The World Health Organisation has backed England's traffic light system for the return of international travel.
Dr David Nabarro, WHO's special Covid-19 envoy, said governments could no longer continue to "mothball" sections of the economy as it was time to "get on with life" even if the threat of the virus remained.
He said he was “impressed by the care with which the British government is trying to work out the safe places to go to” after the green, amber and red sets of countries were revealed last week.
“The virus is changing, it’s mutating all the time, and we know new variants are emerging and these are capable of being transmitted more easily,” he said.
“But we've got to get on with life and we can’t go on mothballing ourselves forever, so finding a way to restart despite this fear is what we all have to do. We must maintain a very vigilant posture in the coming months.”
A dozen countries and territories were included in the green light category, allowing for relatively free travel, but most were categorised as amber, meaning travellers have to quarantine at home for 10 days on arrival and take PCR Covid-19 tests on days two and eight.
Red-list status means that only UK or Irish residents can enter the country and returnees face a mandatory hotel quarantine stay costing £1,750 ($2,447).
Britain is using an algorithm to calculate countries' listings. After the system comes into effect on May 17, it will be reviewed every three weeks with the next announcements expected on May 28.
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said the UK wanted to “start looking outward again” as he announced the “first steps” to the return of travel on a broader scale.
“We want a summer in which, with the help of vaccines and testing, we can reunite families and friends and travel to places we love,” he said.
The traffic light system is due to come into force on May 17 under the current plans to ease lockdown restrictions.
On Tuesday, the EU will discuss plans for easing restrictions for fully vaccinated travellers. Currently, unrestricted travel to the continent is only permitted from seven countries.
Travel also remains limited in many parts of the world. The US largely prohibits non-essential travel, while countries such as Australia and New Zealand – both on the UK’s green list – ban non-citizens from entering.
Dr Nabarro said the world needed to “be on the defensive” as further countries look to open up again.
“There is no security with this virus,” he said.
“It is constantly capable of changing and as it changes, it has the ability to evade the protection that’s been given to us by these wonderful vaccines. We deal with that when it comes, we deal with it by being alert.”
More on travel
England sets out traffic light system in bid to revive foreign travel
Green list flights offer hope to Covid-ravaged UK travel industry
Vaccines for all is what will enable travel
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
Company%20profile
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Naga
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Scores:
Day 4
England 290 & 346
Sri Lanka 336 & 226-7 (target 301)
Sri Lanka require another 75 runs with three wickets remaining
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Normcore explained
Something of a fashion anomaly, normcore is essentially a celebration of the unremarkable. The term was first popularised by an article in New York magazine in 2014 and has been dubbed “ugly”, “bland’ and "anti-style" by fashion writers. It’s hallmarks are comfort, a lack of pretentiousness and neutrality – it is a trend for those who would rather not stand out from the crowd. For the most part, the style is unisex, favouring loose silhouettes, thrift-shop threads, baseball caps and boyish trainers. It is important to note that normcore is not synonymous with cheapness or low quality; there are high-fashion brands, including Parisian label Vetements, that specialise in this style. Embraced by fashion-forward street-style stars around the globe, it’s uptake in the UAE has been relatively slow.
T20 World Cup Qualifier
October 18 – November 2
Opening fixtures
Friday, October 18
ICC Academy: 10am, Scotland v Singapore, 2.10pm, Netherlands v Kenya
Zayed Cricket Stadium: 2.10pm, Hong Kong v Ireland, 7.30pm, Oman v UAE
UAE squad
Ahmed Raza (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Rameez Shahzad, Darius D’Silva, Mohammed Usman, Mohammed Boota, Zawar Farid, Ghulam Shabber, Junaid Siddique, Sultan Ahmed, Imran Haider, Waheed Ahmed, Chirag Suri, Zahoor Khan
Players out: Mohammed Naveed, Shaiman Anwar, Qadeer Ahmed
Players in: Junaid Siddique, Darius D’Silva, Waheed Ahmed
Classification of skills
A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation.
A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.
The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000.
