530,000 of the new doses to go to 20-to-39-year-olds living in the 12 hotspot LGAs as NSW struggles to contain outbreakFollow our Covid live blog for the latest updatesRestrictions: NSW; Vic; Qld; borders. Hotspots: NSW; Vic; QldIs lightning-fast Delta…
New Covid variants ‘will set us back a year’, experts warn UK government
Vaccine-beating variant is ‘realistic possibility’, say scientists, amid calls for contingency plans to be revealedCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageMinisters are being pressed to reveal what contingency plans are in place to …
‘We feel intimidated’: residents in south-west Sydney Covid hotspots say police are making things worse
One man says officers have knocked on his door every day since his family tested positive while NSW Health has called only onceFollow the Australia news live blogHotspots NSW; Restrictions NSWVaccine rollout tracker; get our free news app; get our morn…
‘No concept of how awful it was’: the forgotten world of pre-vaccine childhood in Australia
Until relatively recently, lethal infectious diseases stalked the lives of Australian children – including my father, Tom Keneally. Vaccines have saved millions It’s 1940, and a five-year-old boy lies in an oxygen tent. He struggles for breath and hall…
UK MPs urged to ban ‘virginity repair’ surgery as well as virginity testing
Exclusive: abusive practice should also be outlawed in health bill to protect women, say gynaecologistsThe government’s pledge to outlaw virginity testing will be undermined unless fake surgery touted as “virginity repair” is also banned, the Royal Col…
Three hours wait for an ambulance? Cumbrian town fights to keep its service
Pennines residents fear plans to axe paramedics will endanger livesLiving in one of the remotest communities in England, the residents of Alston Moor in Cumbria count themselves lucky to be surrounded by the breathtaking peaks of the Pennines.But livin…
Coronavirus live news: Iran orders travel ban; more than 75,000 children over 12 sign up for jabs in Ireland
Latest updates: Australia forced into snap statewide lockdown after enduring worst day of pandemic so far; price of NHS tests cut by a fifthNSW in lockdown as premier warns ‘this is literally a war’This is a public health issue’: can Covid-era music fe…
Iran to impose six-day lockdown to combat coronavirus ‘fifth wave’
All bazaars, markets and public offices to be shut, as well as movie theatres, gyms and restaurantsCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverage Iran says it will impose a six-day-long “general lockdown” in cities across the country afte…
UK universities open vaccination centres on campus to encourage student uptake
Institutions offer to train staff and students as volunteers in joint operation with NHS Universities are setting up their own vaccination centres in an attempt to make campuses as safe as possible for the autumn term. And with millions of students arr…
Get yourself checked: Don’t ignore signs of cancer, urges NHS chief
Warning that thousands of lives at risk because people don’t want to overburden the health servicePeople with symptoms of cancer are being urged to come forward amid concern that tens of thousands are “risking their lives” because they do not want to b…