What are the new Covid rules in Scotland? Two major changes today explained

Indonesia is considering a quarantine waiver for foreign visitors to its holiday island of Bali from next week, officials said on Saturday, while neighbour Malaysia announced the removal of curbs on travellers from Thailand and Cambodia.

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While Russian troops gain ground in Ukraine, ordinary Ukrainians are standing their ground.

Gas prices are hitting highs that have never before been seen in Canada.

Canada’s deputy chief public health officer says mask-wearing is a “personal choice” and he’ll personally continue to wear a mask as the ongoing easing of COVID-19 public health measures continues.

Canada’s chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam said Friday that with strong protection from vaccines and declining hospitalizations due to COVID-19, the country needs to focus on ”easing societal disruptions” from public health measures.

#COVID19 cases, 11,651 recoveries, and 289 deaths in the last 24 hours.Active case: 63,878 (0.15%)Daily positivity rate: 0.63%Total recoveries: 4,23,78,721 Death toll: 5,14,878Total vaccination: 1,78,55,66,940 pic.twitter.com/Lp6gJ5AwQ6

Global’s Keith Baldrey has the latest on the rollout of rapid tests for COVID-19 by the B.C. government.

This year marks the return of some beloved city staples: Pride, Taste of the Danforth, the CNE and the Toronto Caribbean Carnival. They’re just some of the events you get to be at in-person this summer. Shallima Maharaj reports.

COVID-19 pandemic. She would attend shows and travelled the world.However, since 2020 she has barely left her house. Grenier’s weakened immune system puts her at a higher risk if she catches COVID-19.“It’s been lonely and it’s been difficult, but it’s getting harder,” Grenier told Global News.Quebec is lifting more restrictions, including the mask mandate.

COVID-19 restrictions begin to ease, people are eager to take off.“I haven’t been on an actual trip for a long time, so I’m really excited, actually,” said McKenna Nameth, heading out of Canada.“We’re at the point where we need a vacation, it’s been a hard time,” said Regan Campbell. Travel bookings up as Albertans take advantage of loosening border measures At the end of February, Canada dropped the PCR testing requirement for fully-vaccinated travellers entering the country.

The Public Health Agency of Canada says it’s time for Canadians to develop their own level of comfort with COVID-19.

COVID-19 testing requirements for fully-vaccinated people that want to cross the border from the U.S. to Canada.Jim Diodati told Global News he’s a signatory to an open letter addressed to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, asking for an end to testing guidelines.

COVID-19-related death on Friday, lifting the death toll across the region since the pandemic began to 400.“Today we are reporting one death in our community related to COVID-19,” Dr. Hsiu-Li Wang, medical officer of health, stated.

NEW JERSEY - Authorities in New Jersey say they have made two more arrests connected to a car theft ring that has stolen 22 vehicles worth over $787,000 including more than a dozen high-end Mercedes, BMWs, Land Rovers, and Audis.The new indictment charges Brian Peppers, 30, of Newark, and Shareiff N. Copeland, 26, of East Orange, with stealing 10 vehicles and approximately $52,000 in cash from a car dealership in Irvington in June 2021.Six men are now indicted in connection with the case.Wild Manhattan carjacking in broad daylight caught on camera"This investigation illustrates the nexus frequently uncovered by law enforcement between vehicle thefts and organized criminal groups," said Acting Attorney General Platkin.

Restaurants, rights groups denounce Quebec curfew, experts say it’s necessary Radio-Canada initially received the ethics review by Montreal officials through an access to information request — but the entirety of its contents was redacted. Following outcry from the opposition and journalists, the Health Department released the full review late Thursday.Quebec Liberal party Leader Dominique Anglade tweeted Friday that the documents show Premier François Legault “is not reliable. Even worse, he does not tell the truth to Quebecers.

Los Angeles County residents will no longer be required to wear masks at restaurants, bars, gyms, shops, and other businesses starting today, the Associated Press reports, while the National Football League (NFL) has dropped all COVID-19 measures.

COVID-19 vaccine.She’d received her second dose last summer but found it tough to secure a third when the province made them available for all Ontarians in late December.This week, while scouring the internet for pop-up clinics, she learned of a walk-in site opening at a local library branch just a 10-minute bus ride away from her home. Vax And Read campaign to bring COVID-19 vaccines to Toronto Public Library branches By Thursday afternoon, both 31-year-old Kok and her mother were able to get their boosters in the library’s glass-walled conference room where half a dozen vaccine stations had been set up.“It’s nice that you have somewhere close by, you don’t have to go downtown.

A Minnesota health system that established two COVID-19 patient-only hospitals early in the pandemic had lower rates of coronavirus-related death than hospitals with mixed patient cohorts, according to a study published yesterday in JAMA Network Open.

There have been more than 900,000 coronavirus cases in Greater Manchester since the start of the pandemic, latest figures reveal.

