20th January 2021 - Wilson James

o19

      20th January 2021

HIGHLIGHTS
       Worldwide cases of COVID-19 are at 96,625,827 with deaths numbering 2,065,698 as of 20 January
        according to Worldometer. 69,299,718 people have so far recovered from the virus.
       On 15 January, the worldwide death toll for the COVID-19 virus surpassed two million. Having taken
        nine months to pass the first million deaths, the virus only needed a further three months to pass the
        second million.
       Public health experts from Britain, Sweden and Nigeria have called for a review of the role and remit
        of the World Health Organisation after they faced difficulties leading the global response to the
        pandemic. One of the challenges discussed by the group has been the need to make the international
        health body truly independent.
       A UK study has found that people who have previously caught COVID-19 to be immune from the virus
        for at least five months. Experts in the study have also warned that those with natural immunity may
        still be able to spread the virus.
       The UK government announced a ban on passenger arrivals from South America from 04:00 16 January
        over fears that a new strain of Covid-19 discovered in Brazil could enter the UK. The ban will also to
        apply to passengers arriving from Portugal and Cape Verde.
       The United Nation’s World Meteorological Organisation has announced that 2020 was one of the
        hottest years on record, warning that we were close to the ‘catastrophic temperature rise of 3-5°C’.
       On the 20 January US President, elect Joe Biden inauguration in to office will take place. It is Biden’s
        intention to reverse a number of foreign policies introduced by Donald Trump. It has also been
        highlighted Biden has intent to immediately reverse the Trump administration’s decision to lift the ban
        on entry to the USA of arriving passengers from a number of countries including the UK. Trump has
        stated he will not attend the inauguration ceremony, the first outgoing president in 150 years not to
        do so.
       WHO Director General Dr Tedros Adahom has warned the world faces a “catastrophic moral failure”
        because of the inequality of vaccine policies. There are fears many poorer countries stand to be at a
        disadvantaged, by the manner in which the vaccine is globally distributed.

                                                                                                                   2
WORLD NEWS/RAS/20th January 2021

COVID – 19

        TOTAL CONFIRMED CASES                          TOTAL DEATHS                       PATIENTS RECOVERED
                96,625,827                              2,065,698                              69,299,718

        20.01.2021 Worldometer

        COVID-19 – UK

            Upper Tier Local Authority by cases                     Hospital admissions reported in last 7 days

         The total confirmed UK Covid-19 cases as of 20 January is 3,466,849 with 91,470 deaths according to
          GOV.UK.

         4,266,577 people have received their first dose of Covid-19 vaccination in the UK and 456,866 have
          received their second dose. GOV.UK

         A number of temporary morgues have been set up in the UK as hospitals run out of space in their own
          facilities. One facility in Ruislip, West London took a week to construct. It has a capacity to hold 1,300
          bodies.
         Anyone travelling to the UK will be required to self-isolate for 10 days unless they obtain a Covid-19
          test with a negative result after 5 days of arriving. The new travel restrictions came into place on 18
          January and are in response to new Covid-19 variants around the world.
                                                                                                                       3
WORLD NEWS/RAS/20th January 2021

COVID-19 – UK
        New laws are set to be introduced in Wales will require retailers to have signs visible to help people
         maintain social distancing, sanitiser available for hands and trolleys and systems in place to limit the
         number of people who can be in store. These measures are currently guidance but will now be law, the
         change comes after evidence from the test, trace and protect scheme has shown high transmissions in
         supermarkets.

        The lockdown in Scotland was restricted further from 16 January with click and collect services now
         only used for essential goods such as clothes, shoes, baby equipment, books and homeware. In
         addition, customers are not permitted on to the premises of takeaway establishments; instead,
         customers are now required to select delivery for their orders.

        Boris Johnson said the government hope to complete the vaccination programme for care home
         residents and workers by the end of the month. He added that around 40 percent of elderly care home
         residents have received the vaccination.

        The UK Supreme Court ruled insurance companies should cover loses to small businesses such as
         restaurants, nightclubs, wedding planners and beauty parlours caused by COVID-19 lockdowns. Some
         of the world’s largest commercial insurers argued business interruption policies did not cover
         widespread disruption.

        The Mosques and Imans National Advisory Board has sought to reassure worshippers in the UK that the
         COVID-19 vaccine is halal (permissible in Islam) and will also aim to debunk myths surrounding the
         vaccination in the hopes that more within the community will be immunised against the virus.

