect the NHS.
Meanwhile, secondary school pupils will be told to wear face masks from the moment they arrive until they leave when they return to classrooms this week.
In an effort to protect the education of millions of youngsters amid a sharp rise in cases of the Omicron variant, Ministers have requested that pupils cover their faces all day – including while they are being taught. They are already asked to wear masks in communal areas.
Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi last night said he and Boris Johnson saw schools as their ‘No 1 priority’, adding that they wanted to ‘do everything in our power to minimise disruption’.
New guidance from the government will require teachers and pupils to don masks next week when they return to classes.
Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon is on the verge of imposing more severe Covid policies.
Scots could face an extended “fun-ban” when the national clinical director Professor Jason Leitch said that plans to reschedule Edinburgh’s Hogmanay New Year’s Party from April might be a little too soon.
He stated that he enjoyed an Edinburgh night out as much as any other person. It is not clear if we will be able to bring this forward until April.
“We have high hopes. Data from South Africa and University College London as well as data from Denmark, Edinburgh, and Edinburgh suggest that serious diseases are less common with this variant. It could be as low as one-third of the cases. But let’s put that in perspective – 2,500 Delta cases [per day]You can have 50 patients in the hospital
For the same admissions number, you need to enroll 10,000 Omicron patients. Scotland’s threshold is 15,000. Omicron’s encouraging results are comparable to Delta. However, Delta had a low standard.
Gavin Stevenson, vice-chairman of the Night Time Industries Association in Scotland, claimed there had been an 80 per cent drop in footfall on Hogmanay, which may have cost the sector £20million.
The Sunday Mail was informed by him that “Hogmanay” has proved to be a very difficult time for the license trade. Hogmanay is a night that I estimate has caused the hospitality industry to lose tens or millions of pounds.
“It could be the last nail in small business’s coffin.”
This happened after police arrived at a Glaswegian Pub on New Year’s Eve with a large force to disperse a gathering of socially distant people who allegedly saw dancing.
Onlookers cheered, booed, and called’shame’ when around 25 officers raided the Avant Garde pub in Glasgow. Two revellers were taken into custody during the raid.
Billy Tetmichalis, the 63-year-old bartender, is planning to lodge a formal complaint with the police.
Police Scotland stated that the police officer visited as part of a routine visit and did not intend to enforce Covid restrictions.
Officers arrested a Glasgow man as he tried to get his coat back after they had arrived at the centre of a New Year’s Eve party.
MailOnline was informed by the owners that they were unable to provide proof of compliance with licensing conditions. Enforcement action was initiated.
MailOnline officers walked into Mr Tetmichalis’s bar on King’s Street in Glasgow after they saw some people “dancing” and were served by him.
“We have complied with all measures. We were performing table service when some folks got up from their chairs to reach the bar.
“The venue is capable of holding 306 persons. To give everyone enough space, we have stopped selling tickets at 80.
“Some people arrived at the bar, and we didn’t stop them. If that means that it makes us liable, then so be it.
On Wednesday, Miss Sturgeon will update the Scottish Parliament regarding the restrictions.
Jackie Baillie from the Scottish Labour health department stated that every restriction results in reduced revenue for those businesses who are already trying to survive.
“The Scottish government must make sure that everyone who is eligible receives support.”
Witnesses claimed that six police vehicles and about 25 officers flooded in to the Avant Garde gastropub, Glasgow, Scotland, New Year’s Eve.
Billy Tetmichalis, the 63-year-old bartender, is planning to lodge a formal complaint with the police.
MailOnline officers walked into Mr Tetmichalis’ bar in King’s Street Glasgow because they noticed a few people dancing and being served. “We had followed all of the instructions. We were performing table service when some folks got up from their chairs to reach the bar.