Thanks for joining Liam and I for our free blog on the coronavirus pandemic this Wednesday January 27. David here closing the blog down after another day.
Recapping today’s top stories:
- Australia’s vaccine rollout plan is under a cloud after the European Union slapped export controls on COVID-19 vaccines produced within their territory, including the Pfizer and AstraZeneca jabs the Morrison government is relying on.
- The first five Queensland cities to receive the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine have been named. Health workers in Brisbane, the Gold and Sunshine coasts as well as the north Queensland cities of Cairns and Townsville will be vaccinated first.
- A handful of COVID-19 restrictions will be eased across Greater Sydney from Friday, but it will be at least two weeks before hospitality venues can permit one person per two square metres.
- Victoria has reached 21 consecutive days without a new locally acquired COVID-19 case, but two new cases emerged in hotel quarantine.
- The police union is demanding the state government dramatically cut the number of officers working at border checkpoints after multiple police stations were forced to close over the weekend due to widespread staffing shortages.
- In Holland, police took to the streets of Dutch towns and cities in force Tuesday night in an attempt to prevent violent rioting that shook the country for three successive nights after a nationwide curfew was introduced to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
- And in the US, the Biden administration is ramping up the distribution of coronavirus vaccines, announcing a new plan to deliver enough doses to protect 300 million Americans — nearly the entire US population — by the end of the northern hemisphere summer.
Thanks again for following along.
Night all.