    COVID-19- OTHER COUNTRIES

    Brazil
    A surge in COVID-19 cases, likened to a tsunami, has led health workers in Brazil’s largest state, Amazonas,
    to beg for help and oxygen supplies. As a result of the plea for assistance, the Brazilian Air Force has begun
    delivering emergency supplies to Manaus and other cities in the region.

    Denmark
    On 13 January, the Danish government announced its decision to extend its hard lockdown by a minimum of
    three weeks to help fight against a new more transmissible variant of COVID-19 first identified in the UK.
    Restrictions include the closure of bars, schools and restaurants and a five-person limit on public gatherings.

    Europe
    The European Medicines Agency (EMA) has announced the manipulation of recently leaked COVID-19 vaccine
    data after a cyber-hack. "…Some of the correspondence has been manipulated by the perpetrators prior to
    publication in a way which could undermine trust in vaccines," the EMA said.

    Greece
    Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has pushed a ‘vaccine passport’ proposal that would allow people
    who have been immunised against COVID-19 to travel around Europe freely. Debates within the EU have
    seen member states raise concerns over the possibility that the system would discriminate between those
    who have been fortunate enough to get a vaccination and those who have not.

    Italy
    Italian Health Minister Roberto Speranza announced on 13 January that Italy’s state of emergency would
    continue until the end of April due to COVID-19 infections showing ‘no signs of abating’.

                                                                                                                      4
WORLD NEWS/RAS/20th January 2021

COVID-19- OTHER COUNTRIES

    Japan
    The Japanese state of emergency, originally implemented in only the Tokyo area, has expanded to seven
    more prefectures in response to the rate of COVID-19 infections continuing to rise.

    South Korea
    Lee Man-hee, the leader of the secretive religious sect the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, has received a not
    guilty verdict in hindering the government’s virus prevention efforts. Man-hee had reportedly given health
    authorities inaccurate records of church gatherings after it was highlighted the church accounted for more
    than half of S.Korea’s COVID-19 cases early last year.

    Switzerland
    A referendum will take place in Switzerland on ending the governments COVID-19 restrictions. Campaigners
    triggered the referendum by filing a petition to the Federal Chancellery with 90,000 signatures, Swiss law
    means any petition that is backed by more than 50,000 people will go to a national referendum.

    Turkey
    Turkey’s Health Minister Fahrettin Koca received the first shot of the Chinese vaccine CoronaVac live on
    television on 13 January. The vaccine came under scrutiny from regulators following data from Brazil and
    Indonesia that indicates the vaccine is less effective than the study in Turkey. The Brazilian study found the
    vaccine to be just 50.4% effective.

    United States of America
    The United States CDC has warned that the new COVID-19 variant, first discovered in the UK, could become
    the dominant strain of the virus by March. The warning comes as the US reported a record 4,300 deaths from
    COVID-19 on 12 January, with a further 965,000 having filed for unemployment benefits citing the virus as
    the cause for their unemployment.

      Useful Information Sources
               UK wide – Public Health England
               Scotland – Scottish Government
               Northern Ireland – NISRA
               Covid-19 deaths in England & Wales – ONS
               Covid-19 Statistics – Worldometer – Johns Hopkins University

                                                                                                                     5
WORLD NEWS/RAS/20th January 2021

WORLD NEWS
    China
    11 people were arrested in Hong Kong on 14 January charged with assisting activists attempting to flee the
    territory by speedboat to Taiwan. The associated activists previously received jail sentences in December
    2020 in Shenzhen, mainland China. The new 11 arrests were made as part of Hong Kongs crackdown on the
    pro-democracy movement.

    Belgium
    500 people were involved in a violent riot on 13 January in Brussels. King of the Belgium, Prince Philippe
    became a target when his car passed through the area. The riot occurred after an individual died when
    pursed by police for violating national lockdown restrictions.

    Estonia
    Estonia’s Prime Minister, Juri Ratas, alongside key party officials resign over a corruption scandal in his Centre
    Party. After the announcement of the resignations, talks immediately began amongst all parties to discuss
    the formation of a new government. Ratas has denied that he himself is guilty of any wrongdoing.

    Germany
    Germany’s Christian Democratic Union party elected Armin Laschet as leader on 16 January; he will look to
    succeed Angela Merkel when she steps down as German chancellor in September after 16 years in office.

    India
    Pilgrims have made the journey to Haridwar to take part in the Hindu Kumbah Mela festival. The festival,
    which takes place on the banks of the Ganges, attracted over 1 million worshippers. There are fears a spike
    in Covid-19 infections will follow.

