Foreign
Mandating the use of empty seats to increase physical distancing not recommended – EU
Airlines will not have to leave seats empty, but passengers flying in the European Union will have to wear masks on planes and in airports under plans to revive the travel industry.
The European Commission made the non-binding recommendations on Wednesday as part of wider proposals to salvage the ailing tourism sector.
The commission noted that tourism sector previously represented some 10 per cent of the EU’s economic output and employed almost 12 per cent of its workforce.
It also said it would open legal cases against countries that breach EU law by not ensuring consumers can effectively get cash refunds for travel or holidays cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“The starting point is that European consumers have a right to a cash refund, if that is what they want. Full stop,” Margrethe Vestager, a deputy head of the Commission, said.
It also said airlines will need to limit risks of infection, which could be achieved using hospital-grade air filtering, personal protective equipment and limiting movements.
On Tuesday, Ryanair (RYA.I) said that its passengers would be required to ask for permission to use the toilets to avoid queuing on the budget airline’s planes.
“Mandating the use of empty seats to increase physical distancing in aircraft is therefore not recommended,” the European Commission’s document said.
Airlines have raised concerns that measures to slow the spread of the pandemic could blight profitability long after any travel restrictions end.
The European Commission said that checking in, dropping off and picking up luggage should be reorganised to avoid crowds.
Airlines have already been advised by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) to check passenger temperatures, collect personal details for any contact tracing and to clean and disinfect terminals and equipment.
IATA, which has estimated the coronavirus crisis could cost airlines a total of 314 billion dollars, recommended facemasks be worn during flights but not blocking off the middle seats.
Some U.S. airlines have already implemented distancing measures, with some blocking middle seats, pausing automatic upgrades and changing the boarding process. (Reuters/NAN)
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- Prince Abdulrahman Obaje is a Media and ICT Consultant, Journalist, online marketer, social media strategist, Mathematician and Computer Scientist based in Abuja, Nigeria. He is the Founder and the Publisher of The Informavores!. You can reach me on +234 805 939 5252 or send i-witness report directly to me on news@informavores.com.ng.
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The United Kingdom Official said it has added three more countries to its “red list,” banning flights to and from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Burundi and Rwanda over the spread of the Coronavirus from Friday.
The UK Secretary of State for Transport, Grant Shapps, disclosed on Friday.
“From Friday, we’re extending our travel ban with the UAE, Burundi and Rwanda all added to the UK’s red list,” Shapps wrote on Twitter.
Under the new regulation, people who have been in or transited through the countries in question will be denied entry.
The ban does not apply to the UK, as well as Irish and third-country nationals with a residence permit, who must self-isolate for ten days at home.
To date, the island nation has confirmed more than 3. 7 million cases of the coronavirus, including 103,126 fatalities.
NAN
Author Profile
- Prince Abdulrahman Obaje is a Media and ICT Consultant, Journalist, online marketer, social media strategist, Mathematician and Computer Scientist based in Abuja, Nigeria. He is the Founder and the Publisher of The Informavores!. You can reach me on +234 805 939 5252 or send i-witness report directly to me on news@informavores.com.ng.
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China hopes that the new U.S. administration of Joe Biden will “learn a lesson’’ from the crisis that bilateral relations suffered while Donald Trump was in office, an official said.
China also urged the U.S. to seek to improve ties with Beijing, the Foreign Ministry’s spokesman, Zhao Lijian, said on Tuesday.
“We hope that the new U.S. administration will try to learn a lesson from the drawbacks of the Trump administration’s policy; will consider China and the Sino-U.S. relations objectively and rationally as well as adhere to the policy of a positive and constructive dialogue.
“And will, together with China, promote the return of the Sino-U.S. relations to sustainable and healthy development,’’ Zhao said at a news briefing.
Zhao pointed out that, over the recent years, the Trump administration made numerous mistakes in relations with China, as it considered Beijing to be a rival and took steps that undermined China’s interests.
He added that the two countries should strengthen their cooperation since they shared common interests and carried the responsibility for the maintenance of international peace.
“We have repeatedly said that China and the U.S. … share common interests and bear responsibility for the protection of the international peace, stability and promotion of the global development.’’
In March 2018, Trump launched a major trade war with China and accused it of currency manipulation and theft of U.S. intellectual property.
In 2019, Trump ordered the U.S. Department of Commerce to ban U.S. companies from doing business with China’s tech giant, Huawei.
This step was followed by further sanctions put on other Chinese media companies.
The Trump administration also publicly questioned the legitimacy of the Chinese Communist Party and stepped up relations with Taiwan, violating the consensus reached by Washington and Beijing regarding the island. (Sputnik/NAN)
Author Profile
- Prince Abdulrahman Obaje is a Media and ICT Consultant, Journalist, online marketer, social media strategist, Mathematician and Computer Scientist based in Abuja, Nigeria. He is the Founder and the Publisher of The Informavores!. You can reach me on +234 805 939 5252 or send i-witness report directly to me on news@informavores.com.ng.
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President Donald Trump has accused Twitter of interfering in the 2020 U.S. election scheduled for Nov. 3 after the microblogging service provider tagged his tweet as misleading.
Trump also lashed out at the company for “completely stifling free speech”, saying he would never let that happen as president.
“@Twitter is now interfering in the 2020 Presidential Election.
“They are saying my statement on Mail-In Ballots, which will lead to massive corruption and fraud, is incorrect, based on fact-checking by Fake News CNN and the Amazon Washington Post.
“Twitter is completely stifling FREE SPEECH, and I, as President, will not allow it to happen!” he tweeted in response.
Earlier on Tuesday, Twitter labelled a post by Trump as misleading, and directed the president’s followers to a fact-check page on the post.
In the tweet, Trump had claimed that voting by mail or mail-in ballots would lead to “substantial fraud”.
It read in part: “ There is NO WAY (ZERO!) that Mail-In Ballots will be anything less than substantially fraudulent.
“Mail boxes will be robbed, ballots will be forged & even illegally printed out and fraudulently signed.”
Under the tweet came a circled exclamation mark followed by the message: “Get the facts about mail-in ballots” in a hyperlink.
The link takes readers to a Twitter fact-check page that debunks the claim.
“Trump falsely claims that mail-in ballots would lead to ‘a Rigged Election’.
“However, fact-checkers say there is no evidence that mail-in ballots are linked to voter fraud,” the company said.
The move came after Twitter turned down a widower’s request to delete “horrifying lies” told by the president in a tweet about the death of his wife.
Rather, the social media giant, which had promised to warn its users about false or misleading messages posted on the platform, resorted to the use of the label on Trump.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Trump’s claim on the mail-in ballots followed his attacks, over the weekend, on the use of the voting method by several states, including California.
The states say they will use that option in November to prevent a second wave of the coronavirus disease that has taken a heavy toll on the country.
Credit: NAN/ARU/SH
Author Profile
- Prince Abdulrahman Obaje is a Media and ICT Consultant, Journalist, online marketer, social media strategist, Mathematician and Computer Scientist based in Abuja, Nigeria. He is the Founder and the Publisher of The Informavores!. You can reach me on +234 805 939 5252 or send i-witness report directly to me on news@informavores.com.ng.
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