Plus, take our quiz of the week's news
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| Trial indicates Covid booster jabs work well |
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| | | Days after it was announced all over-18s in the UK are to be offered a coronavirus vaccine booster, the first study into how well these jabs work is reporting results. The University of Southampton-led research, undertaken among 3,000 adults, tested seven different booster jabs developed using a variety of technologies. It found them all to be safe, with generally mild side-effects. All seven boosted immunity when given three months after a second dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, while six were effecive following two doses of Pfizer's jab. Overall, the Moderna and Pfizer boosters - those being offered to the UK public - performed best. The researchers found a strong response across the Alpha and Delta variants, and the original strain, and hope this will translate into protection against Omicron. Prof Saul Faust, who led the trial, says the evidence "gives confidence and flexibility in developing booster programmes here in the UK and globally". To make vaccine supplies go further, even a half dose of Pfizer could be used to boost populations, the researchers believe. However, academics say further data is needed to work out what the trial results mean for long-term protection against serious disease. Wondering when you'll get your booster? Here's what we know so far. | |
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| Tories hold seat with reduced majority |
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| The Conservatives retain a hold on the south-east London seat of Old Bexley and Sidcup this morning. Councillor Louie French won the by-election - triggered by the death from cancer of former MP James Brokenshire - with more than half the votes. However, a turnout of just 34% contributed to the Tory majority being cut from nearly 19,000 to 4,478. Labour's Daniel Francis came second, with a 10% swing in his favour. Mr French paid tribute to Mr Brokenshire and said the contest had been "fought with dignity". Richard Tice, leader of Reform UK - formerly the Brexit Party, came third, ahead of the Greens and Lib Dems. | |
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| East Africa drought kills wildlife and livestock |
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| There's an all-too familiar story coming out of East Africa. Drought conditions, said to be the worst in a decade in northern Kenya, much of Somalia and southern Ethiopia, are causing animals to die in their hundreds. Alarming footage shows giraffes, starved of pasture, lying dead within a wildlife conservancy. Meanwhile, some herders are reporting losses of up to 70% of their livestock. A search for water is taking thirsty wildlife into villages. And with the dry weather predicted to persist until at least mid-2022, communities fear they will be next. This report, from our senior Africa Correspondent Anne Soy, contains distressing scenes. | |
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| | | | | There has been a big win for the Duchess of Sussex, as the appeal court has upheld her claim against the Mail on Sunday for publishing parts of a private letter to her father. It allows her to put down a strong marker over her privacy - and the slam-dunk ruling allows her to avoid any awkward cross-examination as a witness. Her supporters will see it as evidence that she really has been unfairly treated by a hostile press. Meanwhile her detractors might continue to view the court case through the prism of a narcissistic attempt to control her image. Social media will still be a snake pit on both sides. | |
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| | Sean Coughlan | Royal correspondent | |
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| | | | Several papers focus on the case of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes, who was tortured, poisoned and beaten to death by his stepmother and father. The Daily Telegraph's headline says the six-year-old had "a bruise for every day of lockdown". The Sun points the finger at the authorities. In referring to the case of a boy who died from multiple injuries in 2007, it asks: "Did they learn nothing from Baby P?" The Daily Mail, too, says police and social workers missed "so many signs he was being tortured by his father and stepmother". | |
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| | | Oil Shell pulls out of Shetland development |
| | | | Petrol Hike in prices completely unjustified, RAC says |
| | | | Baldwin Actor says career could be over after fatal shooting |
| | | | Grenfell Rethink deal with insulation firm, survivors tell Mercedes F1 |
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| If you do one thing today |
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| If you listen to one thing today |
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| If you read one thing today |
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| Need something different? |
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| Want to see something cute? Check out this video of six seal pups being cared for at an RSPCA centre in Norfolk. They were separated from their mothers by Storm Arwen but staff have high hopes of a happy ending - with their release planned for the spring. And there has definitely, at long last, been a happy ending for 86-year-old Peggy MacSween, who lost her wedding ring while gathering potatoes more than 50 years ago. Find out how she got it back. | |
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| | | 1988 Health minister Edwina Currie angers farmers by saying most of Britain's egg production is infected with the salmonella bacteria. |
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