all four nations of the united kingdom
are trying to agree on a common approach
to the christmas period and the
restrictions that might be needed during
that time
senior medical and scientific advisors
said they were working on a plan
so that families across the uk might be
able to celebrate together
as close to normal as possible but any
relaxation of the rules
would come at a price experts say that
for every one day of relaxed measures
there would need to be five days of
tighter restrictions
to keep infection rates down our health
editor hugh pim has the latest
on the christmas debate will it be a
christmas nightmare or a dream come true
a question being widely asked as people
look beyond the current lockdown in
england
due to end in early december those we
spoke to in manchester
were hoping the rules would allow some
form of celebration
it would be nice if everyone could get
together and everyone was to
get to some back to some sort of
normality i mean it would be amazing and
i think like many families we've had a
bereavement as well so it would mean a
huge amount to be able to spend
time together senior officials stressed
that ministers would decide but they
were open to the idea of a christmas
relaxation
we are very keen that we have as close
to christmas as close to normal as
possible
that requires all of us to make every
effort um over this national restriction
period
and even in early december so is some
sort of christmas possible do you think
so i think it is coming into christmas
we need to be very careful about the
number of contacts that we have
um to reduce transmission once we have
got past the christmas period
if there's been a release and some
socialization we will all have to be
very responsible
and reduce those contacts again
scotland's first minister set out her
position
on the christmas issue we are all
desperate for some
normality at christmas and i absolutely
include myself in that
and the scottish government right now is
working very closely
and well with the other uk nations to
try to agree a way for that to happen
decisions in england have to be made on
how the tier system might work in
december
officials think the highest tier
restrictions in place in the north
west before the full lockdown had an
effect on curbing the virus
daily hospital admissions of covid
patients in the region which had gone up
sharply have begun to level off
and fall a little allowing a limited
mixing of households is one thing
but deciding what will be permitted for
pubs bars and restaurants
is another matter it's normally their
busiest time of the year in the run-up
to christmas
but health officials are concerned that
a full reopening
will see a further spread of the virus
this bar in manchester only opened in
march just before the first lockdown
they had to close reopen and then close
again and they're desperate to get
customers back
in we really need a strong december to
make us you know as
much money as we know in normal
circumstances as possible in order to
get through the first
two three months of 2021.
trade-offs and difficult decisions will
be needed on what exactly will open up
over christmas
and for how long and what will have to
stay closed
and he was with me hugh how difficult is
it going to be
to balance this desire to give people a
bit of freedom around christmas
um you know with concerns about health
from the economy
well he was going to be a very delicate
judgment to be made by ministers at
westminster and in the devolved
administrations
how do you get transmission of the virus
down and the crucial r number below one
to show the virus
is receding through no december november
into
december and in england the challenge is
going to be what follows the current
lockdown
from december the second how do you
reintroduce these tiered
restrictions uh will some of them
actually be tighter
than before and we've learned today this
calculation that for every one day of
relaxation
experts on the sage committee say you
need five to tighten up
so does that mean you might have some
tightening before christmas then
relaxation
and then a tougher regime after that all
will it all follow
christmas that's going to be a very
difficult call to make
and what about the hospitality sector
pubs and bars and restaurants
it's crucial for them to be trading up
until christmas they'll really want to
do so
but it seems that officials will feel in
the area with the toughest restrictions
those areas
it may not be possible at all so there's
the interests of the economy to consider
as well when all said and done though
what we've learned today is that health
and scientific
advisors two governments are working
round the clock to try and find
something which will work to let
families
mix at christmas okay once again many
thanks cube him there our health editor
well there's more encouraging news about
the vaccine being developed by
pfizer and beyond tech final trials show
it is 94
effective in people over the age of 65.
what's more it's past safety checks
making it ready for approval
by authorities around the world and it's
due to arrive in the uk
by the end of the year our medical
editor fergus walsh has the latest
yet more good news on vaccines last week
pfizer biontech were the first to show
their vaccine
protected against covid now we have more
detail
pfizer says the vaccine is more than 94
effective among the over 65s and showed
the same consistent protection
among volunteers from different
ethnicities
there were 170 cases of kobit 19
across more than 40 000 volunteers 162
of those
were among the volunteers who got dummy
or placebo jabs
and only eight in the vaccinated group
there were no serious safety concerns
but a small minority of volunteers
suffered
significant headaches or fatigue i think
this is good news
and also very encouraging that the
vaccine seems to
show equal protection in elderly people
because that was a question
we couldn't answer off after the first
announcements last week
our immune system usually declines as we
age so it's highly significant that the
vaccine protects the elderly
who are most at risk from covid they
should be first in line to get the jab
which requires two doses
a month apart booster doses may be
needed as we don't know how long
protection lasts vaccinators will go
into care homes to immunize vulnerable
older residents
gp surgeries will play a crucial role
some could be open
seven days a week and large venues like
sports halls
will be used for mass immunization
the pfizer vaccine has to be stored at
minus 70 degrees
which creates some logistical problems
but it remains usable
for a few days in a normal fridge it's
thought regulators
could approve the vaccine by early
december
the uk has bought 40 million doses
but most of these will arrive next year
nonetheless
it seems increasingly likely that some
coveted immunisation will begin before
christmas
ferguson bbc news