UK Supreme Court rules insurers must compensate firms over lockdown losses

18:49, January 15, 2021

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  Flexing COVID lockdown rules 'could be fatal': UK health secretary

  LONDON, Jan. 10 (Xinhua) -- British Health Secretary Matt Hancock on Sunday warned that flexing the COVID-19 lockdown rules "could be fatal", urging the general public to stay at home amid surging coronavirus infections.File photo: Agencies"Every time you try to flex the rules that could be fatal" and staying at home was the "most important thing we can do collectively as a society", Hancock told the BBC.Hancock did not rule out strengthening restrictions amid calls from scientists that the current rules need to be stricter, admitting that the National Health Service (NHS) was under "very serious pressure"."People need to not just follow the letter of the rules but follow the spirit as well and play their part," he said.Britain has reported more than 80,000 coronavirus-related deaths after another 1,035 were recorded, according to official figures released Saturday.The total number of deaths within 28 days of a positive COVID-19 test stood at 80,868 on Saturday.Meanwhile, Britain recorded another 59,937 coronavirus cases, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 3,017,409, the data showed.The latest figures were revealed as scientists advising the British government warned that the current lockdown measures in England need to be "stricter" to achieve the same impact as the shutdown in March 2020.Robert West, who sits in the Scientific Pandemic Influenza Group on Behaviours, which advises the British governments Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE), said Saturday that the current rules were "still allowing a lot of activity which is spreading the virus".West said due to the new variant of coronavirus, which is said to be up to 70 percent more infectious, the lockdown measures need to be tougher.England is currently under the third national lockdown since the pandemic began in the country. To bring life back to normal, countries such as Britain, China, German...

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  UK police to be 'quicker' to enforce coronavirus lockdown rules: official

  LONDON, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- British police will be "quicker" to enforce restriction rules during Englands national lockdown amid mounting concerns over some of the public bending the curb rules, a senior British official said Tuesday.People sit at a social distance from one another on a bench on the top of Primrose Hill in London on January 12, 2021. (Photo: AFP)Kit Malthouse, the crime and policing minister, said it was up to the public to abide by the restrictions as the country faces a "severe" crisis.Police have been pursuing a "four Es" strategy during the coronavirus shutdown, by engaging, explaining, encouraging and then, as a last step, enforcing lockdown measures, Malthouse told Sky News."If people play by the rules and they recognize the police are doing a difficult job in very challenging circumstances, and cooperate, then hopefully the four Es; encourage, all that kind of stuff, before we get to enforcement, will have an effect," he was quoted as saying."But I think you will find that the police are quicker to move to enforcement. Thats certainly what they have indicated is their intention," he said, adding that he hoped there wouldnt be an increase in the number of fines or arrests."Because we really, really have to recognize how severe the problem is and the fact we are in our worst position for some time," he said.England is currently under the third national lockdown since the pandemic began in the country. Chief Medical Officer for England Chris Whitty warned Monday that the "most dangerous time" of the COVID-19 pandemic in Britain has yet to come before vaccine rollout has an impact.The next few weeks will be "the worst" of the pandemic for the National Health Service (NHS), he said, urging the public to minimize all unnecessary contact with others.Another 46,169 people in Britain have tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total number of c...

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  South Korean court orders Japan to compensate former sex slaves: Yonhap

  A South Korean court on Friday ordered the Japanese government to pay compensation to 12 World War II sex slaves or their families, in an unprecedented ruling likely to infuriate Tokyo.The Seoul Central District Court ruled that Tokyo should pay the victims 100 million won ($91,000) each, the Souths Yonhap news agency reported.