Britain's new Health Secretary to update MPs on lifting limits on social contact
June 28, 2021, 4:26 am

Britain's new Health Secretary to update MPs on lifting limits on social contact

UK lockdown measures

According to BBC, Health secretary Sajid Javid will update MPs later on when the remaining Covid measures will lift in England. update MPs

Boris Johnson has said the measures will ease on 19 July, but has also promised a data review to see if this can happen two weeks earlier on 5 July.

The Commons is expected to be given the details of this review.

Its is reported that the government had planned to lift all legal limits on social contact on 21 June, but this was delayed amid concern over the spread of the Delta variant.

The number of new coronavirus cases across the UK has continued to rise quickly in the week since what would have been "freedom day" - and are up 59% in week-on-week figures.

But the government's decision will also take into account the progress of the UK's vaccine rollout.

The ministerial statement about coronavirus restrictions is expected in the House of Commons at about 15:30 BST.

Mr Javid's address will come less than 48 hours after it was announced he would take over from Matt Hancock, who resigned for breaching social distancing guidance by kissing a colleague.

Having only been appointed late on Saturday, Mr Javid spent much of Sunday at the Department of Health and Social Care, getting the latest briefings from advisers.

But he is no stranger to high profile roles, having already served as business secretary, culture secretary and chancellor, and has worked for three different prime ministers.

According to BBC political correspondent Ben Wright, "It's a pretty quick turnaround for any new secretary of state but this is an old hand in a new job. And Sajid Javid has been here many times before, so standing at the despatch box on day two of a new job won't faze him." update MPs

Mr Javid said on Sunday that dealing with the pandemic was his "most immediate priority".

"Thanks to the fantastic efforts of our NHS and social care staff who work tirelessly every day, and our phenomenal vaccination programme, we have made enormous progress in the battle against this dreadful disease," he said.

Over the weekend, stadiums, shopping centres and theatres were among hundreds of walk-in vaccination sites to open in England in a bid to boost the number of people getting jabbed.

On Sunday, NHS England said half of all adults under 30 in England had received a Covid-19 vaccine, with more than 4.2m people aged 18 to 29 jabbed in three weeks.

Latest figures on Sunday show a further 14,876 coronavirus cases were recorded in the UK and another 11 deaths within 28 days of a positive test.

But a message on the government dashboard said the case figure would have been higher but there had been a "technical issue" in collating some data in England. It said that cases yet to be counted would be rolled into Monday's figure. update MPs

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Source: BBC

Image source: Getty Images-BBC

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BENEFIT, the Kingdom’s innovator and leading company in Fintech and electronic financial transactions service, has sponsored the BuildHer CityHack 2025 Hackathon, a two-day event spearheaded by the College of Engineering and Technology at the Royal University for Women (RUW).
Aimed at secondary school students, the event brought together a distinguished group of academic professionals and technology experts to mentor and inspire young participants.
More than 100 high school students from across the Kingdom of Bahrain took part in the hackathon, which featured an intensive programme of training workshops and hands-on sessions. These activities were tailored to enhance participants’ critical thinking, collaborative problem-solving, and team-building capabilities, while also encouraging the development of practical and sustainable solutions to contemporary challenges using modern technological tools.
BENEFIT’s Chief Executive Mr. Abdulwahed AlJanahi, commented: “Our support for this educational hackathon reflects our long-term strategic vision to nurture the talents of emerging national youth and empower the next generation of accomplished female leaders in technology. By fostering creativity and innovation, we aim to contribute meaningfully to Bahrain’s comprehensive development goals and align with the aspirations outlined in the Kingdom’s Vision 2030—an ambition in which BENEFIT plays a central role.”
Professor Riyadh Yousif Hamzah, President of the Royal University for Women, commented: “This initiative reflects our commitment to advancing women in STEM fields. We're cultivating a generation of creative, solution-driven female leaders who will drive national development. Our partnership with BENEFIT exemplifies the powerful synergy between academia and private sector in supporting educational innovation.”
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For his part, Dr. Humam ElAgha, Acting Dean of the College of Engineering and Technology at the University, said: “BuildHer CityHack 2025 embodies our hands-on approach to education. By tackling real-world problems through creative thinking and sustainable solutions, we're preparing women to thrive in the knowledge economy – a cornerstone of the University's vision.”