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UK turns to COVID “Plan B” rules to contain Omicron

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Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced the government will adopt new COVID rules, turning to “Plan B” to manage the new Omicron strain of the virus

Under the new Plan B rules, people in England are being asked to work from home again if possible and face masks will be compulsory in most public places, as part of new rules to limit the spread of Omicron.

The Prime Minister also announced that vaccine passports will also be needed to get into nightclubs and large venues from next week.

Boris Johnson announced the government was moving to its back-up plan of extra Covid rules at a news conference.

Police officers stand guard during an anti-lockdown and anti-vaccine protest, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, outside Downing Street, London, Britain, June 14, 2021. / Image: File

“It’s not a lockdown, it’s Plan B,”

Johnson says that moving to the tougher measures was the “proportionate and responsible” thing to do, but insisted it would not become a lockdown.

The PM stated that much more is still being learned about new variant Omicron, including from the World Health Organization and the picture surrounding the variant might get better, but that it “could lead to a big rise in hospitalisations and therefore sadly in deaths”.

Under the new rules, face masks will be required in more public settings – including theatres and cinemas – from Friday, and from Monday, people will be asked to work from home where possible.

The NHS Covid Pass will also be required for visitors to nightclubs, indoor unseated venues with more than 500 people, unseated outdoor venues with more than 4,000 people and any event with more than 10,000 people from next Wednesday.

Highest day since July: UK COVID cases causing major concern
Johnson urges booster program to ramp up / Image: File

Will Christmas be cancelled?

But Mr Johnson said Christmas parties and nativity plays should still go ahead – as long as the guidance is followed.

Many of the questions the PM faced centred on the row over the Downing Street Christmas party at the height of lockdown rules last December.

Government adviser Allegra Stratton – who was seen with other No 10 staff joking about the party in a leaked video from last year – resigned just before the news conference, saying she would always regret her remarks.

Earlier Mr Johnson apologised in the Commons for this video, although he said that he had been repeatedly told there had been no party. The Metropolitan Police has now said they will not investigate the issue, due to lack of evidence.

According to British media, when Johnson was questioned at the news conference regarding if the Plan B announcement was timed to divert attention from the Christmas party, the prime minister denied that was the case. Instead, the PM went on saying the government did not want to delay bringing in the rules which were important to protect public health.

Anthony Lucas is reporter, presenter and social media producer with ticker News. Anthony holds a Bachelor of Professional Communication, with a major in Journalism from RMIT University as well as a Diploma of Arts and Entertainment journalism from Collarts. He’s previously worked for 9 News, ONE FM Radio and Southern Cross Austerio’s Hit Radio Network. 

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Everything you need to know about music NFTs

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Music NFTs are unique digital items comprised of a visual element like NFTs but also have a musical component.

Some analysts believe that music NFTs are the future of the music industry, while others say they might just be a fad that’s here today and gone tomorrow.

 
NFTs are non-fungible tokens. They are unique digital assets that live on the blockchain and can either be one-of-a-kind or one copy of many.

So, what are music NFTs?

Well, they are unique digital items comprised of a visual element like NFTs but also have a musical component. They also live on the blockchain and can be bought and sold.

Some analysts believe that music NFTs are the future of the music industry, while others say they might just be a fad that’s here today and gone tomorrow.

Les Borsai, the Co-Founder of Wave Financial joined us to discuss.
#NFTs #musicnfts #tech #LesBorsai #veronicadudo #business

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AI creates a song imitating Drake and The Weeknd

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A big surprise for music fans when they heard a new song featuring Drake and The Weeknd. But there’s a catch!

The viral song was created by artificial intelligence.

 
A new song that sounds like Drake and The Weeknd has gone viral, but it was created by artificial intelligence.

Now, there’s a crusade against AI music.

The song,“Heart on My Sleeve”was created by artificial intelligence and quickly racked up millions of views on TikTok, Spotify, and YouTube.

Record label, Universal Music Group (UMG) is not happy about the song that used AI-generated vocals to simulate pop music artists Drake Graham and The Weeknd.

UMG flexed their muscle and forced the song featuring some of its biggest artists to be removed from Spotify and TikTok.

According to reports, UMG is taking it a step further and sent letters to Spotify, Apple Music, and other music streamers requesting they block AI tools from training their models on the melodies and lyrics of UMG artists.

Les Borsai, the Co-Founder of Wave Financial joined us to discuss. #AI #artificialintelligence #drake #theweeknd #veronicadudo #LesBorsai #music #popartists #UniversalMusicGroup

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Who is running for the 2024 GOP Presidential nomination?

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The 2024 Presidential GOP field continues to grow.

While everyone is hoping to persuade Republicans to favor them over former President Donald Trump–he continues to lead the pack.

 
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis kicked off his 2024 presidential campaign with his first public appearance in Iowa.

He joins others including Senator Tim Scott and former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley.

The field is expected to expand even more as reports suggest that both former Vice President Mike Pence and former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie will enter the primary race soon.

However, everyone is hoping to persuade Republicans to favor them over former President Donald Trump who continues to enjoy very high poll numbers.

U.S. Congressman Jeff Van Drew joined us to discuss.
#uspolitics #congress #washingtondc #jeffvandrew #veronicadudo #2024race #presidentialrace #donaldtrump #RonDeSantis

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