of the omicron variant. this pharmacy in london has been open since eight this morning. they have got about 80 appointments pre—booked, but there is capacity for at least 400 other people to walk in from the streets and get a jab. and there was a very personal reason for opening over the christmas break. i am very close to the owners of the shop. the original owner, he passed away from covid injanuary this year, and it was a horrible experience for his family. and his sons have been working very hard to make sure no on else goes through the same thing as they did. this new variant appears to cause mild illness, which health officials have described as a glimmer of hope. it is still spreading fast, though, prompting scotland, wales and northern ireland to introduce new restrictions. in his christmas message, the head of the catholic church in england called on the government to keep places of worship open.