‘Time to distinguish’ between vaccinated and unvaccinated, says Tony Blair
Former prime minister Tony Blair has said it is “time to distinguish for the purposes of freedom” between people who are vaccinated and unvaccinated when it comes to travel and domestically.
Mr Blair also described the NHS app that proves vaccination as “inadequate” as he said it makes “no sense at all to treat those who have had vaccination as the same as those who haven’t”.
The former Labour leader was reacting to a report published by the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change which says “vaccine status matters” and champions the idea of health passes “to allow citizens to prove their status in a secure, privacy-preserving way”.
Proposing the health pass system be used both at home and abroad, the report said: “With this ability to securely prove vaccination status, we can move beyond blunt, catch-all tools and align with other countries by removing certain restrictions for the fully vaccinated, thereby enabling us to sustainably reopen the economy.”
Former prime minister Tony Blair receiving the Covid-19 vaccine at the Lords cricket ground facility in London (Tony Blair Institute/Twitter/PA)
It went on: “For as long as the world goes largely unvaccinated and the risk of a new variant remains significant, it’s vital that we have an alternative to the blunt tool of lockdowns to enable the country to live freely and safely.”
Mr Blair said: “It is time to distinguish for the purposes of freedom from restriction between the vaccinated and unvaccinated, both for citizens here for domestic purposes; but also for our citizens and those from other countries in respect of travel on the basis that being vaccinated substantially reduces risk.
“It therefore makes no sense at all to treat those who have had vaccination as the same as those who haven’t.”
He pointed to the report which says “why the current NHS app for proving vaccination is inadequate and should be changed to be simpler and more effective” and later went on: “Of course we are discriminating between vaccinated and unvaccinated.
“But the whole of risk management is based on discriminating between different types and levels of risk.
“Nothing matters more to risk than vaccination, which is precisely why we’re doing it,” Mr Blair said.
“Yes by allowing greater freedom and fewer restrictions to the vaccinated we’re providing a powerful incentive to take up vaccination, but this is a perfectly valid public policy objective.
“Other than for medical reasons, people should be vaccinated.”
A senior Government source said: “Once again Mr Blair appears to have learned of things already in the pipeline with the NHS app and decided to publicly call for them.
“Nonetheless we thank him for his continued support.” By Caitlin Doherty, Yahoo News
Muscat: Omani national Nasr Al Jahdhamy has donated more than 1,200 sweaters to schoolchildren, and another 2,000 dishdashas, to people in Tanzania, during a trip taken to the African country during this year’s Ramadan.
Nasr, who has previously undertaken many aid trips to Yemen, taking with him convoys of trucks filled with tonnes of aid, including flour, clothes, medicines, toys, books and many other items for those affected by the conflict there, organised his efforts in Tanzania with the help of the Asma Mwinyi Foundation.
“This foundation is run by the daughter of the President of Zanzibar, and they organise a lot of aid for the needy in their country,” said Al Jahdhamy.
“She lives in both Tanzania and Zanzibar – both places have different issues that need solving – but this time, she needed help in an area in which she does not normally operate.”
Nasr had collected sweaters donated out of the goodwill of students and staff from Indian schools in Oman, which were intended for children in the city of Morogoro, some 200km from the capital, Dar-Es-Salaam.
Nasr and his team spent four days in the city, handing out these sweaters at the Dalai Primary and Secondary School.
“It is only about an hour by plane from the capital, but from there, it takes another three hours by road to get to where we handed out the sweaters,” he said. “We gave more than 1,000 sweaters to children from grade one to grade twelve.”
Once he’d finished there, he went to the island region of Zanzibar. On the archipelago, he freely gave 2,000 Omani dishdashas to the needy.
Because it was Ramadan, people in the area he visited also each received a kilo of dates, so that they could break their fast. His humanitarian visits to Zanzibar have come as part of the efforts of Hussein Mwinyi, the President of Zanzibar, whose father, Ali Hassan Mwinyi, was himself head of state for Tanzania from 1985 to 1995.
While there, he met with the president to draw up further plans to take care of the needy in Zanzibar and the rest of the country, through the Asma Mwinyi foundation.
Nasr is better known for his aid trips to Yemen, often organised either himself or through the Oman Charitable Organisation, but began his relief efforts in Tanzania many years previously.
He has deeply personal connections to the African country: His father is an Omani from Zanzibar, while his mother is from Tanganyika.
When the two merged to form Tanzania in 1964, he headed to the mainland, where he got married. In the 1980s, eight years after Nasr was born, the family moved to Oman. Nasr returned to the land of his birth 27 years later, and shortly afterwards began preparations to help the needy there.
“We began our charity in Tanzania in a very simple manner, distributing dates, clothes, and copies of the Holy Quran,” he said.
“But as our trips there have increased, so have the things we donate to people there. I take with me aids for disabled people, as well as medicines for the community.
“We also organised efforts to build a mosque for the local population, and drilled wells for them so that they have access to fresh water,” he added.
Nasr’s aid trips are always organised during the Holy Month, where he takes his annual leave, normally making it a point to return just before Eid: he’s been employed as a public relations officer at Majan Shipping for the last 20 years. Although unable to celebrate Eid with his family this year, he realises his time in Africa is for a higher purpose.
Before travelling to Tanzania, Nasr and his family made food in their kitchen every day to distribute during the time of iftar to low-income workers in the country.
