Ten Things You Need to Know Today: 3 Feb 2021
The Week’s daily digest of the news agenda, published at 8am
- 1. Oxford jab ‘can cut spread’
- 2. Leak reveals Labour flag plan
- 3. Tributes for Captain Moore
- 4. Mass arrests after Navalny jailed
- 5. Bezos to leave Amazon top job
- 6. Study finds self-isolation failings
- 7. Biden reverses Trump separations
- 8. Online casinos face new rules
- 9. Draghi may head Italy’s government
- 10. Harry wants to keep army titles
1. Oxford jab ‘can cut spread’
The Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine could lead to a “substantial” drop in the spread of Covid-19, according to scientists. Preliminary results from a study due to be published in The Lancet suggest that a single dose reduces transmission by 67%. Previous trials have demonstrated that the vaccine stops people developing symptoms, but the new “data indicate that it may have a substantial impact on transmission by reducing the number of infected individuals in the population”, the study concluded.
2. Leak reveals Labour flag plan
Labour must make “use of the flag, veterans [and] dressing smartly” as part of a radical rebranding to help it win back “red wall” voters, according to a leaked internal presentation. The proposed strategy targets “foundation seats”, a new term for the northern constituencies that handed Boris Johnson a landslide in 2019. Some party officials have expressed concern that the new approach could evoke nationalistic sentiments.
3. Tributes for Captain Moore
The Queen and Boris Johnson have paid tribute to Captain Sir Tom Moore, who died yesterday at the age of 100 after testing positive for Covid-19. Buckingham Palace said the Queen and the Royal Family’s thoughts are with his loved ones, while the prime minister described Moore as a “hero in the truest sense of the word”. He received international attention when he raised more than £32m for the NHS by walking 100 laps of his garden before his 100th birthday.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
4. Mass arrests after Navalny jailed
Riot police have beaten demonstrators with batons and detained nearly 1,400 people during protests in Russia in support of jailed opposition leader Alexei Navalny. The 44-year-old was earlier given three and a half years in prison for violating the conditions of a suspended sentence. The Guardian says the sentencing makes Navalny “the most prominent political prisoner in Russia”.
5. Bezos to leave Amazon top job
Jeff Bezos will step down as chief executive of Amazon, the company announced yesterday. The billionaire, who will remain executive chair, will hand the reins to Andy Jassy, chief executive of Amazon Web Services, the company’s fast-growing cloud computing business. Bezos founded the web giant in 1994 and built it into one of the largest companies in the world, amassing a fortune of $185bn.
6. Study finds self-isolation failings
About 70% of people who apply for financial support to self-isolate due to Covid-19 are rejected, according to local authority data. Frances O’Grady, the general secretary of the TUC, said the “patchy” and “paltry” approach to reimbursing people’s lost earnings was forcing people to choose between “doing the right thing and being plunged into hardship”.
7. Biden reverses Trump separations
Joe Biden has signed three executive actions to reunite migrant families split up by Donald Trump’s border policies. The Trump administration had separated undocumented adults from children as they crossed into the US from Mexico. Biden will set up a task force to try to reunite an estimated 600 to 700 children who are still apart from their families. The new US president has also ordered a review of his predecessor’s wider immigration agenda.
8. Online casinos face new rules
Internet casinos will have to tell customers how long they have been playing online slot machines and display their total wins or losses, under new regulations. The Gambling Commission will also limit the speed of games, stop sounds and images that suggest a win when the user has lost, and end settings which allow gamblers to set the slot to spin automatically multiple times.
9. Draghi may head Italy’s government
Italy’s president, Sergio Mattarella, says he wants a “high profile” government amid speculation that the new administration may be led by the former European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi. Party leaders have failed to agree on a new coalition following the resignation of Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte last week. Italy's Five Star Movement, the largest party in parliament, has said it will not back a government led by Draghi.
10. Harry wants to keep army titles
The Duke of Sussex is determined to keep his honorary military titles, according to The Daily Telegraph. Harry will reportedly battle to keep the three patronages he was forced to give up pending a one-year review of his withdrawal from royal duties and considers his military links pivotal to his reputation and his future. “His military work is one of the most important things to him,” a friend said.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
How the Autumn Budget could affect your finances
The Explainer From tax rises to pension reforms, the chancellor's decision may have a significant impact
By Marc Shoffman, The Week UK Published
-
Surviving October 7th: We Will Dance Again – 'blistering' documentary 'unfolds like a disaster movie'
The Week Recommends Yariv Mozer's 'visceral' film features mobile phone footage from survivors of Hamas attack
By Irenie Forshaw, The Week UK Published
-
'You're doomed'
Today's Newspapers A roundup of the headlines from the US front pages
By The Week Staff Published
-
10 things you need to know today: January 24, 2024
Daily Briefing Trump closes in on nomination with New Hampshire win over Haley, 'Oppenheimer' leads the 2024 Oscar nominations, and more
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
10 things you need to know today: January 23, 2024
Daily Briefing Haley makes last stand in New Hampshire as Trump extends polling lead, justices side with US over Texas in border fight, and more
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
10 things you need to know today: January 22, 2024
Daily Briefing DeSantis ends his presidential campaign and endorses Trump, the US and Arab allies push plan to end Gaza war, and more
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
10 things you need to know today: January 21, 2024
Daily Briefing Palestinian death toll reportedly passes 25,000, top Biden adviser to travel to Egypt and Qatar for hostage talks, and more
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
10 things you need to know today: January 20, 2024
Daily Briefing Grand jury reportedly convened to investigate Uvalde shooting response, families protest outside Netanyahu's house as pressure mounts for hostage deal, and more
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
10 things you need to know today: January 19, 2024
Daily Briefing Congress averts a government shutdown, DOJ report cites failures in police response to Texas school shooting, and more
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
10 things you need to know today: January 18, 2024
Daily Briefing Judge threatens to remove Trump from his defamation trial, medicine for hostages and Palestinians reach Gaza, and more
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
10 things you need to know today: January 17, 2024
Daily Briefing The US strikes Houthi targets in Yemen a third time, Trump's second sex defamation trial begins, and more
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published