Australia will stick to its lockdown strategy to tackle Covid-19 until at least 70 per cent of its population has been fully vaccinated.
After that, it will have to start living with the virus, the country’s prime minister, Scott Morrison, said on Sunday, when the record daily figure of 914 new infections was reported.
“You can’t live with lockdowns for ever, and at some point you need to make that gear change, and that is done at 70 per cent,” Mr Morrison told the Australian broadcaster ABC.
The southern and eastern states of New South Wales, Victoria and Australian Capital Territory remained under lockdown.
Such measures are a central element of the federal government’s strategy to rein in outbreaks until the 70 per cent vaccination level is reached. Borders will reopen in stages when the figure climbs to 80 per cent.
But, in a departure from the zero-Covid strategy adopted earlier in the pandemic, Mr Morrison said it was highly unlikely that Australia would eliminate cases before the curbs could be eased.
“Lockdowns are not a sustainable way to deal with the virus and that’s why we have to get to the 70 per cent and 80 per cent marks, so we can start living with the virus,” he said.
About 60 per cent of the population of 25 million is now under lockdown. Stay-at-home orders, often lasting for months, have tested the patience of many.
Hundreds arrested at anti-lockdown protests
A worsening outbreak in Victoria, the state that includes Melbourne, led stay-at-home orders to be expanded to the entire state.
But Melbourne’s public health orders did not deter thousands from venting anger in a march against the lockdown rules, and police used pepper spray in violent clashes with protesters.
Seven officers were injured and more than 200 people were arrested, Victoria Police said in a statement on the demonstration, which it called “violent and unlawful”.
“While there were some peaceful protesters in attendance, the majority of those who attended came with violence in mind,” they said.
In Sydney, more than 1,500 police officers flooded the city. They set up roadblocks and made dozens of arrests when about 250 people gathered there, NSW Police said.
NSW Police handed out 940 fines in the past 24 hours for breaches of public health orders.
Large crowds were also reported at an anti-lockdown rally in Brisbane, Queensland, while several hundred people gathered to protest at the state’s border on Sunday, local media reported.
New South Wales reported 830 new infections on Sunday, despite the enhanced efforts. The Australian Capital Territory, home to the capital, Canberra, had 19. Nationwide, the tally of active cases stands at about 12,000.
The south-eastern state of Victoria, in its sixth lockdown since the start of the pandemic, recorded 65 locally acquired cases on Sunday.
“We are throwing everything at this,” said Martin Foley, the state’s health minister.
About 30 per cent of Australians aged 16 and older have been fully vaccinated, health ministry data showed on Saturday. The Pfizer-BioNTech shot is in short supply and the AstraZeneca vaccine provokes public unease.
Despite a third wave of infections from the Delta variant, Australia’s Covid-19 numbers are relatively low, with about 44,000 cases and 981 deaths reported to date.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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UAE v Ireland
1st ODI, UAE win by 6 wickets
2nd ODI, January 12
3rd ODI, January 14
4th ODI, January 16
The specs
Engine: 2x201bhp AC Permanent-magnetic electric
Transmission: n/a
Power: 402bhp
Torque: 659Nm
Price estimate: Dh200,000
On sale: Q3 2022
MATCH INFO
League Cup, last 16
Manchester City v Southampton, Tuesday, 11.45pm (UAE)
What is Folia?
Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal's new plant-based menu will launch at Four Seasons hotels in Dubai this November. A desire to cater to people looking for clean, healthy meals beyond green salad is what inspired Prince Khaled and American celebrity chef Matthew Kenney to create Folia. The word means "from the leaves" in Latin, and the exclusive menu offers fine plant-based cuisine across Four Seasons properties in Los Angeles, Bahrain and, soon, Dubai.
Kenney specialises in vegan cuisine and is the founder of Plant Food Wine and 20 other restaurants worldwide. "I’ve always appreciated Matthew’s work," says the Saudi royal. "He has a singular culinary talent and his approach to plant-based dining is prescient and unrivalled. I was a fan of his long before we established our professional relationship."
