fergus, many thanks again. fergus walsh, our - thanks again. fergus walsh, our medical editor.at the latest data. the government's latest coronavirus figures for the uk show there were more than 33,117 new infections recorded in the latest 24—hour period, which means, on average, there were 34,1118 new cases reported per day in the last week. 262 deaths were recorded — that's of people who died within 28 days of a positive covid—19 test. on average in the past week, 166 related deaths were recorded every day. and more than 10.5 million people have received their booster jab. labour has called for an official investigation into the conduct of the conservative mp and former minister sir geoffrey cox, who earned almost £900,000 from work he did outside parliament. sir geoffrey's fees were earned as a lawyer, including a spell working in the caribbean. responding to calls for action, downing street said mps should be �*visible in their constituencies, or they're not doing theirjob�*, as our political correspondent ben wright reports. for some mps, onejob is not enough. this devon c

fergus: from sunday, only u.k.ish residents will be allowed in from six southern african countries, and they will have to pay to quarantine in a hotel. the travel restrictions mean this woman will miss her knees's wedding in south africa -- n iece's wedding in south africa. >> we were all going to be together, which is really important, and literally we won't come overnight, and now we won't. fergus: health secretary said the new variant may pose a substantial risk to public health, so the restrictions were necessary. >> i want to reassure this house that there are no detected cases of this variant in the u.k. at this time, but this new variant is of huge international concern. fergus: several coronavirus mutations have already made the covid pandemic worse. the alpha variant, identified in kent, drove a huge wave of hospital admissions and deaths here last winter. the delta variant, first detected in india, was even more transmissible and is currently the dominant strain worldwide. on paper, the mu variant looked

fergus, thank you. fergus walsh there. the channel on wednesday has been named, as 24—year—old maryam nuri mohammed amin, who came from kurdistan. her image was released as the diplomatic war of words between britain and france over the illegal crossings intensified. president macron accused borisjohnson of not being serious, after the prime minister sent him a letter — which he also put on twitter — calling on france to take back anyone making the crossing. france also withdrew an invitation to the home secretary to a meeting this weekend to discuss the crisis. lucy williamson reports from calais. the road between paris and london is getting colder. the political distance a little wider each day. here in the migrant camps, caught between the two governments, they know what it takes to bridge the channel and what the risks are if you fail. two days ago a boat capsized, killing 27 people. tonight the first victim was named as 24—year—old maryam nuri mohammed amin from iraqi kurdistan. herfiance said he was messaging her as

fergus walsh, bbc news.st been hearing, the first confirmed cases of the new variant were found in south africa and botswana. the suspension of travel by the uk and some european countries will affect travellers from there, as well as from namibia, zimbabwe, lesotho, and eswatini, which was swaziland. the south african government and scientific community have criticised the move, saying it will cause more damage than good. from there, our africa correspondent, andrew harding reports. a technical university in pretoria, south africa, this afternoon. this is where the new variant was first properly identified, spreading fast among students.— properly identified, spreading fast among students. obviously, this is so overwhelming, _ among students. obviously, this is so overwhelming, we _ among students. obviously, this is so overwhelming, we are - among students. obviously, this is so overwhelming, we are all - among students. obviously, this is i so overwhelming, we are all worried, but the management took a de

fergus walsh, bbc news.countries putting restrictions on travel to try and stop the spread. australia has delayed its plans to reopen the borders to some foreign nationals. morroco has stopped all incoming flights banning entry of its own citizens for the time being. both israel and japan have banned foreigners from entering. but given the inevitable spread of the variant are travel bans the best way to go? let's bring in dr naomi forrester—soto, a virologist at keele university. what it does show is that it is not just a moral failure what it does show is that it is not just a moralfailure not what it does show is that it is not just a moral failure not to share the vaccination more widely with developing countries, it is a practicalfailure developing countries, it is a practical failure because within the space of three weeks, a new variant will be everywhere.— will be everywhere. yes, i mean, i think there — will be everywhere. yes, i mean, i think there are _ will be everywhere. yes, i mean, i think ther

