Hello and welcome to today’s live coverage of the coronavirus pandemic.
My name is Helen Sullivan and I’ll be bringing you the latest Covid news from around the world for the next few hours.
Canada on Wednesday approved the use of the Covid-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer Inc and its German partner BioNTech SE and vaccinations are expected to start next week with high-risk people such as healthcare workers receiving the first doses.
Canada would receive 30,000 doses next week and up to 249,000 by the end of the year.
The following are the current plans by the 10 provinces and three territories to start inoculations:
Immunisation in Canada’s worst-affected province, Quebec, may start on14 December at two nursing homes. The initial batch is expected to be 4,875 doses. More on this shortly.
Meanwhile the global coronavirus infections total is nearing a staggering 70m.
- US records more than 3,000 Covid deaths a day for the first time. The US recorded its highest level of coronavirus deaths in a single day on Wednesday, just two weeks after the Thanksgiving holiday period when health experts warned Americans not to travel or gather.
- London has highest Covid-19 case rate in England. London had the highest prevalence of Covid-19 cases in the week to 6 December, Public Health England (PHE) said, raising the prospect the capital will be moved into the strictest level of restrictions in the coming days.
- Spain’s March-May Covid-19 death toll nearly 70% above official count – stats institute. Spain’s coronavirus death toll between March and May was almost 70% higher than the official count at the time, data from the National Statistics Institute showed, prompting the opposition to complain of a government cover-up.
- Africa disease control head calls on rich nations to share excess Covid-19 vaccine doses. Countries that have ordered more Covid-19 vaccines than they need should consider distributing excess doses to Africa, the head of the continent’s disease control body said.
- Decomposing mink in Denmark ‘may have contaminated groundwater’. Decomposing mink buried in mass graves in Denmark after being culled because of coronavirus fears may have contaminated the groundwater, local radio has reported, as parliament announced a commission to investigate the government’s actions.
- Berlin wants to close shops and extend school holidays to fight case rises. Berlin’s mayor, Michael Müller, said he would seek the approval of the city’s parliament next Tuesday to close stores apart from supermarkets until 10 January, and also to extend the school break until that date or put lessons online for a week.
- Welsh secondaries and colleges to shut on Monday to stem Covid spread. Secondary schools and colleges in Wales will move to online learning from Monday in a “national effort to reduce transmission of coronavirus”, the country’s education minister has said.
- Israel abandons Covid-19 curfew plan ahead of Hanukkah. Israel reversed plans to impose a night-time curfew meant to prevent a new wave of coronavirus infections, minutes before the start of a Jewish holiday.
- Canary Islands removed from UK travel corridor list. The Canary Islands have been removed from the UK travel corridors list, meaning people arriving in the UK from the popular Spanish islands from 4am on Saturday must self-isolate.
- Rich countries leaving rest of the world behind on Covid vaccines, warns Gates Foundation. It could be too late for any kind of fair distribution of coronavirus vaccines because of the deals already made by rich countries, according to Mark Suzman, chief executive of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
