Taoiseach Micheál Martin has said that “the end is truly in sight” as 82 per cent of people will have received their first Covid-19 vaccine by the end of June.

Announcing the extension of Level 5 restrictions until April 5th, and the phased return of in-school teaching, Mr Martin said the Government wants to make sure “that when we ease each particular restriction we take a careful approach to ensure when we open something, it stays open.”

He said after the next phase of restrictions, due to be reviewed before April 5th, the Government will consider easing the 5km travel limit and easing restrictions on people meeting outdoors and outdoor sports.

The Taoiseach said there would be a “major ramping up” of the vaccination programme.

By the end of April up to 40 per cent of people over 18 will have had their first dose. By the end of May up to 64 per cent of people will have had their first dose.

By the end of June up to 82 per cent of adults will have received at least one dose. Up to 60 per cent will be fully vaccinated by that stage, Mr Martin said.

https://www.irishtimes.com/news/politics/taoiseach-says-the-end-is-truly-in-sight-as-level-5-extended-until-april-5th-and-schools-to-reopen-1.4492646

Israel is easing lockdown restrictions as studies there reveal the Pfizer vaccine is 95.8% effective in preventing hospitalisations and death.

From Sunday, shops, libraries and museums can open but social distancing and masks are still required.

The health ministry says it is the first stage of returning to normal life.

Israel has the highest vaccination rate in the world. More than 49% of people have received at least one dose.

The country entered its third lockdown on 27 December after a resurgence of the virus.

Under the easing measures, people are now able to enter shopping malls and tourist attractions such as zoos.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-56143126

Dr. Anthony Fauci said he thinks theaters and other live entertainment venues could reopen “some time in the fall of 2021” during a conference held by the Association of Performing Arts Professionals on Saturday, January 9th.

As The New York Times reports, Fauci said live entertainment’s return depended on vaccination rollout and getting between 70 to 85% of the population vaccinated.

“If everything goes right, this is will occur some time in the fall of 2021, so that by the time we get to the early to mid-fall, you can have people feeling safe performing onstage as well as people in the audience,” Fauci said.

During the APAP conference, Fauci said the concert industry could take some cues from the airlines when it comes to reopening and said admittance to shows could hinge on showing a negative Covid-19 test. He also cited a recent study in Germany that showed arena concerts could be safe if the venue was outfitted with a good ventilation system and had other safety protocols in place. One such precaution, however, is keeping shows at limited capacity, and as several live music industry professionals recently told Rolling Stone, many concerts aren’t financially feasible if venues can’t operate at full capacity.

While caution and vigilance remained Fauci’s top concerns, he did end on an optimistic note, saying, “We’ll be back in the theaters — performers will be performing, audiences will be enjoying it. It will happen.”

https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/dr-anthony-fauci-theaters-music-venues-reopen-fall-2021-1112542/

Belgium has adapted its current lockdown measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus during the end-of-year period, Prime Minister Alexander De Croo announced during a press conference on Friday.

“The situation in our country is better than a few weeks ago,” De Croo said. “We have managed to reverse a very dangerous trend. However, it is now a question of persevering, and continuing the efforts of the last four weeks.”

“Even if the situation is less dramatic now, it is still very dangerous. We are still in alert phase 4, according to the latest data,” he added. “The circulation of the virus is still too widespread.”

“If we are not careful now, we are putting all of these efforts at risk,” De Croo said. “That is why we have decided to remain cautious, especially now, with the approaching winter months.”

All non-essential shops will be allowed to reopen from Tuesday 1 December, but everything has to happen “responsibly.” Fun-shopping is not allowed, people have to shop alone and can only stay in a shop for a maximum of 30 minutes. The basic rules have to be respected at all times.

https://www.brusselstimes.com/belgium/142922/consultative-committee-lockdown-alexander-de-croo-non-essential-shops-hairdressers-christmas-new-year-frank-vandenbroucke-curfew-cuddle-contact/

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The Italian government will ease anti-COVID restrictions in five regions from Sunday, including in the country’s richest and most populous region Lombardy, the Health Ministry said.

Lombardy, Piedmont and Calabria will be downgraded from red to orange zones, while Sicily and Liguria will drop from the orange to the yellow zone, which has least restrictions.

Friday’s decision follows a gradual decline in hospitalisations from coronavirus in much of Italy over the past week, with the number of new cases also retreating from highs seen earlier this month.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-italy-regions-idUSKBN2872C6

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France's coronavirus lockdown will be lifted on December 15 - but bars and restaurants will stay closed over the Christmas period, Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday evening in a televised address.

It was part of a three-stage easing of restrictions over the next two months.

November 28

- Shops can reopen under strict hygiene restrictions
- Lockdown will continue but restrictions on how long one can leave home for is extended. Currently, one can exercise for up to an hour with a one-kilometre radius of one's residence. That will be extended to a radius of 20 kilometres for up to three hours.
- Religious centres can reopen but with no more than 30 people at any one time.