fergus _ dependent is that on boosterjabs? thanks, fergus.lan b, which is, as you know, several steps short of a lockdown, but nonetheless would require more restrictions. we don't see anything in the data that says we have to go now to plan b. but, clearly, we cannot rule anything out, and the most important thing people can do to prevent further mpis to be taken, non—pharmaceutical interventions, thatis, non—pharmaceutical interventions, that is, further restrictions, get the boosters. it is going well. the numbers are climbing. 12.6 million is a huge number to have hit. gps are hitting it out of the park again, they are doing an amazing job, they are getting loads ofjabs into loads of arms. we are now at 75% for the over 70s, more for the over 75 to 79 groups and for the over 75 to 79 groups and for the over 80s, over 75 to 79 groups and for the over80s, it over 75 to 79 groups and for the over 80s, it is starting to build a lot of momentum, but we need to see those 50 plus groups and the 60 plus groups who can also wind up in hospital ver

our medical editor fergus walsh is here.ave any idea what we are dealing with at the moment? this is a raidl dealing with at the moment? this is a rapidly evolving — dealing with at the moment? this is a rapidly evolving situation. - dealing with at the moment? this is a rapidly evolving situation. this - a rapidly evolving situation. this variant was only identified a couple of days ago, but i have to say tonight this is genuinely a cause for concern but not for alarm. coronaviruses mutate all the time but this has something like 50 mutations, more than we have seen in any other variant so far, far more than in the delta variant which is the dominant global strain now. one scientist said to me this was the worst variant they had seen so far and a dramatic change from everything we have seen since the wuhan strain first emerged last year. on paper it is worrying but there is no evidence yet that it causes more severe disease. there is no evidence that current vaccines are ineffective, and other scary variants have popped up

fergus wal5h, bbc news.de a of our series, life at 50 degrees, we see how lives have been dramatically altered in mexico and australia by global warming. surface temperatures at the moment, somewhere between 87 and 95 degrees. so many people don't think that climate change is real. itju5t was extremely hot and everyone was starting to get worried, day by day, until it happened. temperatures will climb well into the a05, making conditions even worse on ourfire grounds. the footage that i took of the fire was shot on the gopro that i had actually got for christmas five days before the event. it was on a very hot day to begin with, so that made the fire, i think, a lot more aggressive. in the afternoon, i got the first glimpse of the fire coming over one of the mountains in front of us. it's so much smokier over there. it then started behind our house and i was just standing up there, thinking, "bleep this is happening. "i need to get off the roof now and start fighting." whoa, kangaroo! ok, it's coming this wa

our medical editor fergus walsh is here.s at the end raising important questions about whether or not the vaccines are going to be able to deal with omicron and so on. more cases found in scotland, likely to be more across the uk. how concerned should we'll be about this? i concerned should we'll be about this? ., concerned should we'll be about this? . ., ., ~' concerned should we'll be about this? . ., ., ~ ., this? i am going to sound like a scratched _ this? i am going to sound like a scratched record _ this? i am going to sound like a scratched record for _ this? i am going to sound like a scratched record for the - this? i am going to sound like a scratched record for the next i this? i am going to sound like a - scratched record for the next couple of weeks i'm afraid, clive. we don't know and all the action that is being taken, both in the uk and globally at the moment, is precautionary because the south african authorities moved so fast and this so quickly. on paper, this variant looks like the worst we have seen, i

our medical editor, fergus walsh, has more. can fergus walsh, has more. you roll up your sleeve? your sleeve? no “ab, no “ob. can you roll up your sleeve? no “ab, no job. that — can you roll up your sleeve? no “ab, no job. that appears i can you roll up your sleeve? no “ab, no job. that appears to i can you roll up your sleeve? no “ab, no job. that appears to be i can you roll up your sleeve? no “ab, no job. that appears to be the h can you roll up your sleeve? no jab, no job. that appears to be the stark| no job. that appears to be the stark reality facing nhs workers in england. those with face—to—face contact with patients have until the 1st of april to have two doses of vaccine. the health secretary said the move would protect both patients and staff from infection. h0 the move would protect both patients and staff from infection.— and staff from infection. no one in the nhs or— and staff from infection. no one in the nhs or care _ and staff from infection. no one in the nhs or care that _ and staff from infection. no one in the nhs or care that is currently i the nhs or care

fergus walsh, bbc news.thorities in the netherlands say that initial test results appear to show that dozens of people who arrived on two flights from south africa to amsterdam on friday are likely to be infected with covid—19. the passengers have been kept isolated from other travellers at schiphol airport because of concerns about the new variant. meanwhile, peaceful protests are continuing in the netherlands, after the dutch prime minister, mark rutte, announced that bars, restaurants and most shops in the country must close from 5pm to 5am from sunday. he said the tougher restrictions were needed to prevent hospitals becoming overwhelmed. david soberman is the canadian national chair of strategic marketing at the university of toronto. he says it's too early to know how bad the variant�*s economic impact will be. well, we will try and get mrs overman up a little later. —— mr doberman. let's get some of the day's other news. three people have been killed in anti—government protests in the solomon islands.

