Covid: Plan to tackle NHS backlog on hold and Australia’s borders reopenon February 7, 2022 at 7:38 am

Here are five things you need to know about the coronavirus pandemic this Monday morning. We’ll have another update for you this evening.

With a record number of patients on hospital waiting lists in England, a plan has been put together to tackle the backlog, which has been made worse by the pandemic. It was due to be published today but has been put on hold. The NHS England scheme to deal with waiting times for non-urgent operations and procedures is believed to have been supported across the government but reports suggest there was a last-minute intervention in Whitehall. But one part has been announced, an online service called My Planned Care. Read more here.

Double vaccinated tourists will be able to travel to Australia for the first time in almost two years. The announcement about reopening borders also allows other visa holders entry into the country, which had some of the strictest border controls throughout the pandemic. Borders reopen on 21 February and Prime Minister Scott Morrison said “we look forward to welcoming you back”.

Vehicles and tents blocking roads have paralysed the centre of Ottawa as truckers protest against Covid restrictions. Demonstrators outnumber police in Canada’s capital and the city’s “completely out of control”, says mayor Jim Watson, who has declared a state of emergency. It gives the city additional powers, including access to equipment required by front-line workers and emergency services. Here’s the full story.

As the fallout continues from the initial findings of the Sue Gray report on lockdown parties in Downing Street, Boris Johnson plans to make further changes to his team. The prime minister vowed to change how No 10 is run following the publication of the scaled-back report, which looked into events while Covid restrictions were in place. While police investigate some of gatherings, Mr Johnson is seeking to reassure fellow Tories who are wavering about his future. He’s called some to try to persuade them about his changes – which could include a new chief whip who is in charge of party discipline.

AstraZeneca’s Covid jab was one of the most talked about vaccines, and used widely in the UK but less so during the booster programme. It was also sidelined in the EU and never approved by the US. So what happened? Our medical editor Fergus Walsh has looked at how politics and national interests got in the way of ambitions for the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine.

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Here’s a simple guide to staying safe now that some coronavirus restrictions have eased.

You can find more information, advice and guides on our coronavirus page.

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