The “historic” news means the UK becomes the first western country to license a vaccine.
The first doses will arrive in the coming days, the company has said. The UK has bought 40m doses of the vaccine, which has been shown to have 95% efficacy in its final trials. Albert Bourla, the chairman and chief executive officer of Pfizer, has said:
Today’s emergency use authorisation in the UK marks a historic moment in the fight against Covid-19. This authorisation is a goal we have been working toward since we first declared that science will win, and we applaud the MHRA for their ability to conduct a careful assessment and take timely action to help protect the people of the UK.
As we anticipate further authorisations and approvals, we are focused on moving with the same level of urgency to safely supply a high-quality vaccine around the world. With thousands of people becoming infected, every day matters in the collective race to end this devastating pandemic.
Although the vaccine has to be kept at -70C, the companies say it can be stored for up to five days in a fridge at 2-8°C. The first priority groups for vaccination are care home residents, who may not be able to come to a vaccination centre, together with the staff who look after them. At fridge temperatures, it may be possible for the vaccine to be brought to them. Next in line will be the over-80s and NHS staff.
The trial data showed the vaccine had equal efficacy among younger volunteers and those over 65 who are most at risk from Covid. Gender, race and ethnicity also made no difference.
Pfizer and BioNTech say their combined manufacturing network has the potential to supply globally up to 50m vaccine doses in 2020 and up to 1.3bn doses by the end of 2021.
And back in England: for nearly a month festive shop windows and twinkling fairy lights have been wasted on empty high streets but that changes on Wednesday when the end of shopping restrictions in the country hands retailers 23 days to save Christmas.
Retailers have drawn up the battle plans they hope will enable them to safely concertina two months’ worth of Christmas shoppers into a Covid-secure one, from round-the-clock shopping in Primark to virtual queues outside John Lewis.
The four-week shutdown has cost the non-essential retail chains, which sell Christmas gifts such as clothes, toys and gadgets, an estimated £8bn in lost sales. A successful December will be critical to preventing further store closures and job losses on the UK’s battered high streets:
Meanwhile in Australia, the economy rebounded in the September quarter, but the Reserve Bank governor is warning the recovery from the pandemic will be uneven, bumpy and protracted.
Gross domestic product through the year fell by 3.8% as a consequence of the most significant economic shock since the Great Depression according to the latest national accounts released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
But Australia’s economy grew by 3.3% in the September quarter, which is the largest quarterly increase in GDP since 1976.
A rebound in consumption was a key driver of the September result. Household consumption increased 7.9% in the September quarter, which is the largest rise in the 60-year history of the national accounts:
Before this, in England’s “high” alert level tier, people were prohibited from mixing socially indoors with anybody outside of their household or support bubble but the rule of six remained in place outdoors.
Hospitality businesses, such as pubs and restaurants, could open until 10pm but people were only allowed to visit with their household or support bubble.
UK wakes up to tier 2 restrictions
England’s month-long lockdown has ended, and the country is now waking up to a new three tier system of restrictions.
Here are the rules for tier 2:
Under the new system, although hospitality venues will be allowed to stay open until 11pm – with last orders at 10pm – only those that serve substantial meals can operate. It means pubs and bars that do not will have to close.
As before, social mixing outside of households or support bubbles will not be allowed indoors. The rule of six will apply outdoors.
Spectators will be allowed to watch sport in tier 2, with a maximum crowd capacity outdoors of 50% of the capacity of the stadium or 2,000 people, whichever is smaller. Indoors, the maximum capacity is 1,000.
Indoor entertainment venues, such as cinemas, casinos and bowling alleys, can open, but must close at 11pm:
The efforts of eight people who have continued working on heritage, community and arts projects during the Covid crisis have been celebrated in a spectacular light show at Stonehenge.
Images of the group, including volunteers ranging from an arboretum guide who carried on leading tours, to the curator of an exhibition telling the story of a West Indian community in Britain, were beamed on to the great stone circle.
It is believed to be the first time a group of individuals has been at the centre of such a night-time installation at the prehistoric monument on Salisbury Plain:
From avoiding family members to skipping extra study at “cram schools”, the coronavirus has forced nearly half a million South Korean test-takers and proctors to rethink their strategies ahead of a hyper-competitive university entrance exam this week.
Reuters: The gruelling, almost eight-hour test on Thursday is seen as a life-defining event for high school seniors. A degree from a prestigious university is seen as a minimum requirement for securing one of the coveted but limited corporate jobs in Asia’s fourth-largest economy.
This year teachers, proctors and students drastically changed their study and teaching practices to try to ensure those taking the test don’t ruin their chances by getting sick.
“We take caution not just in classes but also during lunch, sitting facing the walls, eating alone and not talking at all,” said one teacher who will also serve as a proctor, speaking on condition of anonymity as she was not authorised to speak to the media.
After delaying the exam by two weeks, authorities have prepared 31,291 test venues nationwide for this year’s exam, nearly double the number from last year to allow more social distancing.
Some venues are specialized to accommodate at least 37 students with confirmed infections, and another 430 in quarantine, deputy education minister Park Baeg-beom told a briefing on Wednesday.
All students must wear masks and will be separated by plastic screens, Park said.
For students who are suspected cases of Covid-19, proctors must wear protective equipment and collect exam papers in plastic bags and wipe them before handing over to the staff outside.
South Korea reported 511 new cases as of midnight Tuesday, bringing the country’s total to 35,163 with 526 deaths.
Updated
at 12.52am EST
India reports under 50,000 cases for 25th straight day
India’s daily coronavirus cases continued to stay below the 50,000 mark for the 25th straight day, with 36,604 new infections reported, data from the health ministry showed on Wednesday.
The country now has 9.5 million total infections, but cases have been dipping since a peak in September, in spite of a busy festival season last month.
Daily cases rose by less than 40,000 for the third straight day on Wednesday, according to a Reuters tally.
Deaths rose by 501, the health ministry said, with the total now at 138,122.
