The Greek government wants the UK to introduce vaccine certificates to allow inoculated Britons to visit this summer.
Greek Tourism Minister Harry Theohari said that talks were under way between the two nations on the creation of a scheme that would allow for a “semi-normal” summer, with vaccinated people not required to present a negative Covid-19 test before their holiday.
Greece, Israel and Cyprus signed an accord this week to allow unimpeded travel for tourists with vaccine certificates. Under the agreement, Israeli citizens who prove they have received an EU-approved Covid-19 shot do not have to undergo a PCR test nor quarantine on arrival.
Mr Theohari said that Greece hoped to introduce a similar scheme with the UK. About two million tourists visited the Mediterranean country from Britain each year before the pandemic disrupted international travel.
"Hopefully both with the vaccination programmes going forward and the summer limiting the spread of the disease, we can have a semi-normal summer," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme. "We are in very preliminary discussions in expressing the plans to the government, as well as how this could work."
Mr Theohari said that the potential for inoculated tourists to spread Covid-19 was not as risky as the current scheme of testing before arrival.
“We don’t want to limit travel to those who have been vaccinated but since we are mandating that before travelling someone has to have a negative test result, this is a waste of resources if people are vaccinated [and have] to be tested every time they travel,” he said.
“The need for this testing could be limited by the vaccination certificate. The vaccine certificate is a step forward, not a step backwards.”
Mr Theohari said that Greek’s vaccine certificate programme was digital, with three layers of security.
Denmark and Sweden are committed to introducing vaccine passports to ease international travel.
The tourism sector was buoyed by scientific observations on the spread of Covid-19 on busy beaches.
Prof Mark Woolhouse from the University of Edinburgh said that no known Covid-19 outbreaks had been traced to crowded coastal spots.
“Over the summer we were treated to all this on the television news and pictures of crowded beaches and there was an outcry about this,” he told Britain's House of Commons science and technology committee.
“There were no outbreaks linked to crowded beaches. There's never been a Covid-19 outbreak linked to a beach, ever, anywhere in the world, to the best of my knowledge.”
Experts believe the combination of fresh sea air and warm temperatures reduces the spread of the virus. Prof Woolhouse warned of the risk associated with mass gatherings outdoors, such as horse racing, because of "pinch points" at entrances, toilets and food stalls.
“We do have to understand where the risks are so that we can do as much as possible safely,” he said.
This week, the tourism sector launched its Save Our Summer campaign, pressuring the UK government to allow travel to resume by May.
“Due to the impressive vaccination roll-out in the UK, May is very reasonable for safely opening up the travel sector despite what the doomsayers say,” travel consultant Paul Charles tweeted.
Coronavirus across Europe – in pictures
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
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Director: Elie Semaan
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Key products and UAE prices
iPhone XS
With a 5.8-inch screen, it will be an advance version of the iPhone X. It will be dual sim and comes with better battery life, a faster processor and better camera. A new gold colour will be available.
Price: Dh4,229
iPhone XS Max
It is expected to be a grander version of the iPhone X with a 6.5-inch screen; an inch bigger than the screen of the iPhone 8 Plus.
Price: Dh4,649
iPhone XR
A low-cost version of the iPhone X with a 6.1-inch screen, it is expected to attract mass attention. According to industry experts, it is likely to have aluminium edges instead of stainless steel.
Price: Dh3,179
Apple Watch Series 4
More comprehensive health device with edge-to-edge displays that are more than 30 per cent bigger than displays on current models.
Know your Camel lingo
The bairaq is a competition for the best herd of 50 camels, named for the banner its winner takes home
Namoos - a word of congratulations reserved for falconry competitions, camel races and camel pageants. It best translates as 'the pride of victory' - and for competitors, it is priceless
Asayel camels - sleek, short-haired hound-like racers
Majahim - chocolate-brown camels that can grow to weigh two tonnes. They were only valued for milk until camel pageantry took off in the 1990s
Millions Street - the thoroughfare where camels are led and where white 4x4s throng throughout the festival
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
The biog
Born: Kuwait in 1986
Family: She is the youngest of seven siblings
Time in the UAE: 10 years
Hobbies: audiobooks and fitness: she works out every day, enjoying kickboxing and basketball
SUZUME
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Terror attacks in Paris, November 13, 2015
- At 9.16pm, three suicide attackers killed one person outside the Atade de France during a foootball match between France and Germany
- At 9.25pm, three attackers opened fire on restaurants and cafes over 20 minutes, killing 39 people
- Shortly after 9.40pm, three other attackers launched a three-hour raid on the Bataclan, in which 1,500 people had gathered to watch a rock concert. In total, 90 people were killed
- Salah Abdeslam, the only survivor of the terrorists, did not directly participate in the attacks, thought to be due to a technical glitch in his suicide vest
- He fled to Belgium and was involved in attacks on Brussels in March 2016. He is serving a life sentence in France
The view from The National
Biog:
Age: 34
Favourite superhero: Batman
Favourite sport: anything extreme
Favourite person: Muhammad Ali
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
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Initial investment: Undisclosed
Investment stage: Series A
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Volunteers offer workers a lifeline
Community volunteers have swung into action delivering food packages and toiletries to the men.
When provisions are distributed, the men line up in long queues for packets of rice, flour, sugar, salt, pulses, milk, biscuits, shaving kits, soap and telecom cards.
Volunteers from St Mary’s Catholic Church said some workers came to the church to pray for their families and ask for assistance.
Boxes packed with essential food items were distributed to workers in the Dubai Investments Park and Ras Al Khaimah camps last week. Workers at the Sonapur camp asked for Dh1,600 towards their gas bill.
“Especially in this year of tolerance we consider ourselves privileged to be able to lend a helping hand to our needy brothers in the Actco camp," Father Lennie Connully, parish priest of St Mary’s.
Workers spoke of their helplessness, seeing children’s marriages cancelled because of lack of money going home. Others told of their misery of being unable to return home when a parent died.
“More than daily food, they are worried about not sending money home for their family,” said Kusum Dutta, a volunteer who works with the Indian consulate.
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Gertrude Bell's life in focus
A feature film
At one point, two feature films were in the works, but only German director Werner Herzog’s project starring Nicole Kidman would be made. While there were high hopes he would do a worthy job of directing the biopic, when Queen of the Desert arrived in 2015 it was a disappointment. Critics panned the film, in which Herzog largely glossed over Bell’s political work in favour of her ill-fated romances.
A documentary
A project that did do justice to Bell arrived the next year: Sabine Krayenbuhl and Zeva Oelbaum’s Letters from Baghdad: The Extraordinary Life and Times of Gertrude Bell. Drawing on more than 1,000 pieces of archival footage, 1,700 documents and 1,600 letters, the filmmakers painstakingly pieced together a compelling narrative that managed to convey both the depth of Bell’s experience and her tortured love life.
Books, letters and archives
Two biographies have been written about Bell, and both are worth reading: Georgina Howell’s 2006 book Queen of the Desert and Janet Wallach’s 1996 effort Desert Queen. Bell published several books documenting her travels and there are also several volumes of her letters, although they are hard to find in print. Original documents are housed at the Gertrude Bell Archive at the University of Newcastle, which has an online catalogue.
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Breast cancer in men: the facts
1) Breast cancer is men is rare but can develop rapidly. It usually occurs in those over the ages of 60, but can occasionally affect younger men.
2) Symptoms can include a lump, discharge, swollen glands or a rash.
3) People with a history of cancer in the family can be more susceptible.
4) Treatments include surgery and chemotherapy but early diagnosis is the key.
5) Anyone concerned is urged to contact their doctor
