Plus, the lowdown on the most powerful space telescope yet
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| Rules change in bid to slow Omicron spread |
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| | | Face coverings are once again mandatory on public transport and in shops in England, as ministers try to slow the spread of the Omicron coronavirus variant. With 11 cases detected across the UK and that number expected to rise, the face-mask ruling brings England in line with Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. People arriving in the UK from abroad will now also have to take a PCR test and self-isolate until they receive a negative result. Contacts of suspected Omicron cases are already required to self-isolate for 10 days, even if fully vaccinated. Meanwhile, NHS England will shortly set out "how booster jabs will be given in priority order... while also increasing capacity to vaccinate millions more people in a shorter space of time". That's after Monday's announcement the programme would be expanded to all over-18s in the UK, with children aged 12 to 15 invited for a second jab. Scientists say it will take about three weeks to determine the variant's impact on the effectiveness of vaccines. Mr Javid says: "If it emerges that this variant is no more dangerous than the Delta variant, then we won't keep measures in place for a day longer than necessary." Meanwhile, the World Health Organization says the Omicron variant poses a high risk of infection surges around the globe, with its head renewing calls for a global push to get vaccines to poorer nations. Remind yourself of the coronavirus rules where you live | |
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| Reshuffle returns Cooper to Labour top team |
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| Labour's top team looks different this morning, with former cabinet minister Yvette Cooper the new shadow home secretary and David Lammy now shadow foreign secretary. Wes Streeting has a key role overseeing the government's pandemic response. Leader Sir Keir Starmer says it leaves a "smaller, more focused shadow cabinet that mirrors the shape of the government". His team says Lisa Nandy, who had the Foreign Office brief, will be more prominent in a new job taking on the government over its "levelling up" promise to equalise opportunities. The reshuffle didn't pass without drama, as deputy leader Angela Rayner spent much of Monday being asked to comment on changes she wasn't expecting. Sir Keir and his deputy clashed over the last reshuffle, our political editor Laura Kuenssberg recalls. Here's her analysis. | |
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| Barbados becomes a republic |
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| Barbados has become the world's newest republic, following an overnight event that saw the Queen removed as head of state. Dame Sandra Mason was sworn in as president during the midnight ceremony coinciding with the 55th anniversary of the nation's independence. "Vessel Republic Barbados has set sail on her maiden voyage. May she weather all storms," she said. Barbadian singer Rihanna was declared a national hero at the event, which saw a final salute to the British monarchy and the Royal Standard flag was lowered and replaced. The Prince of Wales reiterated the continuing ties between the two nations despite the constitutional status change and acknowledged the "appalling atrocity of slavery" suffered by the Caribbean island. | |
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| | | | e in | Nasa is preparing to launch a space telescope that will see further into the Universe than anything else ever built. The James Webb Space Telescope has taken 30 years and $10bn (£7.5bn) to develop, and is being described as one of the grand scientific endeavours of the 21st Century. The telescope will be able to see just about anything in the sky. However, it has one overriding objective - to see the light coming from the very first stars to shine in the Universe. These pioneer stars are thought to have switched on about 100-200 million years after the Big Bang, or a little over 13.5 billion years ago. | |
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| | Jonathan Amos | Science correspondent | |
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| | | | The expansion of the Covid vaccine booster programme leads many papers, with the Metro noting how thousands swamped the NHS booking website on Monday. The i describes the NHS as "scrambling" to put together a "volunteer vaccine army" to offer booster jabs to an extra 25 million people to slow the spread of the Omicron variant. Ministers are aiming to deliver half-a-million Covid jabs a day to outpace Omicron, according to the Guardian. But the Times says that's likely to take until the end of the year to achieve. Read the review. | |
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| | | MI6 Service must adapt to new technology to survive, says spy chief |
| | | | Abuse trial Maxwell 'preyed on' young girls for Epstein, court hears |
| | | | F-35 Video appears to show UK fighter crashing on take-off |
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| If you watch 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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| A comedy show might not seem the most likely product of a brain tumour diagnosis. But that's exactly what Charly Clive channelled her energy into, with best friend Ellen Robertson, after getting the shocking news. Ahead of its broadcast on BBC Three, they tell us why they chose to laugh at Charly's trauma - and name her tumour Britney. Meanwhile, the word is out about the identity of the much-loved character who'll appear on BBC One's Christmas idents - those brief clips that remind you which channel you're watching. Find out who it is. | |
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| | | 1995 Bill Clinton becomes the first serving US president to visit Northern Ireland. |
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| Let us know what you think of this newsletter by emailing bbcnewsdaily@bbc.co.uk. If you’d like to recommend it to a friend, forward this email. New subscribers can sign up here. | |
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