Covid news live: Australia case rise continues, Omicron grounds 1,000 more US flights

Covid news live: Australia case rise continues, Omicron grounds 1,000 more US flights

NSW records 6,234 cases and Victoria 1,999 amid reported delays in PCR testing; Omicron surge grounds 1,000 more US flights over Christmas weekend

• Hundreds more US flights cancelled for third day amid surging cases
• Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland reintroduce Covid restrictions
• Boris Johnson to examine hospital data before decision on Covid rules
• Tory MPs warn Boris Johnson against toughening Covid new year rules
• See all our coronavirus coverage

Hello it’s Samantha Lock with you on the blog as we run through all the latest Covid developments from across Australia and the world.

Let’s start with the news that US airlines have cancelled more than 1,000 flights as crews remain grounded and forced to quarantine amid surging Covid-19 infections.

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