“On 29 May, I travelled to Qatar, where I spent a day, before flying to Oman the next day. This was the only route available to me, because unfortunately, when I flew to Tanzania during Ramadan, there were no Oman Air flights available because of issues around the COVID-19 pandemic.”
“Before the next Eid, I intend to get more support from Oman, so that with the help of the president, we can get more aid for the needy in Zanzibar,” said Nasr.
“Before Eid Al Adha, we plan on sending them a 20-feet container filled with clothes. This will go directly to the Zanzibar government, and they will take care to distribute these clothes where they are needed.
“Hussein Mwinyi has been the President of Zanzibar for a year now, and he is very keen to help the needy,” he said.
“Hopefully, our assistance will benefit his people. Meeting the president was a great honour, and with his help, we can hopefully provide aid to those in Africa who require it.”
Apart from Tanzania, through charitable organisations, Nasr also sent sweaters to people who need them in Yemen and Syria. He is hopeful the kindness and generosity of the people in Oman will once again shine through, the next time he begins collecting aid for those who need it most.
“I am most thankful for the Indian schools in Oman for the effort they organised in collecting these clothes,” he said. - Times of Oman
Hopes of a summer holiday abroad have been dashed as no new countries have been added to the UK's green travel list and Portugal has moved to amber.
No further countries are being moved from the amber to green status and travellers returning from Portugal will have to quarantine following the review of the government's travel traffic light system.
Seven countries are also being added to the red list from the amber list. They are: Afghanistan, Bahrain, Costa Rica, Egypt, Sudan, Trinidad and Tobago, and Sri Lanka.
The change will come into effect at 4am on Tuesday 8 June.
The Department for Transport (DfT) said the measures are being implemented "to safeguard public health against variants of concern and protect our vaccine rollout".
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said it was "a difficult decision" and Portugal was downgraded because the government wants to give the UK "the best possible chance of unlocking domestically" on 21 June.
He said the emerging Nepal mutation of the Indian variant was of concern and Portugal's positivity rate has "nearly doubled since the last review".
There were hopes some Greek and Spanish islands, and Malta could have been added to the green list in the first review of the system since it came into play three weeks ago.
Portugal was the only major holiday destination on the 12 country green list, meaning tourists could return to the UK without having to quarantine.
Nearly 20% of Portugal's population has been fully vaccinated and cases are relatively low but have been increasing over the past week.
Madeira and the Azores are also moving with mainland Portugal from green to amber.
People arriving in the UK from amber list countries have to take two post-arrival tests on day two and day eight after arriving and self-isolate at home for 10 days, although they can reduce that time if they take an additional negative test on day five.
Those returning from green locations are not required to self-isolate but they must take one post-arrival coronavirus test.
Shadow home secretary Nick Thomas-Symonds said the government has "caused chaos with the mishandling of travel restrictions at the border".
Labour's Mr Symonds added: "The confusion over the 'Amber List' has led to reports of over 50,000 people travelling to the UK daily, with only a tiny percentage going into hotel quarantine and a stream of flights entering the UK from 'Amber List' countries.
"Labour has warned time and time again that this is leaving the door wide open to new strains of the virus.
"Moving Portugal onto the 'Amber List' is not the answer. The 'Amber List' itself should be scrapped.
"Ministers also now need a clear plan to manage the confusion that will result in Portugal being removed from the 'Green List' so quickly and must publish all of the data behind this decision."
Meanwhile, in a tweet, the Portuguese foreign ministry said it could not understand the "logic" behind the UK Government's decision to move Portugal to the amber list.
UK Health Security Agency chief executive Dr Jenny Harries said: "Increases in case rates in the UK serve as a reminder that this pandemic is not over yet and we need to take a cautious approach.
"Everyone should observe the travel guidance, continue to follow hands, face, space and fresh air, and have both doses of the COVID-19 vaccine when offered."
Shares in airlines easyJet and British Airways and travel companies TUI and Jet2 fell on fears Europe would lose another peak travel season, when millions of Britons usually head to southern Europe.
The industry has already been weakened by 15 months of lockdowns and many companies - and countries - had been hoping for a summer boom as the UK has one of Europe's highest vaccination rates, with 75% of adults having one dose and 50% having two.
Lockdown restrictions are easing across the UK but the Indian variant, also called the Delta variant, has caused concern.
The British Airline Pilots Association (BALPA) said: "This excessive caution could be the final nail in the coffin for the travel industry which has borne the economic brunt of the COVID-19 crisis with no help from the government."
BALPA's acting general secretary Brian Strutton said: "This decision is a total disaster for the already fragile travel industry and is likely to lead to further airline failures and many more job losses.
"We understand that safety comes first, but with vaccination programmes going well in many countries, it seems the government is ignoring the evidence and is allowing safe countries to languish in the amber and red categories for no valid reason.
"Any shred of public confidence is in tatters and the traffic light system seems stuck on red.
"Our airlines need this summer season if they are to survive. The government must look at the evidence and stop this illogical, over-cautious approach, that is killing a once-thriving industry."
Ahead of the list announcement, Health Secretary Matt Hancock warned: "We have got to follow the data and of course, I understand why people want to travel but we've got to make sure we keep this country safe, especially because the vaccine programme is going so well.
"We have seen hospitalisations and deaths come right down and we have to got to protect the progress we have made here at home, whilst allowing for travel where it is safe.
Each country is assessed based on a range of factors, including what proportion of a population is vaccinated, rates of infection, emerging new variants, and access to reliable scientific data and genomic sequencing. Yahoo News
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