Don't Stop Me Eatin': LadBaby beat Mariah Carey for third consecutive Christmas number one
LadBaby have taken the Christmas number one spot for the third consecutive year - beating Mariah Carey, Liam Gallagher and Justin Bieber.
Police have not released a motive in the attack
Back in March, the University of Oxford was on the brink of signing a deal with the German drugs giant Merck to research and develop a coronavirus vaccine. The Government stepped in and helped steer Oxford towards a partnership with British-based AstraZeneca instead, taking a huge gamble by helping to fund the research and development of a vaccine that might have proved useless. Instead, the Oxford vaccine became only the second in the Western world to be approved for use, and both the UK and AstraZeneca are now reaping the benefits of the deal that was struck last April. AstraZeneca has, so far, remained fiercely loyal to the Government, resolutely refusing to give in to EU demands that it should redirect supplies of its UK-made vaccine to the bloc. But that close relationship has come under unprecedented strain as the company found itself under huge pressure from Brussels.
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Brussels on Wednesday demanded that tens of millions of British-made coronavirus vaccines be diverted from the UK to make up a supply shortfall in the jabs in the EU. The European Commission said it was contractually entitled to doses from two UK plants making the AstraZeneca/Oxford University vaccine as its row with the British-Swedish pharmaceutical giant deepened. The British Government said it had a deal with AstraZeneca to supply 100 million doses of the vaccine with agreed delivery schedules. British sources said that, once the UK factories had fulfilled their commitment to Britain, AstraZeneca would be free to supply other countries – something the firm's CEO, Pascal Soriot, confirmed in an interview on Tuesday. But Stella Kyriakides, the EU's health commissioner, said: "We reject the logic of first come, first served. That might work at the neighbourhood butchers, but not on our contracts and not in our advanced purchase agreements." She said there was " no priority clause" in the EU contract between the four production plants in the agreement, two factories in the EU and the two in the UK. "In our contract it is not specified that any country or the UK has priority... This needs to be absolutely clear," Ms Kyriakides said.
Boris Johnson has told Scots tempted by independence the pandemic has demonstrated "the great benefits of cooperation" across the UK - after Nicola Sturgeon urged him to cancel his trip north of the Border. Speaking ahead of a visit to Scotland, the Prime Minister highlighted how the home nations have "pulled together to defeat the virus" and argued the benefits of cooperation had "never been clearer." He said the UK Government was helping Scotland prepare for the "strongest possible recovery from the virus" by providing furlough, huge supplies of vaccines and support from the Armed Forces. In a coded criticism of Nicola Sturgeon's continued demands for an independence referendum, Mr Johnson said that "mutual cooperation across the UK throughout this pandemic is exactly what the people of Scotland expect and it is what I have been focussed on." But his call for cross-Border unity came only hours after Ms Sturgeon urged him to reconsider his visit, saying the journey was not "essential" and could encourage people to break Covid travel restrictions. She insisted the Prime Minister was "not unwelcome" and she was not telling him to "stay away", before arguing his visit could be justified within coronavirus travel rules. While she said she was sure he would not break any laws, she said "Boris Johnson travelling from London to wherever in Scotland" did not meet the "essential" benchmark needed to carry out such a journey.
UK quarantine hotels: how would they work? Our blueprint for getting holidays back to normal Will vaccine passports open up our holidays? 'We can't control the virus with a travel ban' Sign up to the Telegraph Travel newsletter Anyone departing from the UK will be required to declare their reasons for travelling, as the Government today announces tighter border restrictions – including 'quarantine hotels' for arrivals from selected countries. Speaking in the House of Commons this afternoon, Home Secretary Priti Patel said that it "is clear that there are still too many people coming in and out of our country each day," and set out new measures to "reduce passenger flow so that only a small number of people for whom it is absolutely essential to travel are doing so." Transport providers will check passengers' reasons for travel on departure, police presence will be increased at ports and airports, and people will be directed to return home if they do not have a valid reason – and may face a fine. Patel added that police will carry out more checks at physical addresses, to ensure compliance with the restrictions. A new 'quarantine hotel' policy will also see arriving travellers being forced to self-isolate in hotels. The rule will apply to those returning from countries where international travel bans have already been imposed, including Portugal. "They will be required to isolate for 10 days, without exemption, and the Department of Health will set out further details on this approach next week," Patel said. "Despite the stay-at-home regulations, we are still seeing people not complying with these rules. The rules are clear – people should be staying at home, unless they have a valid reason to leave." Scroll down for more on this story, and other breaking travel news.
Cases of Covid likely to have been caught in hospital have halved in three weeks, bringing hope that the rollout of vaccines to staff is beginning to slow transmission. NHS data shows the number of cases has fallen from a high of 635 a day at the start of this month to 367 last week. The trend came despite a rise in the total numbers of Covid sufferers in hospital from around 25,000 to 37,000 over the period. On Wednesday night, Sir Patrick Vallance, the chief scientific adviser, said early findings from Israel – which has already given first jabs to almost a third of its population – suggested they could cut rates of transmission by around 60 per cent. However, Sir Patrick told a Downing Street briefing that he would be "extremely cautious" about making an assessment of the impact of the vaccines on transmission until there was "proper data" to assess. Boris Johnson said proof about the impact of vaccines should emerge by the middle of February. A study by Public Health England (PHE), tracking 40,000 health workers – including those given jabs early in the vaccination programme – is expected to report its findings next month. NHS staff were among those offered Covid jabs when the vaccination programme began in December, with a concerted push at the start of this month after the AstraZeneca jab became available.
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The leader of the Proud Boys extremist group has been unmasked as a "prolific" former FBI informant. Enrique Tarrio, 36, worked undercover exposing a human trafficking ring, and helped with drug and gambling cases, according to court documents. Tarrio's documented involvement with law enforcement related to the period 2012 -2014. There was no evidence of him cooperating after that. But the revelation raised further questions over why police did not take further steps to secure the US Capitol ahead of the riots on Jan 6. At least half a dozen members of the Proud Boys were arrested over involvement in the riots. Tarrio denied ever being an informer, telling Reuters: "I don’t know any of this. I don’t recall any of this."
Iceland has issued its first vaccination certificates to ease international travel for those inoculated against Covid-19, authorities told AFP on Tuesday, with EU countries still haggling over using such documents. All the 4,800 Icelanders who have received two doses of coronavirus vaccine are eligible for the digital certificates, said the health ministry, which has set up a website to handle their distribution. "The aim to facilitate the movement of people between countries so that the individuals can show a vaccination certificate during border checks and be exempt from border restrictions," the ministry said. However, the documents have yet to be recognised internationally. Iceland, which is not an EU member but is part of the bloc's Schengen open travel zone, intends to allow most Europeans bearing similar certificates to enter the country. But Brussels is still trying to find a consensus between member states about the certificates. Greece backs the idea to boost its suffering tourism industry.