South Korea daily cases top 7,000 for first time; ‘stealth’ version of Omicron ‘cannot be detected by routine tests’; Boris Johnson staff filmed joking about No 10 partyWHO Europe: jab young children to cut Covid risk at ChristmasModerna or Novavax aft…
Covid live news: UK, Germany and Italy detect Omicron cases; China outbreak warning
Mandatory mask-wearing in shops and transport reimposed in England; Anthony Fauci says new variant is probably already in the US; Australia scrambles to prevent outbreakJohnson ignored my plan to deal with new variants – ex-officialOmicron’s worst impa…
Tuesday briefing: PM faces confidence crisis
Car noises, Peppa Pig anecdote and confusion prompt questions … care rebellion adds to woes … and Diana Gabaldon on writing OutlanderMorning everyone. I’m Martin Farrer and these are the top stories today. Continue reading…
Evergrande faces fresh debt deadline as property market woes widen
Expectations are slim that the troubled Chinese developer will make $148m worth of payments due on Monday, as it wrestles with more than $300bn in liabilitiesFinancial markets were braced for more bad news about the shaky Chinese property market as str…
Monday briefing: NHS staff in the firing line
Tide of abuse due to frustration over long wait for care … call for short domestic flights to be scrapped … and Succession’s Alan RuckMorning everyone. I’m Martin Farrer and these are the top stories today. Continue reading…
Shares in China’s Evergrande plunge again as fears of contagion grow
Hong Kong stock fell up to 17% amid default fears that are beginning to have a knock-on effect on other marketsShares in the embattled Chinese property company Evergrande have plunged again as investors weigh up whether the group’s massive debt problem…
Thursday briefing: Kabul airport terror warning
UK warns citizens of ‘high threat of terrorist attack’ … push for twice-weekly Covid tests for students ‘naive’ … and life’s stunning second actsMorning everyone. I’m Martin Farrer and these are the top stories this morning. Continue reading……
Neeraj Chopra’s javelin gold medal seals India’s greatest ever Olympics
Army officer wins nation’s first athletics gold to spark celebrations and a resurgence of pride amid the ravages of CovidArmy officer Neeraj Chopra has achieved Indian sporting immortality after winning the country’s first ever athletics gold medal wit…
Sport climbing’s Olympics debut sends viewers scrambling for more
Social media lit up and Google searches soared when the men’s qualifying rounds unveiled the explosive attraction of combined sport climbingFor most people watching the debut of sport climbing at the Tokyo Olympics, their knowledge of the sport was pro…
Coronavirus live news: vaccinated ‘three times less likely to test positive’; 220,000 children in England jabbed
Study suggests fully vaccinated less likely to pass virus on to others; more 16- and 17-year-olds in UK could be given green light for vaccineChina shuts down transport routes as it battles worst outbreak in monthsStatus of some UK citizens vaccinated …