Will Santa be able to travel this Christmas? Doctor makes prediction

Christmas will be unlike any other this year, but good boys and girls can rest assured that Santa Claus will still visit after he was cleared by a doctor to fly across the world to deliver presents.

Professor Emer Shelley, the dean of the Faculty of Public Health Medicine at the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland, said travel restrictions would not apply to Father Christmas and he can visit as usual, even if people have to have smaller family gatherings.

“Everybody is asleep when Santa Claus calls, so he’s not going to come across anybody when he travels all around the world from Lapland,” she told ITV’s Good Morning Britain programme.

“Secondly, he travels so quickly that even if a part of his entourage were to have the virus attached to them, there is no risk of transmitting the virus to anybody … so at least that’s some good news on the public health front.”

Prof Shelley did, however, warn that if Santa were to catch Covid-19 he would be at high risk of serious illness because of his weight.

“He’s not exactly thin,” she said.

“If he were having a medical exam, he would be considered clinically obese and that puts him at high risk of diabetes and high blood pressure.

“And so if he were to catch Covid, then he would be at risk of getting a very serious version of it and being admitted to intensive care.

“That was a real worry when discussing this with colleagues.”

Confusion remains over whether family gatherings will be allowed in the UK at Christmas as lockdown measures are extended across the country and coronavirus infections surge.

Pressure is mounting on government to agree a common stance for the festive season across all four nations — with some travel across borders “inevitable” — to allow families to make plans.

Cabinet ministers also appeared to be confused about Christmas gatherings on Thursday after one urged families to abandon their hopes, while another insisted spending time with relatives on Christmas Day was still likely.

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