Eleven US states with Republican governors have sued the Biden administration seeking to block a Covid-19 vaccine mandate for federal contractors, arguing it is unconstitutional and violates federal procurement law.
Saying vaccinations were necessary to fight Covid-19, President Joe Biden issued a pair of executive orders on September 9 requiring all executive branch federal employees and federal contractors to be vaccinated.
A joint lawsuit was filed in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri by 10 states, Arkansas, Alaska, Missouri, Iowa, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming. Texas filed a separate suit on the same issue, and Florida filed one on Thursday.
The lawsuits described the mandate as "sweeping in its scope" and "unconstitutional and unlawful," citing a constitutional amendment on state powers and federal laws on government procurement.
The mandate "is an abuse of power and we won't stand for it," Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds said in a video on Twitter.
"It will only worsen the workforce shortage and supply chain issues that hinder our economic recovery and it furthers the unprecedented government intrusion into our lives," Ms Reynolds said.
The White House set a December 8 deadline for employees of federal contractors to be vaccinated. However, it has signalled contractors have flexibility in enforcing that deadline.
US courts have largely upheld vaccination requirements imposed by employers, universities, states and cities.
About 58 per cent of the US population is fully vaccinated and more than 66 per cent have received one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine, according to the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
UK's plans to cut net migration
Under the UK government’s proposals, migrants will have to spend 10 years in the UK before being able to apply for citizenship.
Skilled worker visas will require a university degree, and there will be tighter restrictions on recruitment for jobs with skills shortages.
But what are described as "high-contributing" individuals such as doctors and nurses could be fast-tracked through the system.
Language requirements will be increased for all immigration routes to ensure a higher level of English.
Rules will also be laid out for adult dependants, meaning they will have to demonstrate a basic understanding of the language.
The plans also call for stricter tests for colleges and universities offering places to foreign students and a reduction in the time graduates can remain in the UK after their studies from two years to 18 months.
Titanium Escrow profile
Started: December 2016
Founder: Ibrahim Kamalmaz
Based: UAE
Sector: Finance / legal
Size: 3 employees, pre-revenue
Stage: Early stage
Investors: Founder's friends and Family
How much sugar is in chocolate Easter eggs?
- The 169g Crunchie egg has 15.9g of sugar per 25g serving, working out at around 107g of sugar per egg
- The 190g Maltesers Teasers egg contains 58g of sugar per 100g for the egg and 19.6g of sugar in each of the two Teasers bars that come with it
- The 188g Smarties egg has 113g of sugar per egg and 22.8g in the tube of Smarties it contains
- The Milky Bar white chocolate Egg Hunt Pack contains eight eggs at 7.7g of sugar per egg
- The Cadbury Creme Egg contains 26g of sugar per 40g egg
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
