Steve McGookinOlympics opens as Covid concerns continue
Amid surreal circumstances, the Olympics is doing its best to be the Olympics. But even in a heatwave, the continuing spread of the Coronavirus is at the back of everyone’s mind, with the Delta variant now the predominant strain across the world. The Tokyo area, meanwhile, remains under a state of emergency.
* Follow the latest from the Olympics at CNN here.
Brisbane was awarded the Olympics for 2032, assuming anyone will be able to travel to Australia by then.
In the US, despite an apparent change of mind on vaccines by some right-wing figures, there is growing concern that a continuing vaccine resistance will frustrate the Biden administration’s efforts to finally move the country into a true post-Covid environment.
In Britain, Boris Johnson’s “Freedom Day” came and went, but around the world, it seems that plenty of people still have plenty to complain about.
A week with other political problems looming for Health Minister Robin Swann ended with the Belfast Trust appealing for extra staff to help with Covid cases.
See Also:
Lobbying For Lung Health In The Time Of Covid
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Tories seek to “re-do” NI protocol part of Brexit agreement
Boris Johnson’s government said this week it wanted to “re-do” a significant part of the Brexit withdrawal agreement which led to the Northern Ireland Protocol. In a “command paper” on Wednesday, Britain’s lead negotiator Lord Frost said the mechanism was “unsustainable” but stopped short of triggering the Article 16 provision, which would lead to the deal’s suspension.
Almost immediately, the EU said a renegotiation would not be possible, while the local parties in NI are, perhaps predictably, divided about next steps.
Also this week, former Johnson adviser Dominic Cummings continued to promote his own version of history, while former DUP leader Arlene Foster ended up at GBNews.
Meanwhile…
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Genuine Progress On Legacy Remains Elusive
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Climate warnings intensify
This week again saw record high temperatures and a Met Office warning for Northern Ireland, along with some intense rainfall in London, as well as further extreme weather events across the planet.
Meanwhile, smog from the wildfires on the US west coast reached the other side of the country…
With prospects of another “heat dome” affecting the continental US, there are now about 100 days until the start of the COP26 climate conference.
See Also:
Sustainability And The Centenary
Build Back Differently: How NI Can Tackle Climate Change
‘Everything Is Getting Much Worse, Much Faster, Everywhere’
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US wrestles with infrastructure plan
After a weekend of discussions towards a “bipartisan” infrastructure spending bill with President Joe Biden’s support, politicians are yet to agree final details but there are some signs that the package could be finalized before Congress breaks for its August recess.
As President Biden marked six months in office he was the first to admit there is “more to do” in delivering his policy agenda amid a number of competing political priorities.
Meanwhile, Tom Barrack, the billionaire financier who was former President Donald Trump’s inauguration fundraising chairman, was arrested this week on charges of operating as an agent of a foreign government. The latest Trump associate to be charged was subsequently released on a $250 million bond.
And…
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Fallout continues in spyware investigation
A consortium of global media organizations this week published extensive claims about the use of invasive spyware and surveillance techniques affecting governments around the world. The Guardian, The Washington Post and 15 other news organizations, working with the Paris-based non-profit Forbidden Stories, reported on NSO Group and its Pegasus phone-hacking tool.
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