fergus walsh, bbc news.who's an emergency physician in health policy and public health at brigham and women's hospital. i asked him to explain what we know and don't know with regards to this latest variant. i think what we know right now is five or six days after this was first described is a lot of information about the genetic changes that are in this variant called on the koran. but we do not yet know what those genetic changes mean. you could have hundreds of thousands of mutations that could add up to nothing in terms of a change in virus behaviour or you could have two mutations that are devastating to us and we really don't know and we really don't have the technology to make their sleep so i think it is important to stand up and be alert i do think that we are ahead of this and that is a good thing as long as we stay nimble. it is great to stand up but we really want to see that if this ends up want to see that if this ends up being a little bit of an overreaction and while i hope so i don't think w

our medical editor fergus walsh reports. been the goal of scientists since the pandemic began. now there is molnupiravir, and it's likely to be the first of many antiviral treatments. anne—marie tested positive for coronavirus on tuesday and has just started a five—day course of molnupiravir as part of a trial in liverpool. she's had cancer, and so is more vulnerable to covid. it's absolutely a life—and—death situation. i do have a family that i need to think about, and i need to be here for them. and if this gives me the opportunity to be around for my son's wedding and everything else, then so be it. when coronavirus infects cells, it makes multiple copies of itself. molnupiravir, originally designed to treat flu, introduces errors in the virus�*s genetic code, which hampers its ability to spread. it's over a year since the clinical research facility at royal liverpool university hospital began testing molnupiravir on patients. global trials have shown it halves the chances of dying or being hospitalised with covid. to hav

our medical editor fergus walsh has more. beta, gamma, delta comes omicron, which scientists think could be the worst variant yet. so, is omicron more transmissible? it appears to be driving a rise in infections in south africa, but it's too early to be certain what's happening as cases only started increasing ten days ago from a very low level. the world health organization said omicron shows why the world needs a new global agreement on how to prevent, prepare and respond to pandemics. we should all be wide awake to the threat of this virus. but omicron�*s very emergence is another reminder that, although many of us might think we are done with covid—i9, it's not done with us. another key unknown is whether omicron causes more severe illness. doctors in south africa say they've been dealing with mild infections from the variant, but cases there are mostly in young adults. the real test will be when omicron starts moving into older and more vulnerable people. perhaps most crucial of all, will vaccines still work? current cov

as fergus walsh reports.pening up, a new coronavirus variant means travel restrictions are back. at heathrow, the last flights from south africa arrived this morning. i feel extremely relieved, because, yeah, who knows how long this is going to last? we've been told we have to isolate at home, so that shouldn't be too bad. from sunday, only uk and irish residents will be allowed in from six southern african countries, and they'll have to pay to quarantine in a hotel. the travel restrictions mean catherine will miss her niece�*s wedding in south africa. it's devastating. they've held back this wedding for two years for us, so we were all going to be together, which is really important. and literally, we were off on the ninth, and now we are not. the health secretary said the new variant may pose a substantial risk to public health, so the restrictions were necessary. i want to reassure this house that there are no detected cases of this variant in the uk at this time, but this new variant is of huge internatio

our medical editor fergus walsh reports.t a0 days till christmas, and this year's must—have item is not available in the shops. it's the covid boosterjab that is seen as crucial to saving the festive season. you are here for booster? yeah. now it's being extended to the over 40s. not everyone will get a badge from the prime minister, visiting a medical centre in east london. later in downing street, he warned of storm clouds gathering across europe amid a surge in infections. we don't yet know the extent to which this new wave will wash up on our shores, but history shows that we cannot afford to be complacent. can you categorically rule out a christmas lockdown, and how dependent is that on boosterjabs? we don't see anything in the data that says we have to go now to plan b. but, clearly, we cannot rule anything out. what it means to be fully vaccinated may be changing from two to three doses as it becomes clear that immunity does wane over time. among the over 50s who had the astrazeneca vaccine, protection against symptom

