Covid, UK extends lockdown to other areas. In Germany another 962 deaths in 24 hours. Madrid armored until January 6th

The UK has decided to extend rigid lockdown, currently planned for London and south-east England, to other areas of the country in order to counter the Covid variant. The Minister of Health said, Matt Hancock, while other members of the government of Boris Johnson had already anticipated that the tightening of measures, with the application of the ‘Tier 4’ regime (maximum level of coronavirus alert), could start starting from Boxing Day. To end up in the critical range could be the Sussex, some parts of the Midlands and northern England. “It is necessary to assess whether the tiered system is effective enough or whether at some point in the future we need to take further action”, stressed the Minister for Local Communities. Robert jenrick this morning in an interview with Bbc Breakfast.

The community of Madrid it is locked up until January 6th. The Inter-territorial Council of the National Health System has in fact decided that for two weeks it will be it is forbidden to enter or leave the region Spanish except for visits to family members or relatives or for one of the reasons provided for by the decree on the state of alert and showing a sort of self-certification, with the aim of curbing the spread of coronavirus. A decision that follows the agreement between the Government and the Autonomous Communities, with some of these having opted for even more restrictive measures, such as that of Valencia which will allow entry only to residents.

Strict controls fielded by the police: approx 7 thousand agents of the National Police and the Civil Guard were deployed in Madrid to check compliance with the new regulations on travel, especially at the main road exits in the region and on the streets of the capital. A safety system is also set up on radial roads, secondary roads and borders with Castilla and Leon e Castilla la Mancha. In addition to the closure of the perimeter, in some basic health areas it is not allowed to enter or exit unless for justified reasons, such as going to work.

After the stop at the connections with the UK following the discovery of the new English variant of the virus, London e Paris they found an agreement that allows drivers of heavy trucks stranded overseas to leave the country on a fast test Covid on departure: “All truck drivers, regardless of their nationality, will have to undergo” a screening that provides a result in about 30 minutes, the transport ministry said in a statement. This protocol will be revised on December 31st but “could remain in force until January 6th”. Furthermore, in the night between Tuesday and Wednesday, the first vehicles with passengers arrived from Dover in the port of Calais.

Also Belgium e Netherlands partially reopen their borders with Great Britain to allow the return of their compatriots and unblock the traffic of goods. There Germany, which in the last 24 hours recorded 24,740 new cases and 962 deaths, instead extended the closure of the borders with both the Kingdom and the South Africa, the two countries where outbreaks of the most contagious new coronavirus strain have developed. There Spain suspended arriving flights until January 5th and theIreland until December 31st.

New restrictions also coming in Czech Republic, where the government has extended it state of emergency and anticipated the imminent closure of stores to deal with a number of coronavirus infections that have started to rise again. The country, which has 10.7 million inhabitants, recorded 10,821 new cases yesterday, the highest daily growth since November 6. THE shops of non-essential items will be closed and the public meetings limited to two people, with a curfew between 9pm and 5am. The measures will remain in effect until at least January 10, while the state of emergency, a legal tool that allows the government to impose restrictions and purchase medical equipment without bidding, will last at least until January 22.

Brazil – There are 936 deaths from covid-19 recorded in the last 24 hours in Brazil, against 55,799 new infections. The average casualty over the past week is up 21% from two weeks ago.

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