before the new year. we won t be taking any further measures. of course, people should remain cautious as we approach new year celebrations and, you know, take a lateralflow test, that makes sense, celebrate outside if you can. have some ventilation indoors if you can. please, remain cautious. at this bar in bristol, they say many customers have decided of their own accord to stay away. we ve already lost a very, very big trading period already, a really key trading period. next month, it will have little impact because it s a quiet time of year anyway. the government will continue to look at hospital admissions, although, early findings last week suggested people with omicron were less likely to be admitted, along with staff absences and whether the nhs faces being overwhelmed. covid is having a significant impact on staffing in our emergency departments. the most common figure coming back at us is that departments are reporting 20 25% of their staff off because of covid related reaso
of course, people should remain cautious as we approach new year celebrations and, you know, take a lateralflow test, that makes sense, celebrate outside if you can, have some ventilation indoors if you can. please, remain cautious. when we get into the new year, of course, we will see then whether we do need to take any further measures, but nothing more until then at least. why take that decision because the new year is a big time, a lot of people mixing, alcohol involved, you know, dangers of passing on a variance like this, we seen the restrictions in the other developed nations. why not in england? why take that decision? well, we look at the data on a daily basis. we get the very best advice from our scientists, our nhs friends and we put all of that together. whilst of course, yes, there is still a lot of uncertainty around this variant, it is growing fast.
and a half thousand. meanhile england confirmed 98,515 cases in the past day. the health secretary said 90% of covid cases in england are now thought to be the omicron variant and he urged people to be cautious with their new year s eve celebrations, saying the government won t hesitate to act in the future if necessary. here s our correspondent simonjones. after the christmas festivities, tough decisions. the government has been poring over the latest covid data to see if it thinks new measures are needed in england. but this afternoon, this decision. there will be no further measures before the new year. we won t be taking any further measures. of course, people should remain cautious as we approach new year celebrations and, you know, take a lateralflow test, that makes sense, celebrate outside if you can. have some ventilation indoors if you can.
this christmas period, 11,030 were recorded on boxing day, and today, just over 10,500. meanhile england confirmed 98,515 cases in the past day. the health secretary said 90% of covid cases in england are now thought to be the omicron variant and he urged people to be cautious with their new year s eve celebrations, saying the government won t hesitate to act in the future if necessary. here s our correspondent simonjones. after the christmas festivities, tough decisions. the government has been poring over the latest covid data to see if it thinks new measures are needed in england. but this afternoon, this decision. there will be no further measures before the new year. we won t be taking any further measures. of course, people should remain cautious as we approach new year celebrations and, you know, take a lateralflow test, that makes sense, celebrate outside if you can. have some ventilation
this is bbc news, this broadcasting to viewers in the uk and around the world. our top stories. the hospitality sector welcomes the decision not to impose further covid restrictions in england before the new year, but ministers are watching the data carefully and urge people to take extra care over the festive period. so, be cautious, take a lateralflow test before you go out. go to well ventilated areas. in the united states, people without covid symptoms can end their isolation period earlier from 10 days to five, amid a surge in cases. more young children are being forced to work on the streets, as afghanistan s humanitarian crisis deepens we ll bring