Europe's Covid Surge

Published: Nov. 25, 2021, 8:30 p.m.

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As parts of Europe struggle to contain Covid cases we ask what that means for them and us.\\nThe World Health Organisation has warned that another 500,000 people in Europe could die of Covid by March next year unless countries take urgent action to control the spread of the virus.

Austria \\u2013 the country with the lowest vaccination rate in western Europe - has become the first country to legally require people to have the vaccine from next February. The German health minister has said the country is in a national emergency that could result in another national lockdown. There have been riots in the Netherlands in response to new Covid restrictions.

So why is the situation so dire, what\\u2019s being done about it and what risk does the crisis on the continent pose to the UK?

Joining David Aaronovitch in The Briefing Room are:

Dr Louise Blair, Lead analyst in vaccines and covid variants at the health analytics firm, Airfinity.\\nDr Clemens Auer, Special Envoy for Health for the Federal Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs, Health, Care and Consumer Protection of Austria. He was Austria\\u2019s Covid co-ordinator until March.\\nProfessor Martin McKee, Professor of European Public Health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.\\nProfessor Sheena Cruickshank, Immunologist at the University of Manchester.\\nDr Raghib Ali, Senior Clinical Research Associate, University of Cambridge

Producers: Ben Carter, John Murphy and Kirsteen Knight\\nEditor: Richard Vadon\\nStudio Engineer: Rod Farquhar\\nProduction Co-ordinator: Siobhan Reed

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