Frontline health and social care workers in England will be allowed to carry on working even if they are exposed to someone with Covid-19, the government said on Monday as it seeks safe way to ease pressure on the health service caused by rising infections, news wires reported.

Britain, despite some warnings, lifted on Monday most restrictions in what some have dubbed "Freedom Day", news wires reported. Epidemiologists are generally sceptical that lifting restrictions is the right thing to do, but many young British people have had enough of more than 1 1/2 years of lockdowns, and said they long for a party.

Britain announced on Friday that it was scrapping a planned easing of coronavirus rules for travellers from France, which had been due to take effect on Monday, because of the continued presence of the Beta variant of COVID first identified in South Africa, Reuters reported.

Swiss voters are to get a fresh chance to decide on reforming their increasingly underfinanced state pension system under a proposal that would raise both men's and women's retirement ages to 66 at first, and to just over 67.5 by 2050, news wires reported.

British PM Boris Johnson on Monday condemned the racist abuse directed at three Black England players who missed their penalties in the team’s shootout loss to Italy in the final of the European Championship, AP reported. Johnson tweeted that “those responsible for this appalling abuse should be ashamed of themselves.” London police condemned the “unacceptable” abuse, adding it will be investigating the “offensive and racist” social media posts.

The UK economy in May slowed its Covid-19 recovery although travel and transport restrictions in the country were relaxed, official data showed. The slowdown was provoked by the shortage of raw materials for the industrial production and especially semiconductor chips for the making of vehicles, Reuters reported. UK GDP rose by 0.8% in May which is far below 2.0% in April and under previous forecasts of 1.5%.

Norway announced it would channel some 10 billion crowns ($1.16 billion) in the next five years to fund renewable energy investments based in developing countries. The initiative is aimed to to cut greenhouse gas emissions worldwide, Reuters reported. The Norwegian climate fund, administered by the Norwegian Investment Fund for developing countries, from 2022 will back projects to reduce dependence on fossil-fuels, especially coal.

Nothing is forever and that applies for debtors of UK banks as government stimulus programmes near their end. UK banks rushed to employ and train bad loans collectors on expected spike of problem credits. In the very near future the UK banks eye the expiration of £75bn emergency loans expiration, Reuters elaborated. The cash was disbursed with few or no questions asked to the applicants with the objective to achieve fast support of local businesses and households amid the pandemic led downturn.

British PM Boris Johnson on Monday confirmed the government aimed to end restrictive measures on 19 July, with a final decision to be taken next week, news wires reported. Unveiling a five-point plan for the final step of easing curbs, he said it would eliminate formal limits on social contact and mandates to wear face masks.

Norway is delaying the next major step in easing pandemic restrictionsby the end of the month at the earliest, PM Erna Solberg said on Monday. "There is a risk that the Delta variant will cause a fourth wave of infection in the unvaccinated part of the population, among those who have only received one dose or are in vulnerable groups," she said.