Coronavirus live: England speeds up booster jab rollout, Ukraine reports record daily death toll

New Zealand 206 new daily community infections on Saturday surpassed the double-hundred mark for the first time during the coronavirus pandemic, as the nation scrambles to vaccinate its population of 5 million.

Auckland’s most populous city, which reported 200 new cases, has been under COVID-19 restrictions for nearly three months as it grapples with an outbreak of the contagious Delta variant, although restrictions are expected to be eased on Monday.

The prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, said she wants Auckland residents to be able to travel for the Southern Hemisphere summer and Christmas. “We will not keep Auckland isolated in Auckland during that period – we just can’t do that,” Ardern said at a news conference at his Labor Party’s national assembly.

Saturday’s cases served to remind people of the importance of vaccination as the number one protection against the virus, the health ministry said in a statement.

It said 78% of New Zealanders aged 12 and over had been fully vaccinated, while 89% had received their first vaccine dose by Friday. Once praised globally for stamping out Covid-19, New Zealand has been unable to contain the Delta outbreak in Auckland, prompting Ardern to abandon strategy to eradicate the virus in favor of efforts to live with it. was forced to.

Australia reached a full vaccination rate of 80% on Saturday for people aged 16 and older, a moment the country’s prime minister dubbed a “great milestone”.

“Another, spectacular milestone, Australia,” Prime Minister Scott said in a video post on Facebook. “It’s four out of five, how good is that? It’s been a true Australian national effort.”

While vaccination is voluntary at the federal level, Australia’s states and territories have introduced mandatory measures for many businesses and workers. Vaccination-deprived people are barred from many activities, such as dining out or concerts.

the mainland China The country’s National Health Authority said on Saturday that 55 new Covid-19 cases were reported on November 6, down from 78 a day earlier.

National Health The commission said in its daily bulletin that 40 of the new cases were locally transmitted, down from 68 the previous day, with 16 in the north-eastern border province of Heilongjiang.

The number of new asymptomatic cases, which China does not classify as confirmed cases, fell from 42 a day earlier to 27. Mainland China has reported 97,660 coronavirus cases, with 4,636 deaths

Ukraine The health ministry said a record daily high of 793 coronavirus-related deaths was recorded.

This comes as the country is grappling with Covid vaccination doubts. More than a thousand people blocked several streets in the center of Ukraine’s capital on Wednesday, protesting against vaccine certificates and state-imposed restrictions to control the virus.

Protesters carried signs reading “Say no to Covid passport”, “Say no to Covid genocide”.

In EnglandPeople will be able to book their COVID-19 booster jab a month in advance of being eligible from Monday.

The NHS is changing the booking system to allow people in England to arrange an appointment a month in advance, as the health service aims to speed up vaccination ahead of the “challenging” winter.

Currently, any eligible who had the second dose of the coronavirus vaccine six months back can book his top-up only after six months.

The update means people can pre-book an appointment after five months, allowing them to get vaccinated on the day they reach the six-month milestone.

Health Secretary, Sajid Javid, said: “Covid-19 vaccines are the best way to protect yourself and your family before a challenging winter and this change in the booking system allows people to book their booster jabs as much as possible. will make it easier. ”