fergus walsh, bbc news.aring, the first confirmed cases of the new variant were found in south africa and botswana. the suspension of travel by the eu countries, as well as the us and the uk will affect travellers from there, as well as from namibia, zimbabwe, lesotho and eswatini — formerly swaziland. the south african government and scientific community have criticised the move, saying it will cause more damage than good. from there, our africa correspondent andrew harding reports. a technical university in pretoria, south africa, this afternoon. this is where the new variant was first properly identified, spreading fast among students. obviously, this is so overwhelming, we are all worried, but the management took a decision to suspend all social gatherings and social activities. the impact here has been swift, with many countries now following britain's lead in banning flights from south africa. so, this morning's arrivals from johannesburg and cape town could be the last for some time. it is absolutely

fergus walsh, bbc news. let's take a look at some other stories in the headlines.described the current surge of coronavirus cases in europe as a warning shot for the entire world. europe saw almost 1.8 million new cases last week alone. the who blames insufficient vaccine uptake and a relaxation of restrictions and called for vaccine manufacturers to prioritise poorer countries which have received few vaccine doses so far through the covax scheme. no more vaccines should go to countries that have already vaccinated more than 40% of the population, and if covax has the vaccines it needs to help other countries get there too. no more boosters should be administered except to immunocompromised people. scientists have identified a gene that doubles the risk of respiratory failure from coronavirus. it is especially common among people of south asian ancestry. about 60% of them carry the gene. the researchers say this partly explains the pandemic�*s impact on the subcontinent, and in communities of south asian origin in europe. sweden's governing social democratic party

fergus walsh, bbc news.ore than a0 countries promised to phase out the fossil fuel in the coming decades. poland, vietnam and chile are among the fast—growing economies that now say they'll reduce their coal use. but as our science correspondent rebecca morelle reports, other big users of coal, such china and america, haven't signed up to the deal. a dinosaur on the loose at the united nations, but with a message for humanity. listen up, people, i know a thing or two about extinction. going extinct is a bad thing... if we want to save our planet and ourselves, we'll need to stop climate change, but to do that fossil fuels will have to become a thing of the past. today at the climate conference, the talk is all about energy and top of the list is phasing out coal. this fossil fuel is the biggest single contributor to climate change and more than a0 countries have now committed to move away from it. i do believe that the end of coal is in sight. i do believe we are getting to a point where we consign coal powe

our medical editor fergus walsh reports.ce the pandemic began. now there is molnupiravir, and it's likely to be the first of many antiviral treatments. anne—marie tested positive for coronavirus on tuesday and has just started a five—day course of molnupiravir as part of a trial in liverpool. she's had cancer, and so is more vulnerable to covid. it is absolutely a life—and—death situation. i do have a family that i need to think about, and i need to be here for them. and if this gives me the opportunity to be around for my son's wedding and everything else, then so be it. when coronavirus infects cells, it makes multiple copies of itself. molnupiravir, originally designed to treat flu, introduces errors in the virus's genetic code, which hampers its ability to spread. it's over a year since the clinical research facility at royal liverpool university hospital began testing molnupiravir on patients. global trials have shown it halves the chances of dying or being hospitalised with covid. to have a drug like this, to have an a

we're only a few days on from first hearing about this new variant, fergus. what do we know now?ys- _ what do we know now? it is really early days- it _ what do we know now? it is really early days. it was _ what do we know now? it is really early days. it was only _ what do we know now? it is really early days. it was only identified l early days. it was only identified a week ago, only named on friday night. we are seeing science playing out in real time here. it is spreading fast in south africa. and on paper, omicron looks like the worst variant so far. but it is all theoretical. all of the measure so far are purely precautionary. there are some scraps of encouragement. doctors in south africa who first identified the cases say it is causing a mild illness there, but the cases are predominantly in younger people. we will have to wait and see what happens when it spreads to older populations. obviously we will get more cases here, but it will get more cases here, but it will be easy to distinguish from the tens of thousands of daily delta cases, because, on a pcr test, omicron

