Steve McGookin
PM set to address foreign travel
Prime Minister Boris Johnson will make an announcement on Monday about the latest state of the fight against Covid-19, including how and when foreign travel might resume for Britons – even though the government’s road map indicates that the earliest such travel might re-start is May 17.
A number of MPs have already expressed their opposition to the so-called ‘vaccine passports’ the government appears set to trial and which many other countries are also exploring. There were reports at the weekend that the government was considering making pubs and restaurants exempt from any requirement to show certification.
France, meanwhile, is still in the grip of a four-week lockdown after a spike in cases threatened to overwhelm the country’s hospitals. Italy, also, has responded to a surge in cases with a new lockdown.
In North America, concerns grew this week over the outcome of the “race” between vaccines and variants as the B117 and P1 strains both showed significant growth.
Here in Northern Ireland, the infection rate has stayed roughly static, but still remains slightly higher than the UK as a whole.
See Also:
Catching Your Breath: Lobbying For Lung Health In The Time Of Covid-19
Leaders Need To Lead: The Executive and Covid-19
Life Is Harder Right Now. We Should Be Kinder To Ourselves
The Covid-19 Vaccine Explained
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Economic warnings post-Brexit and post-Covid
Despite outdoor retail in Northern Ireland being set to reopen next week, there were more warnings about the economic future of sectors of the British – and NI – economy in a post-Covid and post-Brext world.
The British government also found itself under pressure this week over its controversial report on racial and ethnic disparity.
Meanwhile, there were several nights of loyalist rioting in Belfast and across Northern Ireland this week – possibly a reaction to the Brexit protocol and the Irish Sea Border, possibly due to anger at recent policing decisions, or quite possibly something else altogether.
See Also:
‘We’ve Got To Create A Place Where There’s Hope’
Rethinking: Mandatory Coalition
Is The UUP’s Response To The NI Protocol A Vote Winner?
The Long Way Home – Finding A Way Through The Brexit Debacle?
Northern Irish Parties And Europe
Reinforcing Northern Ireland’s In-Betweenness
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Biden goes big on infrastructure and jobs
President Joe Biden this week announced his ambitious $2trillion-plus plan to rebuild the nation’s infrastructure over the coming few years. He called it a “once in a generation investment in America.”
Meanwhile in the week that saw former president Donald Trump sued by two Capitol Police officers over his role in the events of January 6th , another officer died after an incident when a car rammed a barricade outside the Capitol building.
There was also one of the more bizarre political stories as Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz’s career appeared to be melting down in slow motion.
New York became the 16th US state to legalize marijuana.
On the weekend of the 53rd anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr, Major League Baseball made a hugely symbolic statement by moving July’s All-Star Game away from Atlanta, in protest at the state of Georgia’s restrictive new voting legislation. A decision is pending on where the game will now be played.
There were emotional scenes at the trial in Minneapolis this week of Derek Chauvin, the former police officer accused of the murder of George Floyd last May. The city remains on edge as the trial continues.
See Also:
After Trump, What Lies Ahead For The GOP?
From The Big Lie To A Great Undoing
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Pressure grows for action on climate
A big element of Joe Biden’s jobs and infrastructure plan is the investment in clean energy and climate-related aspects of the economy.
As Britain prepares to host the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow later this year, there is pressure for Britain to be somewhat equally ambitious, but the signs do not so far seem encouraging.
Meanwhile…
See Also:
Build Back Differently: How NI Can Tackle Climate Change
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Myanmar still in grip of violence
Finally, protests continued over the Easter weekend in Myanmar, where the military continues to crack down on people protesting the ouster of the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February’s coup.
And…
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See Also Last Week’s Five Points:
Also published on Medium.
