Britain
British PM tells public to stay home as deaths soar
The prime minister was expected to give a press conference later Friday after the latest government figures showed a 50% rise in weekly deaths, taking the total...
-
Bad omen for UK as Tower of London raven missing, feared dead
According to folklore, if there are fewer than six ravens left to guard the Tower, both the kingdom and country will collapse.
-
New Year, new rules: UK begins post-Brexit future
New Year's Day newspapers reflected the historic but still deeply divisive change, which will have repercussions for generations to come.
-
EU-UK poised to announce post-Brexit trade deal
The two sides had hoped to unveil the accord on Wednesday, and the front pages of several British newspapers already proclaimed victory for Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
-
Shortages, jams and shutdowns: UK readies for Brexit 'no-deal' chaos
Business groups this week warned of difficulties from January 1 as a frustrating lack of clarity on a post-Brexit trade deal has left many companies unable to plan properly.
-
Deal or no deal, Britain to pay high price for Brexit
But the outlook remains uncertain, as the economy struggles to recover from a recession sparked by the coronavirus outbreak.
-
UK rules out any more Brexit talks next year: Downing Street
"Time is obviously now in very short supply. We are in the final stages. We are prepared to negotiate for as long as we have time available, if we think an agreement is still possible," a spokesperson told reporters.
-
Britain okays vaccine as global Covid death toll nears 1.5 million
Meanwhile US hospitalisations of Covid patients topped 100,000 for the first time Wednesday, according to the Covid Tracking Project, while daily deaths topped 2,700, the highest fatality rate since April.
-
Western allies say China broke Hong Kong deal by ousting lawmakers
The removal of four opposition lawmakers triggered the en masse resignation of their remaining colleagues, the latest move in a deepening crackdown against Beijing's critics following last year's huge and often violent democracy protests.
-
WHO warns of 'explosion' of virus cases in Europe
"We do see an explosion.... in the sense it only takes a couple of days to have over the European region an increase of one million cases," WHO's regional director for Europe Hans Kluge said.
-
Mockery, bias & admiration: How the world has reacted to US vote
The hotly contested US election race between US President Donald Trump and challenger Joe Biden has elicited a range of reactions from other nations.
-
Britain's Prince William caught COVID-19 in April: media
'The Sun' newspaper said the Duke of Cambridge, 38, was diagnosed shortly after his father, heir-to-the-throne Prince Charles, announced he had caught the virus in late March.
-
EU launches legal action over UK Brexit bill
On Tuesday, British MPs backed a bill to regulate the UK's internal market from January 1, when Britain completes its post-Brexit transition period and leaves the EU single market and customs union.
-
Queen Elizabeth II's finances take pandemic hit
The Sovereign Grant, which pays for the monarch's official duties and upkeep of royal palaces, came to £82.4 million ($105 million, 90.1 million euros) in the financial year ending in March 2020, a slight rise from the year before.
-
Britain to impose new virus curbs as WHO issues grim warning
The tally of 1,998,897 infections was "the highest number of reported cases in a single week since the beginning of the epidemic", the WHO said, adding that the number of deaths fell compared with the previous week.
-
British govt pledges R50m to SA COVID-19 Solidarity Fund
High commissioner Nigel Casey was at a signing ceremony together with Deputy Trade and Industry Minister Nomalungelo Gina in Pretoria on Monday.
-
Britain medical regulator reviewing AstraZeneca COVID vaccine trial data
In an email, director of licensing at the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) Siu Ping Lam said the regulator is working with the Oxford Vaccine Centre to review the safety data, in line with protocol for the trial.
-
OPINION: Brexit brinkmanship revives risk of worst outcome
Less than 11 months after UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson negotiated a withdrawal agreement with the European Union, his government may be preparing to undermine aspects of the deal.
-
Britain encourages at-risk groups to sign up for COVID-19 vaccine trials
No COVID-19 vaccine candidate has yet been proven effective against the disease, but around 20 are in clinical trials.
