Tougher curbs likely in the UK as Omicron toll is 12,133

Commuters, some wearing masks to curb the spread of Covid-19, sit in an underground tube during rush hour in central London on Monday. Pic/AP

The UK Cabinet is on Monday holding talks to consider options for tougher lockdown restrictions as the country recorded another daily high of Omicron cases at 12,133. The total number of confirmed Omicron cases in the UK stands at 37,101, taking the overall Covid-19 infections tally to 82,886 on Sunday. A further 45 Covid-related deaths have been reported in people who died within 28 days of a positive coronavirus test. "I just can't make hard, fast guarantees," said UK Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab when asked if tougher lockdown measures are expected.

"I think we will have a much better Christmas than last year because of the vaccination level - both the overall vaccination level and particularly the impact of the booster campaign. People will need to be careful and cautious," he said. According to UK media reports, civil servants have produced three options for ministers to consider as future Covid measures, and they range in severity from stricter guidance on households mixing to early closures of shops and restaurants to limit gatherings.

Ministers are yet to decide between the options, with reports that UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak is among those resisting strict lockdown measures at a time when businesses are already struggling to cope with cancellations and staff absences at what is usually a lucrative Christmas period. The government's scientific advisers, however, want more restrictions and have suggested reducing the size of groups that can meet and closing venues where there is a high risk of transmission.

Israel adds US, Canada to its travel ban list

Israel imposed a travel ban to 10 countries, including the US, Canada and Germany by adding them to its "no-fly" list, citing concerns over the spread of the new Omicron coronavirus variant that has infected 175 people in the country. Acting on health ministry recommendations, Israeli cabinet ministers voted on Monday to put the US, Italy, Belgium, Germany, Hungary, Morocco, Portugal, Canada, Switzerland and Turkey on the no-fly list.

‘No evidence Omicron has lower severity than Delta'

There is "no evidence" that Omicron has a lower severity than the Delta strain, according to a study in the UK which also found that the new variant of coronavirus largely evades immunity from past infection or two vaccine doses. The study by researchers from Imperial College London in the UK estimates that the risk of reinfection with the Omicron variant is 5.4 times greater than that of the Delta variant. This implies that the protection against reinfection by Omicron afforded by past infection may be as low as 19 per cent, the researchers said. "The study finds no evidence of Omicron having lower severity than Delta, judged by either the proportion of people testing positive who report symptoms, or by the proportion of cases seeking hospital care after infection," the study said.

‘Moderna booster works on Omicron'

Moderna said Monday that a booster dose of its vaccine should offer protection against the rapidly spreading omicron.

5,45,136
No. of new cases reported globally in the past 24 hours

271,963,258
Total no. of cases worldwide

5,331,019
Total no. of deaths worldwide

Source: WHO/Johns Hopkins

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