December 15

- Lockdown is lifted if the health situation continues to improve, allowing people to move around the country and spend Christmas with their families and friends.
- Cinemas, theatres and museums will reopen their doors.
- Instead of a lockdown, the country will revert to a night-time curfew (9 pm to 7 am).
- Bars and restaurants will stay closed over Christmas
- Ski resorts unlikely to be open for Christmas. Final decision expected in the coming days.

January 20

- If the health situation allows it, bars and restaurants will be allowed to reopen.
- Sports centres and gyms will be allowed to reopen
- What else did Macron say?
- Macron said the country had passed the peak of its second wave of coronavirus. He said the easing of restrictions had been made possible by an improving picture nationwide. But, he added, several more weeks of restrictions would need to be endured to allow the country to get the pandemic fully under control.

He said the most vulnerable in society should begin to get a COVID-19 vaccine from the end of December or the beginning of January.

www.euronews.com/2020/11/24/will-emmanuel-macron-ease-france-s-coronavirus-lockdown

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A maximum of 4,000 fans are set to be allowed at outdoor events in the lowest-risk areas when the national lockdown in England ends on 2 December.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected to make an announcement later on Monday about the return of crowds.

He will make a statement to the House of Commons, and MPs will vote on it later in the week.

Up to 2,000 fans will be allowed in tier two areas but zero in tier three.

The measures are set to be part of the new Covid-19 restrictions in England.

Elite sport has continued behind closed doors during England's four-week lockdown, but grassroots and amateur sport has been halted since 5 November.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/55010011

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The impact of a new Covid vaccine will kick in significantly over summer and life should be back to normal by next winter, one of its creators has said.

Prof Ugur Sahin, BioNTech co-founder, also raised hopes the jab could halve transmission of the virus, resulting in a "dramatic reduction in cases".

Last week, BioNTech and co-developers Pfizer said preliminary analysis showed their vaccine could prevent more than 90% of people from getting Covid-19.

About 43,000 people took part in tests.

In an interview on BBC One's Andrew Marr Show, Prof Sahin said he expected further analysis to show the vaccine would reduce transmission between people as well as stop symptoms developing in someone who has had the vaccine.

"I'm very confident that transmission between people will be reduced by such a highly effective vaccine - maybe not 90% but maybe 50% - but we should not forget that even that could result in a dramatic reduction of the pandemic spread," he said.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-54949799

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It is realistic that England’s forthcoming national lockdown can end on Dec. 2, chief medical officer Chris Whitty said on Tuesday, as it is designed reduce COVID-19 transmission rates enough to move into less stringent measures.

Whitty said that any decision on whether to extend the lockdown, due to come into force on Thursday, would be for government, but he had faith that the public would adhere to the new restrictions.

Asked if there was a reliable chance of lockdown ending as scheduled on Dec. 2, Whitty said: “The aim of this is to get the rates down far enough that it’s a realistic possibility to move into a different state of play at that point in time.”

He told lawmakers that the lockdown could reduce the virus reproduction number below 1, but that other measures would be needed through the winter even if full lockdown ended in December.

Whitty and UK Government Chief Scientific Adviser Patrick Vallance were giving evidence to a parliamentary committee ahead of a vote on Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s proposed national lockdown, due on Wednesday, which is expected to pass despite scepticism from some in Johnson’s Conservative party.

Whitty and Vallance defended the models presented to the public to justify a new national lockdown, saying it was realistic to expect that deaths from the second wave from COVID could match the first unless action were taken.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-britain-whitty/ending-englands-lockdown-in-december-is-realistic-says-medical-chief-idUSKBN27J2CQ?il=0

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Britain’s battle with coronavirus could be over as early as the spring, Boris Johnson has claimed, as he fought to keep restive Tory MPs behind his plan for a four-week second lockdown in England.

Mr Johnson told the House of Commons there was “no alternative” to the package of tightened restrictions which he announced on Saturday, citing scientific advice that without action, there could be twice as many deaths over the winter as in the first wave of Covid-19 in the spring.

Mr Johnson made clear he was placing his hopes for an end to the crisis in the introduction of mass testing of millions of Britons, along with the potential development of vaccines and improved treatments.

He said that the army would be involved within the next few weeks in the roll-out of millions of rapid-turnaround tests, which would help reduce the crucial reproduction rate of the disease – known as R – below one by the time the new restrictions expire on 2 December.

The tests, capable of delivering a result within 10-20 minutes, had been shown to suppress the virus in hospitals, schools and universities, he said.

Mr Johnson told MPs: “While scientists are bleak in their predictions over the short term, they are unanimously optimistic about the medium and the long term.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/covid-vaccine-boris-johnson-second-lockdown-b1536418.html

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