Hong Kong to ban flights from UK over Delta variant concerns

We are not an agent or recuirter, but a headhunter !

A sign in front of British Airways check-in counters in the departures hall at the Hong Kong International Airport in Hong Kong, China, on January 26, 2021. /CFP

China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) will ban all passenger flights from the United Kingdom from Thursday over concerns of the Delta variant of COVID-19, the HKSAR government announced on Monday.

The UK will also be specified as "extremely high-risk," and people who have stayed there for more than two hours will be barred from boarding flights to Hong Kong, the government said.

The restriction is due to the "rebound of the epidemic situation in the UK and the widespread Delta variant virus strain there, coupled with a number of cases with L452R mutant virus strains detected by tests from people arriving from the UK," the authorities said.

The government added that existing restrictions on other places regarded "high-risk," including Brazil, India, Indonesia, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines and South Africa, will continue to be effective.

Delta variant now "dominant" in the UK: PHE

‍FILE PHOTO: A woman processes a swab test at the Faraday Community Centre asymptomatic COVID-19 test centre on May 18, 2021 in Bedford, England./VCG

The variant of coronavirus first identified in India, known as Delta, has become the "dominant" strain in Britain, Public Health England (PHE) said on Thursday.

The number of cases of the Delta variant has risen by more than 5,000 since last week to 12,431, according to the data from PHE released Thursday.

PHE officials say that the Delta variant has now overtaken the Kent variant, known as Alpha, as the most dominant in Britain.

Dr. Jenny Harries, chief executive of the UK Health Security Agency said: "With this variant now dominant across the UK, it remains vital that we all continue to exercise as much caution as possible."

"The way to tackle variants is to tackle the transmission of COVID-19 as a whole. Work from home where you can, and practice 'hands, face, space, fresh air' at all times," Harries said.

There is "early evidence to suggest there may be increased risk of hospitalisation" from Delta, but further data is needed to confirm this, according to PHE.

The British government is facing increasing pressure to delay the final step of unlocking restrictions in England on June 21 due to concerns over the spread of the Delta variant.

From May 17, pubs, bars and restaurants in England were permitted to open indoors, while indoor entertainment resumed, including cinemas, museums and children's play areas.

People were also allowed to travel abroad to a number of green-list countries without having to quarantine upon return as the ban on foreign travel has also been lifted.

The British government's roadmap is expected to see all legal limits on social contact to be removed on June 21. It is understood that a final decision on the planed easing of lockdown will not be made until June 14.

Experts have warned that coronavirus may continue to evolve for years to come, and eventually it is likely current vaccines will fail to protect against transmission, infection, or even against disease caused by newer variants.

To bring life back to normal, countries such as Britain, China, Russia, the United States as well as the European Union have been racing against time to roll out coronavirus vaccines.

Source(s):CGTN, https://news.cgtn.com/news/2021-06-28/Hong-Kong-to-ban-flights-from-UK-over-Delta-COVID-19-variant-concerns;Xinhua News Agency

Related Info@IJOBINCHINA

●Iceland to lift all COVID-19 restrictions from Saturday●Sydney in lockdown, borders shut and hardly anyone vaccinated.