Brandon Bostian (R) faces charges including causing a catastrophe, involuntary manslaughter and reckless endangerment in the deadly derailment.  PHILADELPHIA - A Philadelphia jury has reached a verdict in the deadly 2015 Amtrak derailment case, finding the engineer not guilty on all counts.The weeklong trial went to the jury on Thursday as they weighed criminal charges against engineer Brandon Bostian. However, the jury restarted their deliberations on Friday after one of the jurors experienced a death in the family and was replaced with an alternate. Bostian, 38, faced multiple charges in connection with the crash that left eight people dead and more than 200 others injured.

COVID-19 in those cities, local officials say it may be a while before it is lifted in Waterloo Region.“I think it’s important that each municipality look at the reasons that the emergency declaration was in place and every municipality is different,” CAO Bruce Lauckner told reporters on Friday morning, while noting that the region has talked to the other municipalities it contains about the situation.He then went on to provide an example as to why the move will come later, rather than sooner.“We still need to move staff around to support our shelter systems from time to time because COVID is still active,” Lauckner said. Interactive — Inside COVID's rehabilitation hospitals “So as we have confidence that the shelter systems, the hospitals, that our vaccine clinics and so on, no longer require operational support like that, then that would be a reason for us to and the emergency declaration.”He also noted that while the pandemic has eased, many of the people working on the front lines have been dealing with it for two years now.“So I think the worst thing we could do (is end the state of) emergency right now and then find out next week that we still have to move people,” he said.

COVID-19 on Friday as The Boardwalk vaccination clinic celebrated its first birthday.Since its inception, the region says the clinic has administered 235,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines to members of the community. Long COVID: Almost a third of people report lingering symptoms, study finds “Thanks to the dedication and commitment of all the staff and volunteers of The Boardwalk vaccination clinic, we have been able to successfully bring vaccines to thousands of Waterloo Region’s residents,” said David Aoki, who took charge of the vaccine effort in Waterloo Region earlier this week.“The vaccination clinic at The Boardwalk has been integral to the success of the vaccine rollout so far and continues to provide a convenient opportunity for anyone to still get a COVID-19 vaccine.”According to the region, a time capsule is being created with members of the community contributing their reflections of the last year.“Working at public health saved my sanity during the pandemic,” one staff member recollected.“I felt helpless and hopeless, and being of service to my community by providing COVID-19 vaccination gave me hope.

Essential visiting only has been reintroduced at a Scots hospital due to rising coronavirus cases.

WASHINGTON - Trucker convoys from across the U.S. are expected to arrive in the D.C.

Last Friday, LHSC was caring for 44 inpatients, with six in adult intensive care. There are five or fewer COVID-19 inpatients in Children’s Hospital with five or fewer in pediatric critical care. The same figures were reported last Friday.LHSC says of its 43 COVID-19 inpatients, 13 are being treated for COVID-19, while 30 are being treated with COVID-19, meaning they were admitted for a different reason and were found to have an incidental COVID-19 infection.

Tim Hortons Brier have yet to make the trip to Lethbridge, Alta., after testing positive for COVID-19 on their pre-departure PCR tests, Curling Canada said Friday in a statement.Each competitor plays on a different team, the federation said, without identifying any of the athletes. The players remain in isolation in their respective hometowns.Round-robin play was scheduled to begin Friday night at the Enmax Centre.

Mask mandates in Ontario will be removed by the end of March as long as positive public health trends continue, the province’s chief medical officer of health said Thursday, while acknowledging there may be more than 20,000 new COVID-19 cases per day.

A Scots wrestler has shed over 13 stone after a doctor's grave warning forced him to change his life.

NEW JERSEY - Outraged by the invasion of Ukraine, lawmakers in New Jersey's largest city lashed out at one of the closest symbols of Russia they could find — a pair of Lukoil gas stations.The Newark City Council voted unanimously Wednesday to ask the city’s business administrator to suspend the service stations' operating licenses, citing Lukoil's base in Moscow.In doing so, however, they may have predominantly been hurting Americans.The stations are franchises owned by locals, not Russians. They employ mostly New Jersey residents.

COVID on Friday, with 262 in intensive care units as figures continue to trend downwards.This is down by 13 hospitalizations and a decrease of five in ICUs since the previous day. Last Friday, there were 1,003 hospitalizations with 297 in ICU.The province recently began distinguishing between those who were admitted to hospital directly because of COVID, and those who were admitted for other reasons but tested positive for the virus.Of the 821 people in hospital with COVID-19, 44 per cent of them were admitted because of the virus, while 56 per cent were admitted for other reasons but tested positive for COVID-19.Of the 262 people in ICUs with the virus, 80 per cent were admitted because of COVID, while 20 per cent were admitted for other reasons.

A recent study by U.S. Government Accountability Office has elaborated on the syndrome and here is what we know about it: 

Kerala in the last 24 hours, taking the cumulative caseload to 65,08,845, said the health department on Friday.

administered more than 178.29 crore (1,78,29,13,060) COVID-19 vaccine doses so far with 24.84 lakh doses (24,84,412) vaccine doses administered in the last 24 hours, the Union Ministry of Health & Family Welfare said on Friday.

