High winds see shards of ice pile up on shore of lake in Minnesota, US

High winds caused a massive pile-up of ice along the shore of Otter Tail Lake in Minnesota. Footage from March 30 shows large piles of ice shards stacked on the lake's shore.

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  • CEO who Fox News called 'socialist' for $70k minimum wage says company is now worth $10billion

    The company’s revenue has tripled since the change was implemented

  • Swedish region declares 'personal lockdown' as country suffers Europe's highest rate of new covid-19 cases

    One of Sweden's most populous regions has declared a "personal lockdown", as the country reported the highest daily rate of daily coronavirus cases in Europe, and more being treated in intensive care for the virus than at its second wave peak. In posters and an online campaign, the region centred on Uppsala, Sweden's fourth biggest city, called on everyone to "consider all human contacts as a potential risk" and avoid contact with anyone they do not live with, in the closest the country has come to a lockdown since the pandemic began. "We are reaching the point of the maximum capacity of what we can handle," Mikael Köhler, the region's health chief told Sweden's TT newswire. "It seems like the British variant has taken over and there's evidence that people are spreading the disease before they have any symptoms." Sweden on Tuesday had the highest rate of new coronavirus cases in Europe, with a seven-day average of 587 new infections per million people on Monday, more than France on 556 and Poland on 540, according to the latest figures on Our World in Data.

  • Madonna eviscerates pro-gun ‘Karen’ with thunderous clap back: ‘You know nothing about me or my life’

    Madonna has clapped back at a pro-gun ‘Karen’ activist after the singer called for increased gun control in the US.

  • Oxford/AstraZeneca Covid vaccine research ‘was 97% publicly funded’

    Oxford/AstraZeneca Covid vaccine research ‘was 97% publicly funded’. Analysis rebuts claim by Boris Johnson that jab was developed ‘because of greed’

  • Rate of people with Covid antibodies ‘levels off’ across most of UK

    ‘Clear pattern’ between Covid vaccinations and antibody positivity across UK, says Office for National Statistics

  • Covid-19 rates drop below 100 per 100,000 in all local areas of UK

    The last time the entire country recorded rates below 100 was at the start of September.

  • Science has proved Boris Johnson wrong – vaccines are reducing deaths and cases

    Boris Johnson raised eyebrows on Tuesday when he suggested that the reduction in Covid infections, hospital admissions and deaths had not been achieved by the vaccination programme, with the lockdown doing "the bulk of the work". Thankfully, less than 24 hours later, science had proved the Prime Minister wrong. New research from NHS England and the University of Manchester showed the stark difference in cases, admissions and deaths for elderly people who had been vaccinated compared to those who had not. In a large study involving more than 170,000 people, researchers had scrupulously case-matched participants to make sure the results were not skewed by underlying conditions, sex or geographical location. The results show that far from having little impact, the rate of Covid-related hospital admissions fell by 75 per cent in vaccinated 80 to 83-year-olds within 35 to 41 days of their first dose of the Pfizer jab. The rate of people getting Covid dropped by 70 per cent, with the number of positive tests falling from 15.3 per 100,000 people to 4.6. The authors conclude: "The nationwide vaccination of older adults in England with the [Pfizer] vaccine reduced the burden of Covid-19."

  • Covid vaccine passports: what can we learn from Israel?

    Israel became the first country in the world to test vaccine passports when it announced the 'green pass' scheme in February. The passes allow people who have had two doses of a Covid-19 vaccine to return to restaurants, theatres and sport events. With many countries planning to reopen after their vaccination campaigns, the Guardian's Jerusalem correspondent, Oliver Holmes, examines the lessons that could be learned from Israel's rollout.

  • Heathrow arrivals face six-hour queues caused by extensive Covid checks as police forced to step in

    The situation at the border is becoming ‘untenable’, an executive at the west London airport said.

  • Ex-Hollyoaks star Danny Mac "so excited" to welcome first child with Carley Stenson

    "We're just getting on with it the best we can."

  • UK asks for more time to respond to EU Brexit legal action - RTE TV

    DUBLIN (Reuters) -Britain has asked for more time to respond to legal action taken by the European Union over its unilateral decision to ease requirements of the Northern Ireland Protocol, Ireland's RTE television reported on Wednesday. The European Union launched legal action against Britain last month for unilaterally changing trading arrangements for Northern Ireland that Brussels says breach the Brexit divorce deal agreed with London last year. Brussels gave London, which has said it has not violated the agreement, a month to respond to the legal action, but the British government has requested an extension of one month, RTE reported.

  • Covid vaccine mixing: How does it work and why is the UK expanding trial?

    UK ‘mix and match’ study aims to find out how vaccines can be used more flexibly

  • Truck driver jailed for 22 years for killing four police officers in Melbourne crash

    A truck driver who was under the influence of drugs and sleep deprived when he drove into four police officers has been sentenced to 22 years in prison. The traffic officers - three policemen and a policewoman - had pulled over a speeding car when Mohinder Singh ploughed into them. Officers Lynette Taylor, Kevin King, Glen Humphris and Joshua Prestney all died at the scene.

  • Countdown's Rachel Riley announces second pregnancy with cryptic clue

    The 35-year-old TV presenter used a 'Countdown' conundrum to reveal her happy news.