fergus walsh, bbc news. drjeremy faust who's an emergency physician in health policy and public health at brigham and women's hospital in massachusetts, and teaches at harvard medical school thank you for being with us. there were some information there butjust run us through what we do know about this and importantly, what we don't yet know about it.— know about it. thank you for havin: know about it. thank you for having me- _ know about it. thank you for having me- i— know about it. thank you for having me. i think— know about it. thank you for having me. i think what - know about it. thank you for having me. i think what we i know about it. thank you for - having me. i think what we know right now, five or six days after this was first described is a lot of information about the genetic changes that are in this variant. but we do not yet know what those genetic changes mean. you can of hundreds of thousands of mutations that could add up to nothing in terms of a changing of virus behaviour or you can hav

fergus walsh, bbc news. coronavirus figures across the uk. 42,583 new infections were recorded in the latest 24—hour period. on average, there were just over 43,000 new cases reported per day in the last week. the latest figures show there were 7,530 people in hospital being treated for coronavirus on friday. 35 deaths were recorded — that's of people who died within 28 days of a positive covid—19 test. on average in the past week, 120 covid—related deaths were recorded every day. 0n vaccinations, nearly 17.9 million people have now had a boosterjab. well, since the discovery of the new 0micron variant various new regulations have been introduced in different parts of the uk. 0ur health correspondent sophie hutchinson has been looking in more detail at the changes. what are the changes to the rules on face coverings? well, from tomorrow wearing a mask in england becomes a legal requirement again. they'll be compulsory in shops and on public transport, and in addition to that from today all secondary school p

fergus walsh, bbc news.edical director at the national foundation for infectious diseases — he's based in nashville. it's wonderful to have you on the programme, doctor. just listening to my colleague's report there, so little is still known about this variant. there still haven't been thankfully any known to cases of severe illness yet. as i giving you cause for cautious optimism? weill. cause for cautious optimism? well, aenerall , cause for cautious optimism? well, generally, unconsciously _ cause for cautious optimism? -ii generally, unconsciously optimistic, and those repents reinforce my cautious optimism —— i'm cautiously optimistic. this is a virus that knows how to spread. it's rather contagious, but at the moment, the severity of disease that's being reported at the moment is less than i would have feared. so, reported at the moment is less than iwould have feared. so, given reported at the moment is less than i would have feared. so, given that, we're hopeful that this virus has less of an impact

fergus walsh, bbc news. they'll march on the country's capital, addis abbaba, to prevent what they call a genocide being carried out by federal forces against the northern tigrayan people. it comes on the one year anniversary of the start of the war there. the tigray people's liberation front or tplf have taken two towns in recent days, prompting the country's prime minister to warn the capital's residents to take up arms. samuel getachew is a journalist in addis ababa and gave us this update. there has been lines of people heading to local government officers to register their weapons. they think that the government has told them that they need to protect themselves if the tplf comes to addis ababa and attacks them, abuses them, they haven't come yet, but from what we have heard, the government is ready to defend the capital. addis ababa is notjust the capital of ethiopian, it is also the diplomatic capital of the continent. it hosts the most diplomatic embassies in the continent. so it is an important city

fergus walsh, bbc news.authorities in the netherlands say based on initial test results, there were likely dozens of people infected with covid—19 among some 600 passengers that arrived at amsterdam's schiphol airport on friday on two flights from south africa. the passengers have been kept isolated from other travelers at the airport after their arrival because of concerns about the new variant. meanwhile, peaceful protests continue in the country after the dutch government announced new round of restrictions. the french president emmanuel macron has accused the uk of not being serious about dealing with the migrant crisis. european ministers will meet on sunday to discuss the situation after 27 people drowned on wednesday trying to reach the uk, but mr macron confirmed that uk home secretary priti patel�*s invitation has been withdrawn. lucy williamson reports from calais. the road between paris and london is getting colder, the political distance a little wider each day. here in the migrant camps, caught

fergus walsh, bbc news.y the current rules — allowing 16 and 17 year olds to marry with permission from their parents — puts them at risk of being forced into marriage. rajdeep sandhu has more. and i knew that one day, i would escape. one day, i would come out of it. at 16, farhana says she was taken out of the uk and forced to marry. i was ushered into a room and asked to say a couple of words, after, repeating after some male older relatives who i hadn't met — which i duly did, not thinking anything of it, and then realised that i'd just agreed to marital vows. the intention was to essentially play along, allow myself to be married, knowing that i had a return ticket booked back to the uk. and it was very much a grin and bear it and then do what you need to do when you get home. mps agreed to raise the minimum age of marriage from 16 to 18 in england and wales, and make it illegalfor anyone under 18 to get married in either a civil or religious marriage. the bill will safeguard young people i by establishi

