News Round-Up

• “Britain’s competitiveness will suffer if we don’t return to work” – It is vital for the development of new, fast-moving technologies, to have people collaborating in the same environment, writes James Dyson in the Telegraph.
• “Record number of children on NHS waiting lists for eating disorder treatment amid Covid pandemic” – Nearly a third of the children waiting for eating disorder treatment have been waiting for up to three months for care, while 11% have been waiting even longer, reports MailOnline.
• “Face mask divide in Parliament as MPs recalled for Afghanistan debate” – The majority of Tory MPs opted not to wear coverings as the Commons returned to full capacity for first time since before the pandemic, reports the Telegraph.
• “Pfizer Covid vaccine 86% effective after third shot” – The Pfizer Covid vaccine has been shown to be 86% effective in preventing infection among over-60s after a third dose, according to initial results published by Maccabi Health Services, as reported in the Jerusalem Post.
• “Booster vaccines should not be administered, WHO warns as U.S. gives green light” – The World Health Organisation says Covid booster vaccines are not necessary and calls on countries with high vaccination rates to donate surplus vaccines to poorer countries rather than administering third doses, reports the Telegraph.
• “The role of the BBC in emergencies” – “It would have been reasonable to have read this BBC News piece and to have formed the (false) impression that Covid now poses a greater hospitalisation risk to younger adults,” writes Jamie Walden in his latest column in Bournbrook Magazine.
• “Covid recovery: public health, services and justice system reforms” – The Scottish Government is inviting views on its “Covid recovery” programme.
• “Is it time to stop blaming China?” – “The outcomes of our response to Covid include a bankrupt country, record waiting lists for NHS treatment, some remarkable statistics regarding suicide and a host of other problems regarding child abuse, domestic violence and mental health problems. China did not do this to us… our own Government did.” A blistering piece in Unity News Network.
• “Texas school district requires masks after finding dress code loophole to bypass ban” – A district website announcement says the Governor’s recent executive order doesn’t allow his office to usurp the school board’s power, reports the Guardian.
• “Trump claims Covid booster shots are ‘money-making operation’” – Former President Trump says that rolling out ‘booster’ vaccine doses “sounds like a money-making operation”, reports MailOnline.
• “NYC to Impose Up to $2,000 Fines on Businesses Serving the Unvaccinated” – Businesses that fail to comply with New York City’s vaccine mandate will face up to $2,000 in fines, Mayor Bill de Blasio has announced, as reported in Breitbart.
• “Tucker Carlson: Self-Censorship Turning America into ‘Soviet Society’” – Tucker Carlson warns that America is becoming a “Soviet society” prioritising conformity over freedom of behavior and thought in an interview with Breitbart.
• “Decadence and hubris have finally brought down the American Empire” – The U.S. is in retreat on all fronts, and its incompetent politicians are incapable of reversing the decline, writes Allister Heath in the Telegraph.
• “I’m guilty of going against The Science: a defence of my condemned, censored ‘dangerous’ speech to parliament” – Most of the research touted about around masks and Covid is based on observational studies and not randomised control trial studies that are considered the gold standard in science, writes George Christensen in the Spectator Australia.
• “Australian health official flees press conference after question over spike in teen suicides, as Victoria locks down again” – Victoria’s Chief Health Officer abruptly left the stage during a Covid press conference when a reporter asked about a surge in suicides among teenage girls, reports Russia Today.
• “Australia’s Qantas says all staff must be vaccinated” – Qantas says all of its employees must be vaccinated against Covid, making it the latest global airline to mandate jabs for staff, reports BBC News.
• “Vaccinations, Coercion and the Rule of Law” – “The Australian Constitution prohibits any form of compulsion, which would subject citizens to medical or pharmaceutical services, including mandatory vaccination,” writes Augusto Zimmermann and Gabriël Moens in Quadrant.
• “Cattle don’t cause global warming, they’re already net zero” – “The Green Wreckers who destroyed Australia’s cheap, reliable electricity are now targeting our cattle industry,” writes Viv Forbes in TCW Defending Freedom. “They use fake science and false advertising to threaten our right to produce and consume real meat.”
• “There’s a huge problem with the Government’s hydrogen strategy” – Hydrogen won’t just lead to higher energy bills, it could even increase greenhouse gas emissions, writes Ross Clark in the Telegraph.
• “New Confirmation that Climate Models Overstate Atmospheric Warming” – Two new peer-reviewed papers from independent teams confirm that climate models overstate atmospheric warming and the problem has gotten worse over time, not better, reports Watts Up With That.
• “Nigella Lawson’s pal accused of racist cooking” – Pippa Middlehurst, a friend of Nigella Lawson, has been forced to fight back after being accused of racism for daring to publish a Chinese cookbook even though she’s white, reports the Mail.
• “Biden’s most heartless betrayal” – The American Government cares more about pronouns than the fate of Afghan women, writes Ayaan Hirsi Ali in UnHerd.
• “Twitter Tests New Feature for Users to Flag ‘Misleading’ Posts” – Twitter has announced it is testing a feature that lets people report tweets they think are misleading, with with the objective of scaling up its “broader misinformation work”, reports the Epoch Times.
• “‘Colonialism’ flap at the opera as Madam Butterfly is put under the microscope” – Ticketholders to new Welsh National Opera production will be offered talks on how Puccini’s classic tale raises issues of ‘imperialism’, reports the Telegraph.
• “The competition watchdog is set to investigate sky high PCR test prices” – Travel writer Ben Clatworthy tells talkRADIO: “It’s ridiculous that providers are charging hundreds of pounds. It’s a complete racket and underhand way of travel restrictions by stealth.”