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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United Airlines passengers flying from New Jersey to London will undergo a mandatory COVID-19 test at the airport beginning next month in an experiment the airline hopes jump-starts international travel.

The good news for passengers: the test, required of all passengers over age 2 on select flights from Newark, is free.Other airport and airline COVID-19 test options are as pricey as $250 per person for on-site tests.

The bad news: passengers with negative test results won't be able to bypass a mandatory 14-day quarantine upon arrival in London, as they can on flights to Hawaii as of Oct. 15. (Passengers testing positive will not be allowed to board and will receive a refund.)

United executives said the goal of the pilot program, which will be offered three days a week on Flight 14 between Nov. 16 and Dec. 11, is two-pronged.

In the short term, the airline hopes it gives travelers peace of mind to book a trip because it guarantees that "essentially everyone on board has tested negative for COVID-19,'' according to Aaron McMillan, United's managing director of operations policy and support .

https://eu.usatoday.com/story/travel/airline-news/2020/10/29/united-airlines-pilot-free-airport-covid-19-tests-london-flights/6054283002/

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For months, as New York City struggled to start part-time, in-person classes, fear grew that its 1,800 public schools would become vectors of coronavirus infection, a citywide archipelago of super-spreader sites.

But nearly three weeks into the in-person school year, early data from the city’s first effort at targeted testing has shown the opposite: a surprisingly small number of positive cases.

Out of 16,348 staff members and students tested randomly by the school system in the first week of its testing regimen, the city has gotten back results for 16,298. There were only 28 positives: 20 staff members and eight students.

And when officials put mobile testing units at schools near Brooklyn and Queens neighborhoods that have had new outbreaks, only four positive cases turned up — out of more than 3,300 tests conducted since the last week of September.

New York City is facing fears of a second wave of the virus brought on by localized spikes in Brooklyn and Queens, which have required new shutdown restrictions that included the closure of more than 120 public schools as a precaution, even though few people in them have tested positive.

But for now, at least, the sprawling system of public schools, the nation’s largest, is an unexpected bright spot as the city tries to recover from the pandemic.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/19/nyregion/schools-coronavirus.html

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International flights are arriving and departing Panama's Tocumen airport again after nearly seven months of restrictions due to the coronavirus pandemic. 

Monday's restart of flight operations is part of a gradual nationwide reopening of businesses and industry which began in June. 

Initially, seven international airlines are expected to operate, with four others set to resume operations later this week. 

According to Raffoul Arab, Tocumen International Airport manager, the reactivation of commercial aviation will happen gradually as the different countries complete the opening of their borders. The frequency of flights will increase, especially when people recover their confidence in flying. 

International travelers must submit a negative COVID-19 test before boarding flights to the Central American country.  

https://www.voanews.com/covid-19-pandemic/panama-resumes-international-flights-nearly-seven-months-after-imposing-covid-19

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What feels like a lifetime ago in the days before Covid-19, hotels lured travelers with amenities such as complimentary breakfasts, cocktail hours and yoga classes at the spa.

The world has changed quite a bit since then. Though people are beginning to tiptoe out from their Airbnbs and homes -- away from stockpiled toilet paper, sourdough starter and new puppies -- and even hop on planes, the travel industry recognizes the need to pivot.

Most properties are pledging best practices according to CDC and EPA guidelines such as frequent cleaning, air-filtration systems, contactless check-in and decreased capacity. Others are taking the opportunity to innovate, brainstorming new ways to make guests feel secure and relaxed, which range from luxe to odd.

In this brave new world, the concierge is more concerned with booking virus tests than fine dining reservations. In place of complimentary sleep masks are mandatory face masks. Floral pillow sprays have been replaced with artisanal sanitizer sprays.

https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/hotels-safety-covid-19-amenities/index.html

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Airport coronavirus testing could be given the go-ahead within days - which may end or drastically reduce quarantine periods.

Chief Secretary to the Treasury Stephen Barclay confirmed that decisions regarding new measures which include airport swabbing will be made in the "coming days".

He also said it would be a similar procedure currently seen in Germany, where passengers arriving from high-risk countries are able to be tested, meaning they can leave the quarantine, according to the Times.

Speaking during a Conservative conference, Mr Barclay explained: "“I am expecting Grant Shapps and Matt Hancock to say more about this in the coming days.

"If we look, for example, at some of the German states, which are using testing to then release earlier from some of the restrictions."

Brits currently have to quarantine for 14 days if returning from any countries deemed high risk, which includes Spain, France, parts of Portugal and Greece, the Netherlands and Turkey, which was added to the quarantine list last week.

https://www.thesun.co.uk/travel/12847172/airport-covid-testing-start-quarantine-rules-end/

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