House of Commons of the United Kingdom

The full closure of the UK's borders has been "considered" by the government amid concerns about new COVID variants being imported from abroad, a minister has revealed.

This week, the government closed all UK travel corridors - which had allowed arrivals from some countries to avoid having to quarantine - until at least 15 February.

Britain and Turkey are set to sign a free trade deal on Tuesday, the UK trade ministry said on Sunday, the first since Prime Minister Boris Johnson secured a new trade agreement with the European Union.

The lockdown restrictions in place combined with the Christmas break offer a rare opportunity for some reading. I recently finished a great book on the Yalta Conference before picking up a biography of Franklin D. Roosevelt.

The government of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is trying to find a way to open the borders with France and unblock one of the most important European trade routes nine days before the final separation of the United Kingdom and the EU.

The UK plunged into Christmas chaos with police deployed to stop people boarding packed trains, holidays abroad scrapped and Europe banning travel with the country after London went into an emergency lockdown.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's government was hit by its first resignation on May 26 over the controversy surrounding top aide Dominic Cummings' cross-country trip during the coronavirus lockdown.    

Undermining attempts by ministers to try and move on from the crisis which has dominated British politics for days, Douglas Ross, a minister for Scotland, quit in protest.    

While the rest of the U.K. remained at home, England underwent its first day on May 13 of some businesses reopening amid mounting opposition criticism of the government's easing of the lockdown.

England saw an increase in the number of people traveling around the country and using public transport.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was fighting worsening coronavirus symptoms in an intensive care unit on April 7, leaving his foreign minister to lead the government's response to the accelerating outbreak.

Sir Keir Starmer was elected the new leader of Britain's main opposition Labour Party on April 4. 
In a statement, he said: "It is the honor and the privilege of my life to be elected as leader of the Labour party."
Starmer won with 56.2% of the vote in the first round, a decisive victory.

MP reportedly met hundreds of people in parliament over the past week and attended a reception with PM Boris Johnson.

U.K. Health Minister Nadine Dorries became the first British MP to test positive for the coronavirus on Tuesday and is recovering at home.