Another record rise in India deaths; samples show UK most affected by B.1.617 strain outside India; reports say Norway will not use Oxford jab any more
- Covid pandemic was preventable, says WHO-commissioned report
- China has used pandemic to boost global image, report says
- UK prime minister announces independent inquiry into Covid handling
- Spike in India variant poses threat to UK reopening, scientists say
- Australia: fresh outbreak blamed on hotel quarantine leak
4.14pm BST
Slovakia is set to keep AstraZeneca in the group of jabs used in its vaccination campaign, despite yesterday suspending general use of the shots after a recipient died in circumstances deemed likely related to the jab.
AP reports:
Slovakia yesterday halted use of the two-shot AstraZeneca vaccine after its State Institute for Drug Control concluded last week that the death of a 47-year-old woman who received the AstraZeneca was “likely” linked to the vaccine.
AstraZeneca is still being administered, however, to those who have already gotten the first dose and are awaiting a second shot. It’s currently being given to people between the ages of 18 and 44.
3.53pm BST
The US track and field team has cancelled its pre-Olympics training camp in Japan out of concerns for safety amid the pandemic, local authorities have announced, raising more questions about the holding of the Games.
Reuters reports:
The team was set to train in Chiba, the prefecture neighbouring Tokyo, leading up to the summer Games, but cancelled “out of concerns for their athletes’ safety”, according to a statement from the Chiba administration.
There was no immediate comment from USA Track and Field. “It is a shame they have decided to cancel, but I believe they made the best decision possible in the current situation,” Chiba governor Toshihito Kumagai said in the statement.