  • Moderna says vaccine targeting Covid South African variant ‘promising’

    Moderna’s early trials of a vaccine targeting the South African Covid variant has produced antibodies in mice, raising hopes of its effectiveness for humans. The company is the first to produce a vaccine designed specifically for the variant and last night said its pre-clinical trials for both jabs “improved neutralising titers”, meaning that antibodies detected in the blood increased. Moderna is also developing a multivalent vaccine that combines its original vaccination with the South Africa-specific jab, which the firm says will provide the broadest level of immunity, The Times reported.

  • UK to respond to EU legal action over Northern Ireland by mid-May

    Britain has agreed with the European Union that it will respond to the bloc's legal action over how it has introduced new trading rules for Northern Ireland by mid-May, a spokeswoman for the government said on Wednesday. The EU launched legal action against Britain in March for unilaterally changing trading arrangements for Northern Ireland that Brussels says are in breach of the Brexit divorce deal agreed with London last year. Britain has denied that the move undermines the part of the Brexit deal that governs trade to the British province, saying it extended the grace period for checks on goods moving to Northern Ireland to ease their passage.

  • Apparently just by talking about it, I’m super-spreading long Covid

    Apparently just by talking about it, I’m super-spreading long Covid. A professor has suggested that press coverage could make people believe they have the condition

  • Boris Johnson ‘intervened in Saudi bid for Newcastle United after warning from Crown Prince’

    Boris Johnson intervened after a Saudi bid to buy Newcastle United ran into difficulties, it has been reported. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman reportedly warned a row over the sale of the Premier League club could damage relations between the two countries. A Government spokesman said the sale had been a “commercial matter” and that the Government was not involved at any point in the takeover talks.

  • Exclusive: India, Pakistan held secret talks to try to break Kashmir impasse

    Top intelligence officers from India and Pakistan held secret talks in Dubai in January in a new effort to calm military tension over the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir, people with close knowledge of the matter told Reuters in Delhi. Ties between the nuclear-armed rivals have been on ice since a suicide bombing of an Indian military convoy in Kashmir in 2019 traced to Pakistan-based militants that led to India sending warplanes to Pakistan. Later that year, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi withdrew Indian-ruled Kashmir's autonomy in order to tighten his grip over the territory, provoking outrage in Pakistan and the downgrading of diplomatic ties and suspension of bilateral trade.

  • EU backs Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, will not renew AstraZeneca, J&J contracts

    The European Union has announced plans for a massive contract extension for Pfizer-BioNTech's Covid-19 vaccine, saying the bloc had chosen to stick with companies that had shown their value during the pandemic. The EU will not renew vaccine contracts with AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson after their expiry, according to reports. “We need to focus on technologies that have proven their worth,” said EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. She also announced that America's Pfizer and Germany's BioNTech would provide the EU with an extra 50 million doses in the 2nd quarter of this year, making up for faltering deliveries of AstraZeneca.Von der Leyen said Pfizer-BioNTech “has proven to be a reliable partner. It has delivered on its commitments, and it is responsive to our needs. This is to the immediate benefit of EU citizens.”In a stinging rebuke to AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson, the EU Commission will not renew its Covid vaccine contracts with the Anglo-Swedish and US pharma giants, Italian daily La Stampa reported, citing a source from the Italian health ministry.“The European Commission, in agreement with the leaders of many (EU) countries, has decided that the contracts with the companies that produce (viral vector) vaccines that are valid for the current year will not be renewed at their expiry,” the newspaper reported, adding that Brussels would rather focus on RNA (mRNA) technology used by Pfizer and Moderna.A spokesman for the EU Commission said the block was keeping all options open to be prepared for the next stages of the pandemic. "We cannot, however, comment on contractual issues," he added.Denmark terminates AstraZenecaExacerbating problems for AstraZeneca, Denmark decided Wednesday not to renew its use of the jab – an EU first – after putting it on hold last month following reports of rare blood clots in some recipients. The bulk of the shots given in the Scandinavian country so far have been the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.AstraZeneca was supposed to be the workhorse of the EU's vaccine drive this year – a cheap and easy-to-transport shot to break the pandemic's back. Yet, the EU said that out of 120 million doses promised for the 1st quarter, only 30 million were delivered, and, of the 180 million expected, now there are only 70 million set for delivery in the 2nd quarter. The J&J jab, which uses the same base technology as AstraZeneca, hit a snag this week when US regulators recommended a “pause” in administering the single-dose vaccine. Deliveries in the EU have been suspended. 'Very serious side effects'Commenting on the AstraZeneca and J&J concerns, Member of European Parliament Peter Liese said: "The side effects are very serious and I support the decision of many member states not to vaccinate AstraZeneca to younger people for the time being."I hope that the side effects of Johnson & Johnson will be clarified quickly by the American FDA and that targeted recommendations can then be made for whom this vaccine can and cannot be used."In France, Pfizer currently supplies most of the vaccines. According to the website Covidtracker.fr, which monitors the latest developments regarding the pandemic, 11 million French (of a total 67 million) have received their first vaccine, while 3.8 million have had their second jab.Over two-thirds of the 20 million doses obtained by French health services were supplied by Pfizer/BioNTech, less than a third by AstraZeneca and a small part by Moderna.(with AP, Reuters)