our medical editior fergus walsh is here. what is driving this? to lose staff.— afford to lose staff. absolutely, but i think— afford to lose staff. absolutely, but | think the _ afford to lose staff. absolutely, but i think the government - but i think the government would have seen the success of what happened in france and italy and france, for example, compulsory vaccination, that policy was introduced and announced injuly and there were 60% of health care workers back then immunised. it's now according to the french health minister, above 99%. and they've just had 2,000 resignations as a result of this compulsory policy. so i think they will be hoping that people who work in the nhs will feel that they can be persuaded and encouraged. they've had nearly a year to take this up. but there will be the concern and there is the concern among health unions and employers, that this stick of basically saying, no jab, no job, basically saying, no jab, nojob, may be the final straw basically saying, no jab, no job, may be the final straw for basically

fergus walsh, bbc news.ions recorded in the latest 2a—hour period, which means on average, there were 38,5a3 new cases reported per day in the last week. currently there are nearly 8,700 people in hospital with covid. a7 deaths were recorded, that's of people who died within 28 days of a positive covid—i9 test. on average in the past week, 156 related deaths were recorded every day. austria has introduced a partial lockdown for the two million people there who haven't had two doses of a coronavirus vaccine. they've been told to stay at home except for work and essential shopping, initially for the next ten days. the country has one of the highest infection rates in europe, but one of the continent's lowest vaccination rates. bethany bell reports from vienna. karina doesn't want to get vaccinated against covid—i9, so she's under lockdown like 2 million other austrians. as of today, she is only allowed to leave her home for essential reasons like work or shopping for food. we met her in a vienna park, where sh

fergus walsh, bbc news.in the latest 24—hour period, which means on average, there were 38,543 new cases reported per day in the last week. currently there are nearly 8,700 people in hospital with covid. 47 deaths were recorded, that“s of people who died within 28 days of a positive covid—i9 test. on average in the past week, 155 related deaths were recorded every day. the former england cricket captain michael vaughan has again denied making racist comments to a group of yorkshire team—mates of asian heritage, after current england player adil rashid said today that he could corroborate the account given by azeem rafiq of an exchange in 2009. rafiq is appearing before mps tomorrow to talk about his experience at yorkshire which have had an impact across english cricket. our sports editor, dan roan, is outside lord“s cricket ground now. the racism crisis, which has cast a lengthening shadow over the english game, seems to intensify by the day. earlier this month, the former ashes winning england captain and

can _ fergus walsh at the bbc. thank you very much indeed. can i— fergus walsh at the bbc.deed, it may be adults who _ other one? thanks very much. indeed, it may be adults who are _ other one? thanks very much. indeed, it may be adults who are under- other one? thanks very much. indeed, it may be adults who are under 40 - it may be adults who are under a0 years— it may be adults who are under a0 years might — it may be adults who are under a0 years might require _ it may be adults who are under a0 years might require at— it may be adults who are under a0 years might require at least- it may be adults who are under a0 years might require at least a - it may be adults who are under a0| years might require at least a dose or a third _ years might require at least a dose or a third dose _ years might require at least a dose or a third dose at _ years might require at least a dose or a third dose at some _ years might require at least a dose or a third dose at some point. - years might require at least a dose or a third dose at some point. wel or a third dose at some point. we

our medical editor fergus walsh reports.couple of years. good, good. right in my chest. chris has a masters in sports management and is a coach. remember to push off your index finger. he also has spinal muscular atrophy, which causes progressive muscle weakness. in the last two years, he's lost the ability to walk. he should be eligible for a new treatment, risdiplam, shown to improve movement and stability. it'd be huge, just to have the certainty that it's not going to get any worse. i may not get back my ability to walk, that's fine. i'm still happy in the skin that i live in, i'm still happy with my lot in life. risdiplam is the first oral medicine for sma, but each bottle has a list price of £8,000 and may last patients just a couple of weeks — although the nhs has negotiated a confidential discount. having it as a syrup, that really makes a difference, doesn't it? oh, yes. doctors say the drug works by boosting the levels of a protein crucial for keeping nerve cells healthy. it really alters the outlook for these peop

