Join Hafta-Ichi to Research the article “Coronavirus live news: Brazil records more than 2,000 deaths for second day; EU approves J&J vaccine | World news”
00:31
Joe Biden has signed into law a $1.9tn coronavirus relief package, cementing the first major legislative victory of his presidency. “This historic legislation is about rebuilding the backbone of this country,” Biden said about the American Rescue Plan. Touting the bill’s broad public support, he said the plan’s passage by the House of Representatives on Wednesday ensured that “their voices were heard”:
Joe Biden signs landmark $1.9tn Covid relief bill into law – video
00:01
Elle Hunt
Auckland is preparing for an action-packed weekend with America’s Cup events, a Super Rugby Aotearoa match between the Blues and Highlanders at Eden Park on Sunday, and Auckland Arts Festival under way until 21 March.
The Opposition leader Judith Collins had said the delay in the announcement is the “height of arrogance from a government that has shown itself devoid of understanding about the rigours of trying to operate a business”: “Kiwis deserve more respect.”
Ardern said lifting the restrictions at midday, instead of middnight, was “unusual” for the government and reflected that it was “moving as fast as possible” after receiving up-to-date information.
“What we’re being criticised for is this assumption that we made a decision and didn’t act on it. In fact, what we did was try and maximise as much as possible, the ability to move early for businesses.”
Martin Bosley, a prominent restauranteur, had tweeted this morning that it was “utterly ludicrous” the hospitality industry had to wait until 11.30am for a decision – prompting a response from Ardern’s partner Clarke Gayford that the decision was pending final test results.
Clarke Gayford (@NZClarke)
Martin an inprinciple decision was decided but its all pending on final test results today.
Questioned by media, Ardern denied that Gayford had had information ahead of the announcement, saying he was referencing only what had been publicly stated.
23:52
New Zealand city of Auckland to move to alert level one from midday today
Elle Hunt
Auckland will move to alert level 1 from midday today, bringing it in line with the rest of the country, as the government declares the February outbreak to be contained.
Announcing the alert level change this morning, prime minister Jacinda Ardern said a preliminary decision was made late yesterday afternoon, but Cabinet held the announcement to ensure no community cases were recorded overnight.
At the end of a transmission cycle with no new cases, the director-general of health Dr Ashley Bloomfield has now advised that he considers the outbreak contained, Ardern said.
“I know everyone in our largest city will be looking forward to a weekend of fewer restrictions with life feeling mostly back to normal, and Auckland deserves that. Once again the city has stepped up and did what it needed to do in the face of these new community cases and for that we all say thank you. But now we need to keep working hard to maintain the position that everyone have worked so hard for.”
She also responded to criticism for the last-minute announcement of level one, with the alert level change promised before the weekend. Hospitality businesses had expressed frustration that the order lifting on Friday would not give them sufficient time to prepare for a capacity crowd that night.
23:42
Portugal to ease lockdown rules
Portugal’s government announced it would start to gradually ease its strict rules from next week, Reuters reports, nearly two months into a lockdown imposed in mid-January to tackle what was then the world’s worst coronavirus surge.
Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa speaks during the briefing of the Council of Ministers Meeting, in Lisbon, Portugal, 11 March 2021. Photograph: Antonio Cotrim/EPA
Kindergartens, pre-schools and primary schools will reopen on Monday, as well as hair salons and book shops, Prime Minister AntonioCosta told a news conference, adding restaurants will only be allowed to open their doors in May.
The measures to ease the lockdown will be re-evaluated every 15 days, Costa said.
23:41
Brazil records more than 2,000 deaths for second day
Hospitals in Brazil’s main cities are reaching capacity, health officials warned, as the country recorded the world’s highest Covid death toll over the past week, triggering tighter restrictions on Thursday in its most populous state, Reuters reports.
Intensive care wards for treating Covid patients have reached critical occupancy levels over 90% in 15 of 27 state capitals, according to biomedical centre Fiocruz.
In Porto Alegre in southern Brazil, the main reference hospital for Covid stopped admitting new cases because all its ICU beds were taken. A Reuters photographer saw patients on respirators crowding emergency rooms.
“This is a warning. We’ve reached capacity and people need to become aware of how bad the situation is,” said Claudio Oliveira, director of the Conceiçao Hospital. It was the first time the hospital has turned away patients since the H1N1 epidemic in 2009.
Oliveira told reporters the hospital closed its doors to avoid the collapse of care for the Covid patients there.
The death toll from Covid for the last 24 hours surpassed 2,000 for the second time, the Health Ministry said on Thursday, with 2,233 dead and new infections rising by 75,412.
23:33
Summary
Hello and welcome to today’s live coverage of the coronavirus pandemic with me, Helen Sullivan.
I’ll be bringing you the latest from around the world for the next few hours.
Brazil reported 2,233 Covid-19 deaths in the last 24 hours, the second consecutive day that fatalities have exceeded 2,000, the health ministry said on Thursday, and 75,412 new cases.
Meanwhile the European Union approved the single-shot Johnson & Johnson coronavirus vaccine on Thursday – the fourth jab to get the green light for the 27-nation bloc.
Here are the other key recent developments:
Portugal’s government announced it would start to gradually ease its strict rules from next week, nearly two months into a lockdown imposed in mid-January to tackle what was then the world’s worst coronavirus surge. And controls on the country’s land border with neighbouring Spain will remain in place until Easter.
The Covid-19 situation in greater Paris is “especially worrying” and the government will take extra restrictive measures there if the pandemic continues at its current pace, France’s health minister said on Thursday. While new infections are not growing exponentially, the numbers taken into intensive care have reached a new 3-1/2-months high nationally, close to 4,000, as France faces more dangerous variants
Europe’s medicines regulator (EMA) said there appeared to be no higher risk of blood clots in those vaccinated against Covid-19, after Denmark, Norway and Iceland suspended use of the Oxford/AstraZeneca jab and another five European countries withdrew a batch.
The governor of Brazil’s most populous state, São Paulo, declared a two-week emergency shutdown as the South American country’s coronavirus outbreak continues to spiral out of control.
Slovakia’s health minister announced his resignation in an attempt to defuse a political crisis over the government’s mishandling of the pandemic and a row over the purchase of vaccines from Russia (see 4.08pm).
Pfizer and BioNTech said that real-world data from Israel suggests that their vaccine is 94% effective in preventing asymptomatic infections, meaning the vaccine could significantly reduce transmission.
The Polish capital, Warsaw, will be among cities facing tougher restrictions from Monday, the country’s health minister said, as several central European nations face surges in infections.
Delaying the second dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine must be urgently reviewed for cancer patients after a single shot was found to offer inadequate protection, researchers said.
France is to ease some Covid restrictions on international travel outside Europe, the foreign ministry said. Travellers to or from Australia, South Korea, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, Britain and Singapore will no longer have to need a compelling reason to travel.
Hafta Ichi
Source: The Guardian
Keyword: Coronavirus live news: Brazil records more than 2,000 deaths for second day; EU approves J&J vaccine | World news
