Bundesliga final

The final anti-HS2 activist from a group who had spent at least a month underground in a network of tunnels has been removed. As the man, known as Bradley, emerged from the site under London's Euston Square Gardens and was transferred to an ambulance, he raised two fingers in a peace/victory sign. A crowd gathered nearby cheered and shouted "we love you Bradley". Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player 16-year-old Rory Hooper - the son of veteran environmental campaigner Swampy - joined the protest The network of tunnels near the London station was dug in secret by protesters objecting to the redevelopment of the area as part of the high-speed railway line. They were first discovered in their underground bunker on 26 January. Advertisement But on Friday, HS2 Limited, the government-owned company building the project, said the final person had been taken out of the site. A total of nine protesters have been … [Read more...] about Euston HS2 protest: Final activist removed from tunnels – and raises a peace sign

Matchgoing fans were among those to have been hit fairly early on by the pandemic. Now, about a year into life with COVID-19, mass crowds are largely still banned from sports games. But many fans are now hanging their hopes on the newly-developed vaccines. With Israel and the UK among the countries with the world's highest vaccination rates, both provide a glimpse of how sports events could soon be carried out with mass crowds in attendance. 10,000 fans at an Israeli football game? As of February 25, Israel is the world leader in administered COVID19 vaccination doses per capita, with 90 doses administered per 100 people. A total of 4.6 million people have already received the first dose, more than half of Israel's 9m population, with more than 3.2 million of those having already received the second dose. Those who received their second dose are entitled to a so-called Green Pass, which initially lasts six months and allows its holders wide-ranging privileges such as booking … [Read more...] about Israel, UK mull return of sports fans after mass COVID-19 vaccinations

Day 340 of the social distancing measures and I am ready to announce a clear winner of my award for the Most Annoying Zoom Background of Lockdown . A roll on the drums, please, for that bumptious self-promoter Grant Shapps , whose survival in ministerial office is one of the enduring mysteries of modern politics. (He’s now the Transport Secretary, if you’re wondering, entrusted with the nation’s hopes of regaining the right to a foreign holiday sometime before the crack of doom.) Heaven knows, I try to be charitable in this column. But I defy even the kindest-hearted among us to look at the elaborately staged background to Mr Shapps’s Zoom appearances from his home without thinking: ‘Goodness, what a twerp!’ Grant Shapps, pictured, appeared on Robert Peston's ITV show with the British Civil Air Ensign emblazoned with the Union Flag, draped as usual from a floor-standing flagpole Take Wednesday night, when he appeared via Zoom on Robert Peston’s ITV show. There he … [Read more...] about TOM UTLEY: My plea for the future? We see the back of hideously vain Zoom poseurs like Grant Shapps

The next phase of COVID vaccinations will continue to prioritise people by age and not their occupation to avoid slowing down the rollout. People aged 40-49 will be the next in line to get a vaccine after all vulnerable groups and the over-50s are covered, the government said. The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) said this would provide "the greatest benefit in the shortest time". It added that prioritising occupational groups such as teachers and police could make the rollout more complex and could potentially slow the programme overall, leaving some vulnerable people at higher risk for longer. Live COVID updates from the UK and around the world Advertisement In a statement, a government spokesperson confirmed all four nations of the UK would follow the recommendations "subject to the final advice given by the independent expert committee". The spokesperson added that age had been assessed to be "the strongest … [Read more...] about COVID-19: People in their 40s first for phase two of vaccine rollout – no priority for teachers and police

London's delay-hit Crossrail scheme has been held up again and will not open until the "first half of 2022", the developer of the troubled multi-billion pound project has said. Even before the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, the budget-busting east-west line through the capital, stretching from Berkshire to Essex, had repeatedly missed deadlines since failing to meet the original target of December 2018. In March, Transport for London (TfL) said it was suspending building work at sites, including Crossrail , to limit the spread of COVID-19 . While construction has restarted, social distancing means a maximum of 2,000 people are now allowed on Crossrail sites, which is less than 50% of the staffing levels prior to the public health crisis. In a statement, Crossrail Limited, the company responsible for the project, said: "Delivery of the Elizabeth line is now in its complex final stages and is being completed at a time of great uncertainty due to the … [Read more...] about London’s Crossrail shunted by further delay as cost threatens to rise by £1.1bn