United Kingdom

LONDON (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will on Monday impose a tiered system of further restrictions on parts of England as the COVID-19 outbreak accelerates, though anger is rising at the cost of the stringent curtailment of freedoms.

Johnson has chaired an emergency response committee, known as a COBRA meeting, and will then address parliament at around 1430 GMT, offering lawmakers a vote later in the week on the measures. He will then hold a press conference.

12 Oct 2020; MEMO: The UK Home Office is considering using nets to prevent refugees from crossing the English Channel.

In an interview with the Telegraph, the Home Office’s clandestine channel threat commander, Dan O’Mahoney claimed the nets would ‘clog up propellers’ and ‘bring boats to a standstill’.

SEVINGTON, England (AP) — Four years after Britain voted to leave the European Union, Brexit can still seem abstract. But in the county known as the Garden of England, it is literally taking concrete form.

Just beyond the ancient oaks and yews that surround medieval St. Mary’s Church in the village of Sevington, bulldozers, dump trucks and cement mixers swarm noisily over a field. They are chewing up land to create part of Britain’s new border with the European Union — a customs clearance depot with room for up to 2,000 trucks.

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain is at a “tipping point” in the coronavirus crisis and the country must act now to stop history repeating itself, the deputy chief medical officer for England said on Sunday, urging people to follow the rules.

With the number of cases rapidly rising particularly in the north of England, ministers are readying a new set of rules to try to tackle the crisis that will include handing more power to local leaders to track the virus’ spread.

LONDON (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected to announce new measures to tackle a growing coronavirus crisis on Monday, moving to work more closely with local leaders from England’s worst affected areas.

With Johnson reluctant to repeat a national lockdown that would further hurt a struggling economy, the government is trying to contain a surge in cases, as well as growing anger, in parts of northern and central England.

LONDON, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- Another 15,166 people in Britain have tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 590,844, according to official figures released Saturday.

The coronavirus-related deaths rose by 81 to 42,760, the data showed.

Britain's coronavirus reproduction number, also known as the R number, is now between 1.2 and 1.5, slightly down from between 1.3 and 1.6 last week, according to the government's Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE).

LONDON, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- China has managed to wrest control of the COVID-19 pandemic, which was attributed to speedy response and its culture among others, medial journal The Lancet has reported.

Comparing the pandemic developments in China and some Western countries, an article published in the journal on Thursday said that "a centralised epidemic response system" has primarily well-placed China to tackle the disease.

LONDON, Oct. 9 (Xinhua) -- Britain has continued to see a sharp rise in coronavirus infections as another 13,864 people have tested positive, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 575,679, according to official figures released Friday.

The coronavirus-related deaths rose by 87 to 42,679, the latest data showed.

London is facing a "very real threat" as COVID-19 cases rise, Kevin Fenton, London regional director for Public Health England, said Friday that there was "undeniable evidence" that the disease is spreading in the British capital.

LONDON/BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Union chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier wants a few more concessions from Britain before entering the last intense phase of negotiations on a trade deal, an EU diplomat said on Friday, as an Oct. 15 deadline looms.

The United Kingdom formally left the EU on Jan. 31, but more than fours years since voting 52%-48% for Brexit in a 2016 referendum, the two sides are haggling over a trade deal that would kick in when informal membership ends on Dec. 31.

LONDON (Reuters) - British airline easyJet EZJ.L warned on Thursday its first ever annual loss could be as much as 845 million pounds ($1.1 billion) as the pandemic meant it was flying just 25% of planned capacity.

The airline has signalled to the government it may need more financial support, according to media reports.

The headline loss before tax forecast for the year ended Sept. 30 of 815-845 million pounds was worse than the loss of 794 million expected by analysts, Refinitiv Eikon data showed.