Boris Johnson is being urged to give more COVID-19 vaccines to poorer countries ahead of the G7 summit.
More than 100 cross-party MPs and peers want the prime minister to show “global leadership” and commit to a one in, one out policy when it comes to jabs.
The prime minister is set to chair a gathering of the most economically powerful countries in the world in Cornwall from 11 June.
In the run-up to the summit, the signatories have asked the UK government to donate a dose to the United Nations-backed Covax scheme for every dose bought for use in Britain.
The scheme is providing vaccines to low and middle-income countries.
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It comes as the World Health Organisation, the International Monetary Fund, World Bank Group and the World Trade Organisation called for richer countries to give more COVID vaccines to poorer nations in a joint plea across a number of international newspapers.
In a letter, the signatories said there is a “clear moral imperative to act to close the global vaccine divide”, as well as a “rational case… to stop the threat of variants emerging abroad and taking root in the UK”.
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It has been backed by senior Tory MPs Peter Bottomley and Dr Dan Poulter – a former health minister who has worked on the frontline during the pandemic.
Others putting their name to the letter include former shadow chancellor John McDonnell, former archbishop of Canterbury Lord Carey, former Green Party leader Caroline Lucas, Margaret Thatcher’s former health minister Baroness Hooper and ex-leader of the Liberal Democrats Lord Campbell.
“The longer we wait to act, the more likely it is that dangerous variants could emerge that can evade the protections offered by current vaccines,” the letter said, which was co-ordinated by the all-party parliamentary group (APPG) on coronavirus.
It added: “The UK has an opportunity to use the G7 summit to show leadership on this critical issue and demonstrate that ‘global Britain’ is more than just a slogan.
“While the UK has rightly committed funding to Covax, we remain a net importer of Covid-19 vaccines.
“The APPG on coronavirus, therefore, recommends that the UK must immediately adopt a policy of vaccine matching, in which for each dose of the vaccine imported, one dose is donated to Covax.
“This will help meet the urgent demand for vaccines in low and middle-income countries around the world.
“The UK mustn’t miss the opportunity provided by the G7 summit to lead the way in promoting more equitable global access to Covid-19 vaccines.”
The 116 peers and MPs believe the UK should aim to become a “net vaccine exporter” once it has boosted its manufacturing capacity.
The decision to write to the prime minister came about after Professor Andrew Pollard, who helped develop the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, warned the group that “many millions could die between now and September” if vaccines are not more widely distributed across the globe.
Germany, France and Italy are among European countries that have committed to donating at least 100 million doses of coronavirus vaccines to middle and low-income countries before the end of the year, the group said.
They highlighted that the UK government has so far only committed to donating surplus shots in future to Covax, they said.
Matt Hancock has previously said that the UK “has probably done more than any other nation to help vaccinate the world’s poorest” through its support for the Oxford vaccine, which accounted for almost a third of the global number of coronavirus jabs administered as of 19 May.
He said the government had also donated more than £500m to Covax, which has delivered vaccines to 120 countries and territories.
In November, the UK government decided to cut spending on its annual foreign aid commitment from 0.7% to 0.5% of gross national income.
NATO and Ukraine will hold emergency talks on Tuesday after Vladimir Putin said Russia will ramp up the production of a new, hypersonic ballistic missile.
Ukraine‘s parliament cancelled a session as security was tightened following a Russian strike on Thursday on a military facility in Dnipro, a central city with a population of around one million. No fatalities were reported.
In a nationally-televised speech, Mr Putin said the attack – carried out with an intermediate-range Oreshnik missile – was in retaliation for Ukraine’s use of US and British missiles capable of striking deeper into Russian territory.
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“No one in the world has such weapons,” the Russian president said. “Sooner or later other leading countries will also get them. We are aware that they are under development.”
He added: “We have this system now. And this is important.”
Detailing the missile’s alleged capabilities, Mr Putin claimed it is so powerful that using several fitted with conventional warheads in one attack could be as devastating as a strike with nuclear weapons.
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General Sergei Karakayev, head of Russia’s strategic missile forces, said the Oreshnik could reach targets across Europe and be fitted with either nuclear or conventional warheads – while Mr Putin alleged Western air defence systems will not be able to stop the missiles.
Mr Putin said of the Oreshnik: “There is no countermeasure to such a missile, no means of intercepting it, in the world today. And I will emphasise once again that we will continue testing this newest system. It is necessary to establish serial production.”
Testing the Oreshnik will happen “in combat, depending on the situation and the character of security threats created for Russia“, the president added, stating there is “a stockpile of such systems ready for use”.
EU leaders condemn Russia’s ‘heinous attacks’
Numerous EU leaders have addressed Russia’s escalation of the conflict with Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk saying the war is “entering a decisive phase [and] taking on very dramatic dimensions”.
