Bird flu: supermarkets ration eggs
Asda is limiting customers to two boxes of eggs and Lidl is allowing three, due to rising costs and bird flu. Waitrose is monitoring customer demand. The UK is facing its largest-ever bout of this highly pathogenic disease. When there is a confirmed outbreak on a poultry or egg farm, all birds in the area are destroyed. The outbreak is compounding existing shortages as producers cut back on output or leave the industry due to increased costs. Russia's invasion of Ukraine raised farmers' energy bills and the costs of chicken feed, hens and packaging. There are 36.7 million egg-laying birds nationally, but there is capacity for over 44 million. Also, retailers are not paying farmers a fair price. The price of twelve supermarket eggs has risen by 50p, but farmers only saw a price rise of 5p to 10p.
UK is 'turning its back on the world'
Christian Aid says rich countries are not doing enough to fight the pandemic. They have ranked twenty rich countries' efforts to support rolling out Covid-19 vaccines globally. The worst nation is India; the UK is the second worst. Christian Aid said that the richest countries have a responsibility to improve global access to Covid vaccines, tests, and treatments, given their wealth and high vaccination rates. Governments financed research and development of these products and should not leave pharmaceutical companies to monopolise supply and price. But, amid a collision of international crises, the UK is turning its back on the world and undermining efforts to produce more vaccines, tests, and treatments in lower-income countries. By holding back the global pandemic response, the UK is haemorrhaging moral authority amongst international partners. Only one in three people in Africa - under one in four in low-income countries worldwide - have completed a course of vaccinations.
France / UK: English Channel crossings
Britain and France have now agreed to unite to stop illegal migrants from crossing the Channel. Interior minister Suella Braverman said Britain faced an ‘invasion’ from people in small boats, saying, ‘It is in the interests of the UK and French governments to solve this problem together. There are no quick fixes, but this arrangement means we can have more gendarmes patrolling French beaches and ensure UK and French officers work hand in hand to stop people smugglers.’ There will be 40% more UK-funded officers patrolling French beaches in the next five months. A task force will focus on reversing the rise in Albanian nationals and organised crime groups exploiting illegal routes. British officers will work in French-led control rooms and on the ground to improve coordination and intelligence sharing. There will be drones, detection dog teams, CCTV, and helicopters to help discover and prevent crossings, plus reception and removal centres in France to prevent journeys to the UK of economic migrants.
Ukraine / Russia: grain Initiative
The Russian invasion of Ukraine, a major exporter of grain, led to the blocking of all grain shipments until an agreement called the Black Sea Grain Initiative was signed in Istanbul between Ukraine, Russia and the UN. This agreement will expire on 19 November unless renewed. Renewal negotiations were being facilitated by the UN throughout October until the 29th, when a drone attack on Russian naval ships prompted Russia to suspend participation. Talks resumed on 2 November, with hopes to extend the agreement for a year. On 17 November Ukraine’s minister of infrastructure said the initiative would be prolonged, but only for 120 days.
