A member of staff sticks a poster of a rainbow, being used as a symbol of hope during the Covid-19 pandemic, with the words "hope" into a window at 10 Downing Street, the official residence of Britain's Prime Minister, in central London. AFP / Tolga AKMEN
A member of staff sticks a poster of a rainbow, being used as a symbol of hope during the Covid-19 pandemic, with the words "hope" into a window at 10 Downing Street, the official residence of Britain's Prime Minister, in central London. AFP / Tolga AKMEN
A member of staff sticks a poster of a rainbow, being used as a symbol of hope during the Covid-19 pandemic, with the words "hope" into a window at 10 Downing Street, the official residence of Britain's Prime Minister, in central London. AFP / Tolga AKMEN
A member of staff sticks a poster of a rainbow, being used as a symbol of hope during the Covid-19 pandemic, with the words "hope" into a window at 10 Downing Street, the official residence of Britain

Coronavirus: Boris Johnson leaves intensive care unit


Nicky Harley
  • English
  • Arabic

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson is out of intensive care but still in hospital.

Mr Johnson was admitted to hospital early this week with persistent coronavirus symptoms.

“The Prime Minister has been moved this evening from intensive care back to the ward, where he will receive close monitoring during the early phase of his recovery," a Downing Street spokesman said.

“He is in extremely good spirits.”

Earlier on Thursday, a spokesman said Mr Johnson's health "continues to improve" but there was no hint that he might be about to be moved from the intensive care unit.

The UK government prepares to extend a nationwide lockdown.

"He continues to take positive steps forward and is in good spirits," Foreign minister Dominic Raab said at a daily Downing Street briefing.

The spokesman said Mr Johnson was not working and had received "standard oxygen treatment".

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab speaks as the UK's daily Covid-19 pandemic news conference. AFP
Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab speaks as the UK's daily Covid-19 pandemic news conference. AFP

Mr Johnson is the most high-profile world leader to suffer from the coronavirus and his transfer to intensive care on Monday was unprecedented for a prime minister during a national emergency in modern times.

While much of the focus in Britain has been on his health, there is also concern over the number of people infected with the virus.

On Thursday, the government announced an increase of 765 deaths in England, taking the total to 7,248.

Health officials said they expected the number of deaths to continue rising for two weeks after pressure on intensive care units eased.

"We're not there yet," said Patrick Vallance, the government's chief scientific adviser.

Senior ministers met to discuss extending strict social distancing measures introduced on March 23.

Mr Raab, who is standing in for Mr Johnson, led the "war cabinet", as he has done since Monday. He said he had not spoken to Mr Johnson after taking on his role.

"It's still too early to lift the measures that we have put in place," he said. The end of the first three-week lockdown is due to end on Monday.

"We don't expect to say more on this until the end of next week," Mr Raab said.

Asked if the government considered giving police extra powers, the Downing Street spokesman said: "For now our focus is on ensuring that the steps that we already have in place are properly enforced."

In Scotland, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said on Thursday that the lockdown was likely to continue "for some weeks to come".

Ms Sturgeon said there was "no prospect" of the measures being lifted in the coming days.

Meanwhile, ministers warned the public to follow social distancing rules ahead of the Easter weekend, for which high temperatures are forecast.

UAE squad to face Ireland

Ahmed Raza (captain), Chirag Suri (vice-captain), Rohan Mustafa, Mohammed Usman, Mohammed Boota, Zahoor Khan, Junaid Siddique, Waheed Ahmad, Zawar Farid, CP Rizwaan, Aryan Lakra, Karthik Meiyappan, Alishan Sharafu, Basil Hameed, Kashif Daud, Adithya Shetty, Vriitya Aravind

The Case For Trump

By Victor Davis Hanson
 

How the bonus system works

The two riders are among several riders in the UAE to receive the top payment of £10,000 under the Thank You Fund of £16 million (Dh80m), which was announced in conjunction with Deliveroo's £8 billion (Dh40bn) stock market listing earlier this year.

The £10,000 (Dh50,000) payment is made to those riders who have completed the highest number of orders in each market.

There are also riders who will receive payments of £1,000 (Dh5,000) and £500 (Dh2,500).

All riders who have worked with Deliveroo for at least one year and completed 2,000 orders will receive £200 (Dh1,000), the company said when it announced the scheme.

From Zero

Artist: Linkin Park

Label: Warner Records

Number of tracks: 11

Rating: 4/5

Who was Alfred Nobel?

The Nobel Prize was created by wealthy Swedish chemist and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel.

  • In his will he dictated that the bulk of his estate should be used to fund "prizes to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind".
  • Nobel is best known as the inventor of dynamite, but also wrote poetry and drama and could speak Russian, French, English and German by the age of 17. The five original prize categories reflect the interests closest to his heart.
  • Nobel died in 1896 but it took until 1901, following a legal battle over his will, before the first prizes were awarded.
MATCH INFO

Chelsea 1 (Hudson-Odoi 90 1')

Manchester City 3 (Gundogan 18', Foden 21', De Bruyne 34')

Man of the match: Ilkay Gundogan (Man City)

Why it pays to compare

A comparison of sending Dh20,000 from the UAE using two different routes at the same time - the first direct from a UAE bank to a bank in Germany, and the second from the same UAE bank via an online platform to Germany - found key differences in cost and speed. The transfers were both initiated on January 30.

Route 1: bank transfer

The UAE bank charged Dh152.25 for the Dh20,000 transfer. On top of that, their exchange rate margin added a difference of around Dh415, compared with the mid-market rate.

Total cost: Dh567.25 - around 2.9 per cent of the total amount

Total received: €4,670.30 

Route 2: online platform

The UAE bank’s charge for sending Dh20,000 to a UK dirham-denominated account was Dh2.10. The exchange rate margin cost was Dh60, plus a Dh12 fee.

Total cost: Dh74.10, around 0.4 per cent of the transaction

Total received: €4,756

The UAE bank transfer was far quicker – around two to three working days, while the online platform took around four to five days, but was considerably cheaper. In the online platform transfer, the funds were also exposed to currency risk during the period it took for them to arrive.

Specs

Engine: 51.5kW electric motor

Range: 400km

Power: 134bhp

Torque: 175Nm

Price: From Dh98,800

Available: Now

Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: ARDH Collective
Based: Dubai
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Sector: Sustainability
Total funding: Self funded
Number of employees: 4
Ibrahim's play list

Completed an electrical diploma at the Adnoc Technical Institute

Works as a public relations officer with Adnoc

Apart from the piano, he plays the accordion, oud and guitar

His favourite composer is Johann Sebastian Bach

Also enjoys listening to Mozart

Likes all genres of music including Arabic music and jazz

Enjoys rock groups Scorpions and Metallica 

Other musicians he likes are Syrian-American pianist Malek Jandali and Lebanese oud player Rabih Abou Khalil

Aayan%E2%80%99s%20records
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