our medical editor fergus walsh reports.s — it's been the goal of scientists since the pandemic began. now there is molnupiravir, and it's likely to be the first of many antiviral treatments. anne—marie tested positive for coronavirus on tuesday and has just started a five—day course of molnupiravir as part of a trial in liverpool. she's had cancer, and so is more vulnerable to covid. it is absolutely a life—and—death situation. i do have a family that i need to think about, and i need to be here for them. and if this gives me the opportunity to be around for my son's wedding and everything else, then so be it. when coronavirus infects cells, it makes multiple copies of itself. molnupiravir, originally designed to treat flu, introduces errors in the virus�*s genetic code, which hampers its ability to spread. it's over a year since the clinical research facility at royal liverpool university hospital began testing molnupiravir on patients. global trials have shown it halves the chances of dying or being hospitalised with covi

fergus walsh, bbc news. the latest 24—hour period. on average, there were just over 43,000 new cases reported per day in the last week. the latest figures show there were 7,530 people in hospital being treated for coronavirus on friday. 35 deaths were recorded — that's of people who died within 28 days of a positive covid—i9 test. on average in the past week, 120 covid—related deaths were recorded every day. on vaccinations, nearly 17.9 million people have now had a boosterjab. since the discovery of the new variant, the government has introduced new regulations. our health correspondent sophie hutchinson has been looking at what those new rules are and how they affect you. what are the changes to the rules on face coverings? well, from tomorrow wearing a mask in england becomes a legal requirement again. they'll be compulsory in shops and on public transport, and in addition to that from today all secondary school pupils were strongly advised to wear masks in communal areas, along with staff and visitors to

fergus walsh, bbc news.t's latest coronavirus figures for the uk show there were just over 50,000 new infections recorded, in the latest 24—hour period. on average, over a4,000 cases were reported per day in the last week. 7,633 people were in hospital with covid as of yesterday. there were 160 deaths, that's of people who died within 28 days of a positive test, which means the average number of deaths over the past seven days was 125. the total number at 144,593. on vaccinations, 88.5% of people aged 12 and over have now received a first dose and 80.4% have been and more than 16.7 million people have received their booster jab. south africa's tourism minister, lindiwe sisulu, has been giving her view on the way the global community has reacted to the emergence of the omicron variant. it isa it is a tough day and a very disappointing day for us because we've been here today and we thought we'd worked our way out of the red list but unfortunately we find ourselves back in again. do you understand _ ourselves

fergus walsh, bbc news.rt secretary grant shapps explained why the government implimented the new travel restrictions so quickly bearin bear in mind, variants are reported every single day, that's not unusual but what is interesting about this one, the chief medical officers met yesterday and agreed it is the most significant variant they have encountered and have a lot of concern about the potential for it to escape the vaccine. that's the thing they were concerned about, they came straight to us yesterday, an emergency meeting was held, and we took action immediately to stop those direct flights and british people coming back, people with citizen or residential rights here. we can cross to our africa correspondent, andrew harding injohannesburg. andrew, what more do we know about this new variant? scientists are pretty worried about it? ,. , , ., ., scientists are pretty worried about it? ,. , , a, ., , it? the scientists are worried. they are particularly _ it? the scientists are worried. they are particu

our medical editor fergus walsh has the latest. know there's a significant number of mutations, perhaps double the number of mutations that we have seen in the delta variant. and that would suggest that it may well be more transmissible and the current vaccines that we have may well be less effective.> so much to get into here, let's talk to colin furness, epidemiologist at the university of toronto. how worried should we be? it how worried should we be? it is too early to _ how worried should we be? it is too early to say. _ how worried should we be? it 3 too early to say. immunisation rates in south africa are quite low. about a0%. so variant could do very well and they're not necessarily do well elsewhere. it is too early to say. the number of mutations is worrisome in terms of vaccine invasion but we just don't know. is it going to be more violent? i think it will be prudent but wejust violent? i think it will be prudent but we just don't know. do we know if it is more transmissible?- do we know if it is more transmissible? .,

