England

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain’s Queen Elizabeth and her husband Prince Philip may “let it be known” once they have received a vaccine against COVID-19, The Times newspaper reported, citing unnamed royal aides.

The 94-year-old monarch and her 99-year-old spouse are likely to be among the first to be offered a jab, with the government prioritising elderly people as it begins the rollout of the Pfizer vaccine that was approved on Dec. 2.

LONDON (Reuters) - The head of Britain’s medicines regulator, asked whether the COVID-19 vaccine rollout risked being disrupted if Britain and the European Union fail to reach a trade deal before the end of the Brexit transition period, said “we are ready”.

“We’ve practised, we are ready, we are fully prepared for any possible outcome,” said June Raine, head of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), on BBC television.

LONDON/DUBLIN (Reuters) - British and European Union negotiators will meet in Brussels on Sunday in a last-ditch attempt to strike a post-Brexit trade deal before a transition agreement ends on Dec. 31.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen spoke on Saturday and instructed their teams to resume talks after they were paused on Friday.

(Reuters) - Britain is working on a plan to take control of one of Britain’s oldest steelmakers to secure the supply chain for the country’s nuclear submarine fleet, Sky News reported on Saturday.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) had enlisted Deloitte to advise it on the talks with privately-owned Sheffield Forgemasters, Sky News said, citing steel industry sources.

The MoD could not immediately be reached for comment.

LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and the European Union’s top official are set to discuss the state of play of post-Brexit trade discussions later Saturday after negotiators paused talks in light of their inability to bridge an array of differences.

With the discussions stuck over the same issues for months, Johnson and Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the EU’s executive European Commission, will see if there is a route to a deal.

LONDON (Reuters) - Brent crude oil futures rose to just under $50 a barrel on Friday as major producers agreed on a compromise to increase output slightly from January but continue the bulk of existing supply curbs to cope with coronavirus-hit demand.

Brent was up 53 cents at $49.24 a barrel by 1034 GMT after hitting its highest since early March at $49.92. West Texas Intermediate rose 47 cents to $46.11 a barrel. Both benchmarks are set for a fifth straight week of gains.

LONDON, Dec 3 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The Commonwealth has deployed a team of election observers to Ghana to keep watch during the country’s General Election slated for Monday next week.

The Commonwealth Observer Group is made up of politicians, diplomats and experts in law, human rights, gender and election administration from across member countries.

Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland said the group was constituted following an invitation from the Electoral Commission of Ghana ahead of the Dec 7 election.

LONDON (Reuters) - Global progress toward energy efficiency has slowed to its lowest rate in 10 years due to subdued prices amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the International Energy Agency said on Thursday, dealing a setback to efforts to curb climate change.

“As a result of the crisis and continuing low energy prices, energy intensity is expected to improve by only 0.8% in 2020, roughly half the rates (last year)”, to levels last reached in 2010, the Paris-based watchdog said in a report.

LONDON (Reuters) - Oil prices slipped on Wednesday as the market awaited a pact from producers on output, although Britain’s approval of a COVID-19 vaccine gave hopes for a demand recovery a boost.

Prices were hit by a surprise build in oil inventories in the United States and as OPEC and its allies created uncertainty with a two-day delay to a formal meeting to decide whether to increase production in January.

Brent crude oil futures were down 13 cents, or 0.3%, at $47.29 a barrel by 1332 GMT, while West Texas Intermediate crude was down 16 cents, or 0.4%, at $44.39.

(AP) --- British officials authorized a COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use on Wednesday, greenlighting the world’s first shot against the virus that’s backed by rigorous science and taking a major step toward eventually ending the pandemic.

The go-ahead for the vaccine developed by American drugmaker Pfizer and Germany’s BioNTech comes as the virus surges again in the United States and Europe, putting pressure on hospitals and morgues in some places and forcing new rounds of restrictions that have devastated economies.