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Russia’s new missile – what does it mean?
Speaking in Kyiv, Czech foreign minister Jan Lipavsky called Moscow’s strike an “escalatory step and an attempt of the Russian dictator to scare the population of Ukraine and to scare the population of Europe”.
At a news conference, Mr Lipavsky gave his full support for delivering the additional air defence systems needed to protect Ukrainian civilians from the “heinous attacks”.
Israel has targeted central Beirut with at least four airstrikes, according to security sources cited by Reuters news agency.
Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency said the attack “completely destroyed” an eight-storey residential building in the Basta neighbourhood early on Saturday.
It is not immediately clear how many have been killed or injured and the Israeli military did not warn residents to evacuate before the attack, the fourth targeting the centre this week.
The blasts happened at about 4am (2am UK time) and came after a day of bombardment of Beirut’s southern suburbs, which Israel had warned residents of in advance.
Heavy fighting between Israel and Hezbollah is ongoing in southern Lebanon, as Israeli forces push deeper into the country since launching a major offensive in September.
US envoy Amos Hochstein was in the region this week to try to end the more than 13 months of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, ignited last October by the Gaza war.
According to the Lebanese health ministry, Israel has killed more than 3,500 people in Lebanon and wounded more than 15,000.
It has displaced about 1.2 million people – a quarter of Lebanon’s population – while Israel says about 90 soldiers and nearly 50 civilians have been killed in northern Israel.
This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.
A woman who accused Conor McGregor of raping her has said “justice has been served” after she won her civil case against the Irish mixed martial arts fighter.
Nikita Hand has been awarded €248,603 (£206,000) in damages after a jury at Dublin’s High Court found McGregor assaulted her in a Dublin hotel in 2018.
McGregor, 36, made no comment as he swiftly left court following the decision on Friday evening.
He later said in a statement that he had instructed his legal team to appeal the civil court’s decision, adding he was “disappointed that the jury did not hear all the evidence that the director of public prosecutions reviewed”.
He ended the statement saying: “I am with my family, focused on my future.”
McGregor had previously told the court he had consensual sex with Ms Hand in a penthouse at the Beacon Hotel in December 2018.
‘No matter who the person is, justice will be served’
Speaking outside court after the decision, an emotional Ms Hand said the last two weeks of her civil case against the fighter have been a “nightmare” and has impacted not only her life but her daughter’s, friends and loved ones.
“I would like to start off by saying I’m overwhelmed and touched by the support I have received from everybody,” the mother-of-one said.
“It’s something that I’ll never forget for the rest of my life.
“Now that justice has been served, I can now try and move on and look forward to the future with my family and friends and daughter.”
Ms Hand continued: “I hope my story is a reminder that no matter how afraid you might be: Speak up, you have a voice and keep on fighting for justice.
“You can stand up for yourself if something happens to you – no matter who the person is – and justice will be served.”
Ms Hand told the civil court McGregor pinned her to a bed, choked her three times and “brutally raped and battered” her.
The jury was told she was left with extensive injuries, including purple and blue bruising along her hands and wrists, a bloodied scratch to her breast and tenderness to her neck.
McGregor no longer known for just his sporting abilities
There was not an inch to move in this tiny civil courtroom in centre Dublin.
The jury sat for six hours and 10 minutes, determining the future of one of Ireland’s biggest stars.
You could cut the tension with a knife.
McGregor sat stoney faced taking intermittent, deep heavy breaths as the clerk of the court declared the jury had reached their decision.
The judge sternly told the public gallery he would “jail” anyone who caused a scene when the news came out.
It was a sign of the high stakes in this case.
Within 40 seconds, the judge read out the news that McGregor was dreading, and Nikita Hand was determined to get.
“Did Conor McGregor assault Nikita Hand?”
“Yes” came the reply.
The blood drained from McGregor’s face. His head in his hands.
As the MMA star stepped out of court, he entered a new era. He walked straight to his Bentley, ignoring questions from reporters about whether he feels remorse.
He is no longer just a household name for his sporting abilities.
But lawyers for the fighter contested the lawsuit and accused her of attempted “extortion”.
They pointed to CCTV footage of Ms Hand arriving at and leaving the hotel with McGregor and a second man, James Lawrence, whom she also accused of assault.
Both McGregor and Lawrence denied any wrongdoing. While Ms Hand won her case against McGregor, she lost her claim against Lawrence.
On Monday, McGregor’s legal team told jurors it did not matter if they did not like or even loathed the famous fighter, urging them to look at the evidence and not his character.
McGregor and Ms Hand knew each other and had occasionally been in contact on social media, the civil trial heard.
Before the assault, Ms Hand had contacted the fighter, who picked up her and a friend in his car.
McGregor “came on to her”, but she did not want to have sexual intercourse with him as she was on her period, the court heard.