here's our medical editor fergus walsh.amma, delta comes omicron, which scientists think could be the worst variant yet. so, is omicron more transmissible? it appears to be driving a rise in infections in south africa, but it's too early to be certain what's happening, as cases only started increasing ten days ago from a very low level. the world health organization said omicron shows why the world needs a new global agreement on how to prevent, prepare and respond to pandemics. we should all be wide awake for the threat of this virus. but omicron's very emergence is another reminder that although many of us might think we're done with covid—19, it's not done with us. another key unknown is whether omicron causes more severe illness. doctors in south africa say they have been dealing with mild infections from the variant, but cases there are mostly in young adults. the real test will be when omicron starts moving into older, more vulnerable people. perhaps most crucial of all, will vaccines still work? current covid vaccine

we sent tweeting to request fergus current. this never is on the august just then we had the she already bought. mainly we were asking whether the ship is dirty shot, not any dish doug is whether we should do the dirty shirt. she wanted irregular migration has become a sensitive issue between greece and turkey. under a 2016 agreement turkish authorities are supposed to prevent refugees from entering the european union. but in march of last year, turkey actively encouraged refugees to storm greek borders. ever since then, aid groups alleged greek authorities have often tried to prevent potential asylum seekers from enter in greek territory. such pushed berks are illegal under the geneva convention on the status of refugees. the passengers of the buddha to $7.00 to $9.00 were caught in the intensifying politics of board of management, jobs, federal polos, al jazeera cos. now in the past few minutes have been signed that dispute between britain and france might be thawing. the french u affairs minister says he's invited as british

dÓlares por informaciÓn que lleve a la detenciÓn del o los responsables de provocar la muerte ellas fergusel dÍa de acciÓn de gracias, una de las fechas mÁs esperadas en el calendario, aunque para este aÑo el panorama podrÍa ser diferente precisamente debido al aumento en los precios de la comida por eso nuestra colega carla farÍas, contacto a dos organizaciones que estÁn ofreciendo pavos y alimentos gratis para la noche de pensÉ y bien acciÓn de gracias karla. cuÉntanos cÓmo podrÁ adquirir estos alimentos nuestros miembros de la comunidad. >>buenas noches. ramÓn y es que ante la notable aumento de precios que estamos experimentando contactamos algunas organizaciones para conocer cuÁndo y dÓnde estarÁn entregando los alimentos para la noche la acciÓn de gracias, ya que se podemos ahorrar un dinerito no nada mal, ademÁs que muchas familias ante la situaciÓn econÓmica se la estÁn pensando en ziaran. no cena de acciÓn de gracias. >>se acerca el dÍa de acciÓn de gracias, pero para muchos no serÁ igual en los aÑos anteriores, y es que hacer una cena familiar podrÍa representar un gran gasto ins

amanda pritchett talked complete and utter nonsense about cove. fergus, either she deliberately lied or she has no idea what's going on in hospitals. it is reprehensible that someone in such a powerful position should get it so wrong. they lie to suit the fact that she was warning people that there was a building problem for the n h. s. was lost in this debate and excitements about the numbers which were frankly, just a mistake. there are certain people who will exploit what are mistakes for their own ends to generate bad publicity for treatment. for caving for vaccines making mistakes means that false numbers get out into the public domain and they will be, or can be seized upon by people with alteri motives, to generate bad publicity creat doubting people's mind when really all it is is just a mistake of harrowing revelations of torture in the guantanamo bay detention facility . we've heard from internationally recognized lawyer nancy holland. she described the importance of a recent trial than which saw a former ca detainee give the 1st public testimony of abuse at the hands of am

our medical editor, fergus walsh, is with me now.t is well before flu and other winter viruses kick in. he warned of a potentially problematic christmas ahead. we are seeing about 1,000 covid admissions a day in uk hospitals, that is a quarter of the level we saw injanuary but it is still significant and although deaths are comparatively low, they are creeping up. but there is a lot of unpredictability about the next four week, let alone the next four month, that is because there are so many variable, how will human behaviour change, will people be cautious, en masse, he said they are beneficial in some indoor settings, he would like to see people wearing them in cinemas and walking round restaurants and pubs but his central message was on vaccination, he urged people to have their booster dose or indeed their flu vaccine when called. we are just past the milestone of 50 million people in the uk over the age of 12 having had at least one covid vaccine but there are still round five million adults completely unvaccinated. thank you ve