Folia first launched at The Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills in July 2018. It is available at the poolside Cabana Restaurant and for in-room dining across the property, as well as in its private event space. The food is vibrant and colourful, full of fresh dishes such as the hearts of palm ceviche with California fruit, vegetables and edible flowers; green hearb tacos filled with roasted squash and king oyster barbacoa; and a savoury coconut cream pie with macadamia crust.
In March 2019, the Folia menu reached Gulf shores, as it was introduced at the Four Seasons Hotel Bahrain Bay, where it is served at the Bay View Lounge. Next, on Tuesday, November 1 – also known as World Vegan Day – it will come to the UAE, to the Four Seasons Resort Dubai at Jumeirah Beach and the Four Seasons DIFC, both properties Prince Khaled has spent "considerable time at and love".
There are also plans to take Folia to several more locations throughout the Middle East and Europe.
While health-conscious diners will be attracted to the concept, Prince Khaled is careful to stress Folia is "not meant for a specific subset of customers. It is meant for everyone who wants a culinary experience without the negative impact that eating out so often comes with."
THE NEW BATCH'S FOCUS SECTORS
AiFlux – renewables, oil and gas
DevisionX – manufacturing
Event Gates – security and manufacturing
Farmdar – agriculture
Farmin – smart cities
Greener Crop – agriculture
Ipera.ai – space digitisation
Lune Technologies – fibre-optics
Monak – delivery
NutzenTech – environment
Nybl – machine learning
Occicor – shelf management
Olymon Solutions – smart automation
Pivony – user-generated data
PowerDev – energy big data
Sav – finance
Searover – renewables
Swftbox – delivery
Trade Capital Partners – FinTech
Valorafutbol – sports and entertainment
Workfam – employee engagement
The specs
Price, base / as tested Dh12 million
Engine 8.0-litre quad-turbo, W16
Gearbox seven-speed dual clutch auto
Power 1479 @ 6,700rpm
Torque 1600Nm @ 2,000rpm 0-100kph: 2.6 seconds 0-200kph: 6.1 seconds
Top speed 420 kph (governed)
Fuel economy, combined 35.2L / 100km (est)
Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
As it stands in Pool A
1. Japan - Played 3, Won 3, Points 14
2. Ireland - Played 3, Won 2, Lost 1, Points 11
3. Scotland - Played 2, Won 1, Lost 1, Points 5
Remaining fixtures
Scotland v Russia – Wednesday, 11.15am
Ireland v Samoa – Saturday, 2.45pm
Japan v Scotland – Sunday, 2.45pm
The Voice of Hind Rajab
Starring: Saja Kilani, Clara Khoury, Motaz Malhees
Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
Rating: 4/5
Biog
Mr Kandhari is legally authorised to conduct marriages in the gurdwara
He has officiated weddings of Sikhs and people of different faiths from Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Russia, the US and Canada
Father of two sons, grandfather of six
Plays golf once a week
Enjoys trying new holiday destinations with his wife and family
Walks for an hour every morning
Completed a Bachelor of Commerce degree in Loyola College, Chennai, India
2019 is a milestone because he completes 50 years in business
Company%20profile
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UK’s AI plan
- AI ambassadors such as MIT economist Simon Johnson, Monzo cofounder Tom Blomfield and Google DeepMind’s Raia Hadsell
- £10bn AI growth zone in South Wales to create 5,000 jobs
- £100m of government support for startups building AI hardware products
- £250m to train new AI models
OIL PLEDGE
At the start of Russia's invasion, IEA member countries held 1.5 billion barrels in public reserves and about 575 million barrels under obligations with industry, according to the agency's website. The two collective actions of the IEA this year of 62.7 million barrels, which was agreed on March 1, and this week's 120 million barrels amount to 9 per cent of total emergency reserves, it added.
What is tokenisation?
Tokenisation refers to the issuance of a blockchain token, which represents a virtually tradable real, tangible asset. A tokenised asset is easily transferable, offers good liquidity, returns and is easily traded on the secondary markets.
No.6 Collaborations Project
Ed Sheeran (Atlantic)
Tu%20Jhoothi%20Main%20Makkaar%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ELuv%20Ranjan%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ERanbir%20Kapoor%2C%20Shraddha%20Kapoor%2C%20Anubhav%20Singh%20Bassi%20and%20Dimple%20Kapadia%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Company%C2%A0profile
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MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5