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PHILADELPHIA - Veteran center DeAndre Jordan signed with the Philadelphia 76ers on Thursday, days after being released by the Los Angeles Lakers.The 33-year-old Jordan joins Paul Millsap as a backup center for the Sixers, who dealt Andre Drummond to Brooklyn as a part of the multiplayer trade that sent Ben Simmons to the Nets in exchange for James Harden last month. Terms of the deal were not released.The 6-foot-11 Jordan appeared in 32 games with the Lakers, starting 19.

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next COVID wave is a "valuable input", Centre said, “But, it is yet to be examined whether this particular report has any scientific worth." The Centre further asserted that ‘it is completely prepared for the unpredictable virus’. Last week, an IIT Kanpur team of scientists suggested that India is likely to witness the 4th COVID wave in June. This is the same team that had correctly predicted that the third COVID wave would hit the country in February.  

High inflation caused by Covid-19 and Brexit, along with a reduced capital budget raised fears that two ongoing projects to extend Falkirk district primary schools might be delayed.

FREE NOW, revealed it will take an average of nearly five months before people are comfortable socialising like they did before the pandemic.But over half (57%) are “determined” to make more of an effort to overcome these angsts.Robert Fernandez, director of operations at FREE NOW, said: “This research clearly shows how widespread concerns about COVID are, and that this concern continues to inform choices of people in the UK.“As we thankfully move from living in a pandemic to learning how to live with COVID, it is important that we keep in mind, even with all restrictions lifted, that not everyone is ready to fully get back out there yet.“This is an understandable and common response to what has been a difficult time for many, and we need to recognise and respect that everyone is adjusting to this new normal at their own pace.“That is why we have partnered with Chartered Psychologist, Dr Meg Arroll, to help people arrive at their destinations more relaxed and ready to enjoy themselves.”The study also found that more than half of those who have experienced FOGO have tried to combat their concerns – but admitted the apprehension persists.And nearly a fifth (18%) will look to travel in a taxi to their destination, rather than on public transport, to compose themselves.Dr Meg Arroll, who has teamed up with FREE NOW, said: “Life has been challenging these past two years, and now that restrictions have fully eased and the world is opening up again, we’re all getting ready to step out.“But as we’ve had such an extensive period of uncertainty and anxiety, it’s not surprising that there still remains a sense of unease about going out – or FOGO, the fear of going out.“However, there are many strategies that we can all use to calm

COLOMBO (News 1st); State Minister Dilum Amunugama said he took oaths on Friday (4) as the country’s Minister of Transport.He was State Minister of State Ministry of Vehicle Regulation, Bus Transport Services and Train Compartments, and Motor Car Industry.It was reported on Thursday (3) night that Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi who was the Transport Minister would be taking oaths as the Minister of Power, replacing Gamini Lokuge, who was appointed as Minister of Energy, replacing Udaya Gammanpila.At the same time, Arundika Fernando was sworn in again as the State Minister of Coconut, Kithul, and Palmyrah Cultivation Promotion and Related Industrial Product Manufacturing and Export Diversification.He resigned from the position after his son was arrested and remanded in connection with the assault of a group of Ragama Medical Faculty students.He was sworn in again, after he was found NOT guilty by a committee that investigated the altercations that took place a month ago between two groups of students at the dormitory premises of the Medical Faculty of the Ragama Medical Faculty a month ago.

Two of Hong Kong's largest retail chains have started rationing some food and drug items to curb panic buying that has plagued the city over the past week amid fears of a citywide lockdown as Covid-19 cases soar.

COVID-19 may have more than one variant of the virus attacking them, according to a pair of new studies published earlier this year.Researchers for the two studies — one published in January, the other in February — say their evidence suggests less dominant variants may be simultaneously present in the same infected individual, with some cloaking themselves from the immune system.That could make it difficult for infected patients to get rid of COVID-19 from their systems entirely, said Kapil Gupta, lead author of the January study, in a statement Tuesday.“Some of these variants may use kidney or spleen cells as their niche to hide, while the body is busy defending against the dominant virus type,” Gupta said. Arthritis drug cuts risk of death in hospitalized COVID-19 patients: U.K.

PHILADELPHIA - Gas prices continue to skyrocket across the country as the war in Ukraine intensifies, and some believe prices will continue to balloon in the weeks ahead.According to AAA Mid-Atlantic, the average cost of a gallon of regular gas in Philadelphia is just below $4.

COVID-19 case tally rose to 42,951,556 with 6,396 people testing positive for the infection in a day while active cases declined to 69,897, according to Union Health Ministry data on Friday.

B.C. Premier John Horgan seemed to hint that the province might be dropping its mask requirement before spring break. Keith Baldrey has more.