Despite Britain looking to roll out a coronavirus vaccine as early as December, health minister Matt Hancock warned on Friday that in the best case scenario, most of the inoculations would come next year.
British health officials are putting plans in place to set up mass vaccination centres in football stadiums and smaller venues in primary care networks for at-risk groups.
The indoor arena at Pride Park football stadium in Derby is one confirmed vaccination centre.
A mass recruitment drive for healthcare staff is also due to take place shortly, the Health Service Journal reported.
It is understood that the government hopes to vaccinate as many as one million people per day at peak deployment.
Speaking at a press conference in Downing Street on Friday, Mr Hancock said: "If the regulators approve a vaccine, we will be ready to start the vaccinations next month with the bulk of the rollout in the new year.
"We are heading in the right direction, but there is still a long way to go. Coronavirus remains a danger right now, so we must keep doing all that we know to blunt the force of this virus."
He warned that even "in the best case scenario", the bulk of the vaccine rollout would be next year, and it would still take a few months to get the inoculations to vulnerable groups.
Mr Hancock said earlier that it would be run “in parallel” with a flu programme and that the law had been changed to allow more people to deliver the shot.
He told Sky News that “normally, 15 million people are vaccinated against flu. This year it will be 30 million – the biggest number in history.
"We hope that we will also have a Covid vaccination programme alongside that. It will be a huge effort, but I know that the NHS is up for it."
Mr Hancock said there were "encouraging signs" with both the Pfizer and Oxford vaccines but cautioned "nothing is guaranteed yet".
He added that peak deployment would likely take place next year.
Vaccine rollout 'no easy feat'
Dr Nigel Watson, a Hampshire physician who is working on vaccination plans, confirmed reports that firefighters and soldiers would be recruited for the rollout.
"This is the biggest vaccination programme in history and therefore we're going to need to expand the workforce over the winter period," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.
“We’re already extended as it is.”
Peter Openshaw, a professor at Imperial College London, said that the logistical challenges involved with rolling out the vaccine would be immense.
He said the Pfizer vaccine, which needs to be stored at minus 75 degrees, could be kept at hospitals and delivered once a week.
“This is no easy feat,” he said.
Meanwhile, a leading scientist has suggested coronavirus infections may be starting to level out in the UK.
Neil Ferguson, also a professor at Imperial College London, told the Guardian that infection rates appear to be "plateauing" and gradually declining.
The epidemiologist called for the lockdown to be extended to stop infection rates rebounding.
He said: “A halving of infection prevalence over the four weeks would be a positive result.”
A further 22,915 people tested positive for the virus, with 501 deaths on Thursday, according to the government’s coronavirus dashboard.
There were 163,061 infections over the past week, down 2.4 per cent from the week before.
Another 2,847 deaths were also registered in the past week, an increase of 1.4 per cent compared to the previous week.
Mr Hancock said the infection rate was showing "encouraging signs" of flattening but that it was too early to tell whether this would mean a near-normal Christmas.
He said: "There are encouraging signs that the number of cases is starting to flatten and that the lockdown that we brought in earlier this month is working.
"It of course won't be like a normal Christmas, there will have to be rules in place, but we hope that they'll allow for a bit more of that normal Christmas that people really look forward to."
A senior health official has said England will face nearly a month of lockdown to stop Covid-19 infections soaring, if it takes the five days being mooted by officials, where restrictions will be relaxed to allow people to spend time with their families over Christmas.
Speaking at the press conference on Friday, deputy chief medical officer for England Jonathan Van-Tam said that there was no "magic number" for how many days it would take to ease coronavirus restrictions at Christmas.
He added that it was "a dual responsibility" of the government to implement informed rules to allow for "a sensible Christmas", but it was also the public's responsibility to follow those rules.
Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
What is blockchain?
Blockchain is a form of distributed ledger technology, a digital system in which data is recorded across multiple places at the same time. Unlike traditional databases, DLTs have no central administrator or centralised data storage. They are transparent because the data is visible and, because they are automatically replicated and impossible to be tampered with, they are secure.
The main difference between blockchain and other forms of DLT is the way data is stored as ‘blocks’ – new transactions are added to the existing ‘chain’ of past transactions, hence the name ‘blockchain’. It is impossible to delete or modify information on the chain due to the replication of blocks across various locations.
Blockchain is mostly associated with cryptocurrency Bitcoin. Due to the inability to tamper with transactions, advocates say this makes the currency more secure and safer than traditional systems. It is maintained by a network of people referred to as ‘miners’, who receive rewards for solving complex mathematical equations that enable transactions to go through.
However, one of the major problems that has come to light has been the presence of illicit material buried in the Bitcoin blockchain, linking it to the dark web.
Other blockchain platforms can offer things like smart contracts, which are automatically implemented when specific conditions from all interested parties are reached, cutting the time involved and the risk of mistakes. Another use could be storing medical records, as patients can be confident their information cannot be changed. The technology can also be used in supply chains, voting and has the potential to used for storing property records.
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
NEW ARRIVALS
Benjamin Mendy (Monaco) - £51.75m (Dh247.94m)
Kyle Walker (Tottenham Hotspur) - £45.9m
Bernardo Silva (Monaco) - £45m
Ederson Moraes (Benfica) - £36m
Danilo (Real Madrid) - £27m
Douglas Luiz (Vasco de Gama) - £10.8m
Green ambitions
- Trees: 1,500 to be planted, replacing 300 felled ones, with veteran oaks protected
- Lake: Brown's centrepiece to be cleaned of silt that makes it as shallow as 2.5cm
- Biodiversity: Bat cave to be added and habitats designed for kingfishers and little grebes
- Flood risk: Longer grass, deeper lake, restored ponds and absorbent paths all meant to siphon off water
Your Guide to the Home
- Level 1 has a valet service if you choose not to park in the basement level. This level houses all the kitchenware, including covetable brand French Bull, along with a wide array of outdoor furnishings, lamps and lighting solutions, textiles like curtains, towels, cushions and bedding, and plenty of other home accessories.
- Level 2 features curated inspiration zones and solutions for bedrooms, living rooms and dining spaces. This is also where you’d go to customise your sofas and beds, and pick and choose from more than a dozen mattress options.
- Level 3 features The Home’s “man cave” set-up and a display of industrial and rustic furnishings. This level also has a mother’s room, a play area for children with staff to watch over the kids, furniture for nurseries and children’s rooms, and the store’s design studio.
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Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
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Engine: 5.2-litre twin-turbo V12
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 715bhp
Torque: 900Nm
Price: Dh1,289,376
On sale: now
Who has been sanctioned?
Daniella Weiss and Nachala
Described as 'the grandmother of the settler movement', she has encouraged the expansion of settlements for decades. The 79 year old leads radical settler movement Nachala, whose aim is for Israel to annex Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where it helps settlers built outposts.
Harel Libi & Libi Construction and Infrastructure
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Coco’s Farm and Neria’s Farm
These are illegal outposts in the West Bank, which are at the vanguard of the settler movement. According to the UK, they are associated with people who have been involved in enabling, inciting, promoting or providing support for activities that amount to “serious abuse”.
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UAE-Russia ties stretch back 48 years
Trade between the UAE and Russia reached Dh12.5 bn in 2018
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