from what we do know there s a significant number of mutations, perhaps double the number of mutations that we have seen in the delta variant. and that would suggest that it may well be more transmissible and the current vaccines that we have may well be less effective. so are we heading for a return to tough travel restrictions? paul charles is ceo of the travel consultancy the pc agency. 20 months into the crisis, this must feel like deja vu for the industry do travellers have more flexibilty and financial protection this time round? i think they do, there is no doubt travel firms have become much better at offering refunds or alternatives in terms of switching flights but this feels like we are going backwards at a time when things were improving. airlines were back to 60 or 70% of what they were flying pre pandemic, tour operators and travel agents were seeing bookings return to around 80% of what they saw before the pandemic and hotels were starting to fill a room is a
Two more uk energy companies fail, bringing the toll to 2a in less than three months. plus, growing crisis. could soaring fertilizer costs plant the seeds of a global food shortage? more now on our top story the new variant of coronavirus discovered in south africa that is causing serious concern among scientists. as you ve been hearing, the uk is suspending all flights from south africa as of midday, as well as from neighbouring namibia, zimbabwe, botswana, lesotho and eswatini. the uk health secretary sajid javid says the variant may be the most infectious yet.