Mass Coronavirus testing has hit a temporary roadblock in the UK after important components for testing ordered from abroad were discovered to be contaminated with Covid-19. The Telegraph has reported that laboratories across the UK were warned earlier this week that traces of the virus were detected on core parts of testing equipment due for […]
A group of nurses and midwives have written to the Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar, to sharply criticise efforts by some TDs to use the coronavirus crisis to further liberalise Ireland’s abortion laws. They say the push was made even as medical professionals are fighting a crisis “some say has not been seen since World War II”. Last […]
Director of the RCM Karen Murray said she was “broadly welcoming” of the regulations, saying the numbers of abortions after 24 weeks is “miniscule.”
Families who lose a loved one during the Coronavirus crisis should be offered the opportunity of a church funeral under strict conditions, a senior church figure has said. Bishop of Derry, Dónal McKeown, also told the Irish News that churches should be allowed to open for places of private prayer during the coronavirus crisis, saying […]
A fascinating yarn this morning out of Harvard: Two decades ago Dolly the Sheep changed the way we look at science. Now, using similar technology, scientists at the world-renowned Harvard University have successfully modified the genes of an American Bison calf so that it breathes in CO2, and excretes Oxygen through its lungs, in a […]
The German finance minister for the state of Hesse is believed to have taken his own life after reportedly expressing “despair” over the economic impact of coronavirus. Minister Thomas Schaefer, 54, was found dead near train tracks in Hochheim on Saturday, with reports that his body was damaged beyond recognition when police arrived, and was […]
The Netherlands has been forced to recall hundreds of thousands of protective face masks imported from China after they were found to be defective. The health ministry has recalled 600,000 masks because they failed to meet quality standards. Dutch authorities received 1.3 million face masks from China on March 21 and distributed hundreds of thousands […]
Italians are sharing the good news story of a 101-year-old who has been discharged from hospital after recovering from the coronavirus COVID-19. The Local.it reports that the man, from Rimini “is back at home with his family on Friday after beating the infection”. The man, identified only as “Mr. P” by authorities, was born during […]
Amidst the news of lockdowns, rising numbers of deaths, and panic buying, comes some reassurances from an expert in – what might be some good news from a leading expert who has examined the data and predicts a less gloomy outcome than most. The Los Angeles Times reports that Michael Levitt, a Stanford biophysicist, who […]
Wednesday was the last day of comparative normality for a little while for us here in New Zealand. At midnight the “Level four” lockdown commenced. Those not working in essential services (healthcare, food supply chain etc) are meant to stay home for the next four weeks and only venture out into their local area to exercise and […]
The Minister for Health, Simon Harris, appeared to contradict the official advice given by the HSE on abortion pill provision during a debate on the Emergency Measures legislation in the Dáíl yesterday. Sinn Feín and left-wing TDs including Bríd Smith and Paul Murphy had sought amendments to the emergency legislation which would permit a doctor or nurse to […]
A very significant majority of the public submissions made to a consultation on abortion in Northern Ireland organised by the British government opposed any changes to the abortion law. 79% – almost four out of every five submissions – “registered their general opposition to any abortion provision in Northern Ireland beyond that which is currently […]