Summary

  • In a letter to parents, the health and education secretaries have urged adults to persuade their children to get vaccinated

  • Sajid Javid and Nadhim Zahawi say getting jabbed is "one of the best things young people can do to protect themselves and those around them"

  • As of 04:00 BST, the UK's travel red list has been cut from 54 countries to seven

  • It ends hotel quarantine rules for people arriving from South Africa, Mexico, Brazil and other countries

  • Separately, fully vaccinated travellers arriving in the UK from 37 other countries will also have to comply with fewer rules

  • An AstraZeneca antibody therapy can reduce the chances of high-risk people developing severe, life-threatening Covid, clinical trial results show

  • In Wales, NHS Covid passes are now compulsory for entry to big events or nightclubs

Live Reporting

Edited by Hamish Mackay

  1. What else is changing for foreign travel?

    As well as the changes to the UK's foreign travel red list, it is now easier for people arriving into the UK from other countries.

    Arrivals from 37 more destinations now have their vaccination status certificates recognised, meaning they can avoid more expensive post-arrival testing requirements.

    Vaccinated travellers from Brazil, Hong Kong, India, Pakistan, South Africa and Turkey will be treated the same as returning fully-vaccinated UK residents as long as they have not visited a red-list country in the 10 days before arriving in England.

    All arrivals will still need to complete a passenger locator form - here's what the new rules mean.

  2. Uncertain winter ahead as flu and Covid circulate at same time - Harries

    As we mentioned earlier, the head of the Health Security Agency, Dr Jenny Harries, has warned that the UK is facing an uncertain winter with the spread of coronavirus and flu.

    In an interview with the BBC, she says people are at "more significant risk of death and of serious illness if they are co-infected" with both viruses.

    "It's a more uncertain year but I certainly would be encouraging everybody to go and get their vaccine."

    More than 40 million people in the UK are being offered a flu jab this year.

    Flu deaths chart

    The former deputy chief medical officer for England adds: "This is probably the first season where we will have significant amounts of Covid circulating as well as flu.

    "People's behaviours have changed, we are mixing more, winter weather is coming along, everybody is going into enclosed spaces."

    You can read more from the interview here.

  3. Which countries stay on the red list?

    Red-list countries are those the government says should not be visited "except in the most extreme of circumstances". As of 04:00 BST, there are only seven of these.

    They are: Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Haiti, Panama, Peru and Venezuela.

    If you have been in one of these countries in the last 10 days, you cannot travel to the UK.

    The only exception is if you are a UK or Irish national, or UK resident - in which case you need to:

    These rules apply whether or not you have been fully vaccinated and we've got more detail here.

  4. Which countries are off the red list?

    Here are the 47 places removed from the UK's travel red list from 04:00 BST:

    Afghanistan, Angola, Argentina, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Burundi, Cape Verde, Chile, Congo (Democratic Republic), Costa Rica, Cuba. Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, French Guiana, Georgia, Guyana, Indonesia, Lesotho, Malawi, Mayotte, Mexico, Mongolia, Montenegro, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Paraguay, Philippines, Réunion, Rwanda, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Suriname, Tanzania, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Uganda, Uruguay, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

    Source: Department for Transport

  5. UK travel red list cut to just seven countries

    Cancun in MexicoGetty Images

    Mexico is off the UK's travel red list

    If you've got the Monday morning blues then news that the UK's foreign travel rules are relaxing further could be just what you need to hear to start planning a holiday.

    The number of countries on the UK Covid travel red list is cut from 54 to seven from today.

    South Africa, Brazil and Mexico are now off the red list, meaning travellers arriving back in the UK from these countries no longer have to quarantine in an approved hotel for 10 days.

    Transport Secretary Grant Shapps says the changes "mark the next step" in opening travel.

    But consumer group Which? reminds us that the changes only reflect requirements for arriving back in the UK.

    "Travellers should be aware that they may still face restrictions on entry to many destinations, especially those under 18 who are not yet vaccinated," it says.

    Here's what you need to know.

  6. Welcome

    Good morning and welcome to our live coverage of the coronavirus pandemic in the UK and around the world. Here are some of the morning's main headlines: