BRITAIN

Human trials of COVID-19 vaccine developed by Oxford University begin in UK

7:57 pm April 23, 2020

London: Human trials of an eagerly-awaited vaccine, developed by the prestigious Oxford University, against the novel coronavirus began in the UK on Thursday, with scientists giving it an 80 per cent chance of success. The UK government has pledged 20 million pounds to support the “ChAdOx1 nCoV-19” coronavirus vaccine trial programme, with UK Health Secretary […]

UK's Lords condemns Brexit bill as UK-EU talks stay stalled

London buses step up virus measures after 20 drivers die

7:41 pm April 17, 2020

London: London‘s transport authorities on Friday announced new measures to protect bus drivers from coronavirus, as colleagues held a minute’s silence for 20 who have already died. Mayor Sadiq Khan, whose father was a bus driver, led tributes to the victims as authorities said passengers would no longer be able to use the front door […]

Expert says UK likely has Europe’s highest virus death rate

7:34 pm April 17, 2020

London: A leading public health expert said Friday that Britain likely has the highest coronavirus death rate in Europe due to what he described as system errors, while the government defended its record in responding to the pandemic. Anthony Costello, director of the Institute for Global Health at University College London, said the U.K. could […]

US stocks open sharply lower amid pressure on oil market

Global stocks, oil price sink on grim forecasts

7:02 pm April 15, 2020

London: Global stocks and oil prices tumbled on Wednesday after the International Monetary Fund said the world’s economy will suffer its worst year since the Great Depression of the 1930s due to the coronavirus pandemic. Indexes in London and Frankfurt were down about 2 per cent and benchmarks in Shanghai, Tokyo, Hong Kong and Sydney […]

Millions face new UK virus restrictions; border chaos eases

Coronavirus could see UK GDP fall 13 per cent in 2020: watchdog

10:39 pm April 14, 2020

London: Britain’s economy could shrink by 13 per cent in 2020 in the case of a three-month coronavirus lockdown, according to a scenario published Tuesday by fiscal watchdog the Office for Budget Responsibility. “The resulting 13 per cent fall in annual GDP in 2020 would comfortably exceed any of the annual falls around the end […]