Voters and Tory MPs last night urged Boris Johnson to rescue Christmas by exempting children from his ‘rule of six’. A Daily Mail poll showed more than four in ten support a U-turn on the policy, letting grandparents see their families over the festive season. Tory backbenchers savaged the ‘grotesque’ restriction which, from Monday, bans groups … Read more
Thai pupils have acted out the scene of a teacher giving a humiliating haircut to a student to demonstrate the country’s draconian school rules. High school pupils have followed the example of university students who have been leading anti-government protests and last week 400 teenagers rallied outside the education minister’s office in Bangkok. The broader … Read more
Fears have arisen that Beijing could punish ‘everyone on the planet’ with its national security law in Hong Kong with an alarming clause targeting people who are outside of China. The landmark legislation, officially passed on Tuesday, outlaws secessionist, subversive or terrorist activities, as well as foreign intervention in the city’s internal affairs. But one article … Read more
A British expat who stayed in China during the coronavirus pandemic has documented how ordinary people coped with the country’s draconian lockdown and high-tech surveillance. Yu Kung, a former London advertising executive, used his camera to record his neighbours dealing with unprecedented life changes after the killer infection erupted in the Far East. One of … Read more
Carl Heneghan, a professor of medicine at Oxford University, claims the UK’s coronavirus outbreak peaked a week before lockdown and that draconian measures were unnecessary The UK’s coronavirus outbreak peaked a week before lockdown, according to a leading expert who argues the draconian measures were unnecessary. Carl Heneghan, professor of evidence-based medicine at Oxford University, … Read more
What is the coronavirus? A coronavirus is a type of virus which can cause illness in animals and people. Viruses break into cells inside their host and use them to reproduce itself and disrupt the body’s normal functions. Coronaviruses are named after the Latin word ‘corona’, which means crown, because they are encased by a … Read more
As lockdown in Wuhan is finally lifted, a 32-year-old British expat who has been working in the city for several years sends this vivid despatch on the realities of freedom. At midnight on Tuesday, I was woken up by whoops and cheers of ‘Come on Wuhan’ as my neighbours in this city of 11 million … Read more
Police officers have started using powers to disperse crowds of more than two to halt the spread of coronavirus. Fines of up to £1,000 are planned for those who flout rules announced by the Prime Minister last night putting strict limits on when people are able to leave the house, and banning public gatherings. And … Read more
What is the coronavirus? A coronavirus is a type of virus which can cause illness in animals and people. Viruses break into cells inside their host and use them to reproduce itself and disrupt the body’s normal functions. Coronaviruses are named after the Latin word ‘corona’, which means crown, because they are encased by a … Read more