- Rage across Europe as Covid restrictions trigger riots
- Booster vaccines could be rolled out to all adults, says Sajid Javid
- Alan Cochrane: Scotland must look to England to escape Covid ghost
- Covid passports failed to persuade Scots to get vaccinated: Sturgeon’s adviser
- Comment: It’s a danger to the world that the precise origins of Covid remain a mystery
Germany’s acting health minister Jens Spahn has issued his strongest warning yet to the country’s vaccine holdouts as Europe’s largest economy desperately tries to avoid another lockdown.
“By the end of this winter, as is sometimes cynically said, pretty much everyone in Germany will be vaccinated, cured or dead,” Mr Spahn said, blaming “the very contagious Delta variant”.
“That is why we so urgently recommend vaccination,” he added.
Speaking at a news conference this morning amidst an increasingly devastating wave of infections, Mr Spahn said that only “social distancing and political resolve” can break the fourth wave.Germany is facing the reintroduction of coronavirus restrictions as cases begin to rise steeply. Germany’s vaccination uptake remains relatively low, with just 68 per cent of the population fully inoculated. Belgium’s Prime Minister Alexander de Croo has denounced an “absolutely unacceptable” outbreak of violence during a 35,000-strong Brussels street protest against tougher anti-Covid measures. Three police officers were hurt on Sunday when opponents of tougher vaccine pass rules, imposed to head off a new wave of coronavirus infections, threw stones and set fires in the city centre.
European Commission appeals for calm
The European Commission has appealed for calm after the protests against coronavirus restrictions across Europe, reports our Europe editor James Crisp. ‘We understand that on a personal level people can be tired of restrictions, but it’s important from a community level to stick together and to follow them because that’s the way out of the pandemic,’ a spokesperson said. The continent has been rocked by a weekend of violent protests, particularly in Belgium and the Netherlands.
Austria enters full lockdown…Czechs, Slovaks target unvaccinated people in step behind Austria
The Czech Republic and Slovakia banned unvaccinated people from pubs and services from Monday after a surge in Covid-19 cases filled hospitals’ intensive care wards, with most of the seriously patients not inoculated. The central European neighbours both adopted the new measures last week, a step behind Austria which first set restrictions on unvaccinated people but went for a full lockdown on Monday as the region experienced the world’s latest hotspot. The Czech government has dispatched soldiers to help at strained hospitals – which together had over 700 people in intensive care units. Later on Monday the government was due to discuss calling a state of emergency to give it extra powers to order medical students to help. The new Czech measures will only allow people who have been vaccinated or who have recovered from Covid-19 in the past six months to visit restaurants, hotels, services or public events like sports games.
Doctors’ representatives said the action was too little, too late. “As the Medical Chamber we are calling for the immediate introduction of measures that have come to be known as lockdown,” the chamber’s chief Milan Kubek said on Czech Television.
“We are calling for the quick introduction of compulsory vaccination of healthcare workers, workers in social services and we recommend it for education as well.” In large parts of Slovakia, the government ordered restaurants to close to all inhouse meals and serve-take out meals only, as well as restricting access to services for the unvaccinated. Slovakia has the EU’s third-lowest rate of people receiving one dose at 46.8 per cent, according to European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), while 60 per cent of the Czech population has at least one dose of the vaccine.
Protests erupt across Europe against new lockdown rules and mandatory vaccines
It was a violent weekend across some parts of Europe, as the reintroduction of coronavirus restrictions sparked backlash. Protests were particularly strong in Belgium and the Netherlands, with fires lit and protesters smashing police vehicles.
EU European Affairs ministers to discuss new travel restrictions
EU European Affairs ministers will discuss climbing Covid infection rates across Europe at a meeting in Brussels to prepare for next month’s European Council summit, reports our Europe Editor James Crisp. While Austria has already reintroduced a tourism ban during its return to lockdown, European Commission work on updating travel recommendations for its member states remain at a very early stage. It is possible that the idea of including booster shots on the EU coronavirus vaccine passport will be discussed but not final decision will be made on Tuesday. In any case EU recommendations are just that and national governments retain responsibility for health and border policy in most cases, meaning any decision on new travel restrictions will be made by national leaders. The December EU summit in Brussels will see heads of state and government discuss coordination of response to the Covid pandemic and measures underway to boost the bloc’s resilience to further crises.
Dutch anti-Covid unrest ‘pure violence’ by ‘idiots’: PM Mark Rutte
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte has labelled a nationwide weekend of unrest “pure violence” committed by “idiots”. After the reintroduction of restrictions, which include the closure of restaurants and bars by 8pm, cities across the country were embroiled in violent protests. Riots in several cities around the country since Friday “is pure violence under the guise of protest,” the premier said. He added he would always defend the right to protest, but “I will never accept that idiots use pure violence,” he told Dutch media.