    Iran
    The Iranian Navy has released images of the latest vessel to join its fleet. The IRIS Makran is a converted oil
    tanker capable of carrying 5 helicopters. The 228-meter long vessel position enables the tanker to provide
    logistical support and is capable of deploying surface-to-surface missiles.

    North Korea
    Leader of the country Kim Jong Un has been voted in as General Secretary of the Workers Party. The title
    which previously used by his father and grandfather is seen to be a symbolic move in order to strengthen his
    position of authority as the country faces economic challenges.

    Russia
    Russian opposition politician and fierce Valdimir Putin critic Alexi Navalny returned to Russia on Sunday 17
    January. On arrival Navalny was arrested for breaching conditions of a 2014 suspended sentence for
    embezzlement, he protests his innocence. Navalny is returning to Russia after spending 5 months recovering
    in Germany from a suspected Novichok poisoning.

    Turkey
    Istabul, as well as other cities across Turkey could potentially run out of water in less than 45 days as the
    country continues to suffer its worst drought in decades. Turkey is categorised as a ‘water stressed’ country
    and in the past has been criticised for prioritising economic growth over environmental concerns.

    United Kingdom
    An accidental deletion in the police national computer could have erased more than 400,000 records
    including fingerprint, DNA and arrest history’s of offenders. Priti Patel and the Home Office are finding
    themselves under increased pressure to explain the incident.
                                                                                                                         6
WORLD NEWS/RAS/20th January 2021

United Kingdom
    The airline Norwegian has announced that it will revert to its short-haul European network of routes,
    signalling an end to the companies long-haul, low cost vision. The ending of the vision will see the loss of
    2,150 jobs across the UK, Spain, France and the USA, including 1,100 jobs based at London Gatwick Airport.

    United States of America
    President Trump has become the first president in history, impeached twice after the US House of
    Representatives voted in favour of the ruling 232-197 on 13 January for ‘incitement of insurrection’ after the
    attack on the Capitol building. Members of the House have also attempted to convince Vice President Mike
    Pence to invoke the 25th amendment in order to remove President Trump from office, although the VP has
    indicted that he would not support this action.

    Vatican City
    Pope Francis (84) and former Pope Benedict (93) have both received their first doses of the Covid-19 vaccine.
    Pope Francis personal doctor, Fabrizio Soccorsi died from Covid-19 complications on Boxing Day.

   INSIGHTS
   Our Risk Advisory Service regularly publish articles and advisories covering a myriad of subjects. These
   publications can be found within our Insights section on our Risk Advisory Service website.

     Neom – Saudia Arabia’s futuristic city

     The word Neom is a portmanteau of two words, the Greek word ‘Neos’ and the Arabic word ‘mustaqbal’.
     Neom translates to ‘future’ in English. In North West Saudi Arabia, bordering the Red Sea, Saudi Arabia is
     undertaking one of the most ambitious construction projects in the world. The first phase of the $500bn
     project is nearing completion. The futuristic city will cover an area 33 times the size of New York City - 25,500
     square kilometres stretching 468km along the Red Sea coast.

     The aim of the project is to create:
     - an economic zone completely powered by renewable energy reducing the countries dependency on
         fossil fuels and
     - a base for industries including other biotech sectors, exploring how we can live more sustainably in the
         future.

     The city will have its own tax and labour laws and be an autonomous region of Saudi Arabia.

     Neom will be home to 1m citizens across its 16 boroughs, and Saudi authorities are hoping to attract people
     from all over the world to come and live in Neom. The Saudi Arabian government want Neom to be the city
     of the future, a hub for innovation, finance, technology, along with a centre for sustainability.

     Perhaps one of the most ambitious ideas behind the project is Crown Prince Mohammed’s plan for Neom
     to become a world-class tourist destination. Up until recently, Saudi Arabia prohibited individuals to visit for
     tourism; with entry visas restricted to business or for pilgrimage to Mecca only. Saudi Arabia recently lifted
     restrictions and now welcomes tourists into the country. 2021 will see the country hosting its inaugural
     Formula One race.

     To attract more tourists to the Kingdom, Crown Prince Mohammed is planning for Neom to be home to
     some of the world’s finest hospitality venues, however the consumption and sale of alcohol will remain
     strictly prohibited under Islamic law.
                                                                                                                         7
WORLD NEWS/RAS/20th January 2021

COVID19@wilsonjames.co.uk / riskadvisory@wilsonjames.co.uk

@WJltd

@WJ_Ltd

www.linkedin.com/company/wilson-james