Professor Nick Wilson Photo: RNZAn Otago University public health expert is urging the Government to seriously consider temporarily closing the border to arrivals from the United Kingdom and review the border system, with the new strain rife there now thought to be more deadly as well as far more infectious. Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced overnight that government scientists now believe the new variant there may be 30% more deadly. The evidence of several UK health bodies has been assessed by scientists on the New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group (Nervtag) which advises the government. "We really do need a serious look at reducing the number of infected people arriving, and improving the quality of the whole border control arrangements. "There's a genuine case for actually stopping all arrivals [from the UK] until we improve the border facilities."

Source: Otago Daily Times January 23, 2021 01:18 UTC