chairman of the office for budget responsibility, says that the long-term effects of brexit may be worse than those of covid. rajar published its first set of post-covid radio audience figures, having had an 18 month hiatus. the figures show a fall in the number of breakfast show listeners to a number of stations when compared to pre-pandemic figures, although rajar says this could be as a result of a change in the way it records its figures. 28 october it is confirmed the final seven countries on the uk's red list – colombia, peru, panama, the dominican republic, haiti, venezuela and ecuador – will be removed from the red lists of all four home nations from monday 1 november, meaning people returning from those countries will no longer be required to pay for hotel quarantine. however, the provision for re-adding countries will be retained. a study published in the lancet suggests double vaccinated people are catching covid and passing it on to those they live with. 29 october the department of health confirms that seven million people have received a booster vaccine since the programme was launched six weeks ago, with two million having the third vaccine in the past week. the clinical guidelines regarding the booster vaccine are to be changed for some people, such as care home workers, to allow them to have the booster five months after their second dose rather than six months. but most people will continue to have it six months after the second dose. as the autumn half-term nears an end, the uk health security agency encourages schoolchildren in england and wales to do a rapid flow covid test before returning to school. figures show that overseas residents made just under 300,000 visits by air to the uk between april and june 2021, a 97% decline on pre-pandemic levels. welsh first minister mark drakeford announces new measures to tackle covid in wales, which has the highest rates. the covid pass scheme will be extended to cinemas, theatres and concert halls from 15 november, while anyone living with a person who tests positive for covid will be required to self-isolate until they can obtain a negative pcr test. drakeford says that further measures will be considered if cases remain high. the lockdown sessions, an album recorded by sir elton john during the pandemic, reaches number one in the uk album chart. 30 october figures produced by the rail delivery group, the rail industry's body, indicate commuter journeys are at half their pre-pandemic levels. wales hosts its first international rugby match with a full capacity crowd since the beginning of the pandemic. the game against new zealand at cardiff's principality stadium is attended by 74,000 spectators, the majority of who are required to present covid passes before entering the stadium. their tickets also include specified arrival times and entrances in order to stagger entries. 31 october health officials from nhs england are to visit around 800 schools in an attempt to accelerate the vaccination programme for 12–15-year-olds; around 600,000 people in that age group have already had the vaccine. nightclubs in northern ireland are reopened as some remaining covid restrictions are lifted; northern ireland is the last part of the uk to reopen its night time venues. 1 november vaccine booster doses without a prior appointment become available at walk-in centres in england for around 30 million people who had their second vaccine more than six months ago. ryanair announces plans to cut fares over the coming winter to boost sales. the refurbished island line on the isle of wight is reopened ten months after work began, having been delayed by covid and other issues. northern ireland's department of health launches the cert check ni app to facilitate the "voluntary use" of vaccine checks in the entertainment and hospitality sector. 2 november health secretary sajid javid warns the public not to "let down their guard" on covid. sir jeremy farrar steps down from the scientific advisory group for emergencies (sage) to concentrate on his role as chair of the wellcome trust. mps and peers are told by parliamentary authorities to wear face masks amid a high number of covid cases at westminster. scottish health secretary humza yousaf confirms 120 military personnel are to be drafted in to help with covid vaccine and flu vaccine deployment in scotland. 3 november england's deputy chief medical officer jonathan van-tam voices his belief that "very high" covid rates will mean there are difficult months ahead. a special crown office department established to investigate covid-related deaths in hospitals in scotland is investigating 827 cases, it is reported. 4 november molnupiravir, the first tablet designed to treat covid-19, is given approval for use in the uk. the bank of england announces no change in the interest rate, but signals there may be a raise in the coming months in order to offset an expected rise in inflation. 5 november england's r number is estimated to be between 0.9 and 1.1, a fall from the same day the previous week when it was estimated to be between 1.1 and 1.3. a cardiff university study suggests wearing face coverings could be affecting the way people interact with each other as they are not able to properly see facial expressions. details of another study conducted by cardiff university in 2020 indicate that primary school age children reported a substantial increase in ‘emotional difficulties’ compared with an identical survey conducted in 2018. the licensed private car hire association (lpcha) warns that more than half of licensed taxi drivers have left the industry since march 2020, and expresses fears a shortage of drivers could lead to safety issues for women and workers trying to get home late at night. it is estimated the number of licensed drivers has declined from around 300,000 to 160,000. 6 november the uk government announces minor changes to the booster vaccine booking process from 8 november, allowing people to book them a month in advance. figures have revealed that gp assessments for dementia patients have fallen by a third since the beginning of the pandemic. 7 november the number of people receiving a third vaccine dose exceeds 10 million. health secretary sajid javid urges people to get their covid booster as part of what he describes as a "national mission" to prevent restrictions at christmas. northern ireland health minister robin swann initiates legal proceedings against sir van morrison over the latter's description of him as "very dangerous" for his handling of the covid pandemic. 8 november the united states reopens its borders to travellers from the uk, brazil, china, india, ireland, south africa, iran and the countries in the schengen area. during a series of interviews for news media, amanda pritchard, chief executive of nhs england, incorrectly states that covid hospitalisations are "14 times" higher compared to "this time last year", when figures show cases have fallen in comparison to november 2020. the comments are subsequently reported by a number of media outlets, including sky news and itv news before the nhs attempts to clarify the statement by saying that pritchard was referring to the figures for september 2021, which are higher than september 2020. figures show 4.5 million people in england are yet to have a first vaccine, and nhs bosses are encouraging them to come forward. a survey by insurers aviva suggests one in ten people regret purchases made during lockdown, such as diy tools, pizza ovens and hot tubs, with an average £1,400 spent on items that are now unused. 9 november health secretary sajid javid confirms it will be mandatory for frontline nhs staff in england to have both vaccines, with a deadline of april 2022 set as the date by which they must have the vaccine. northern ireland's health minister, robin swann, announces plans for a public consultation over whether to introduce mandatory covid vaccines for healthcare workers in northern ireland. the senedd votes 39–15 to extend wales's covid pass scheme from monday 15 november to include cinemas, theatres and concert halls. a yougov survey of 1,000 adults in northern ireland found that only 3% wanted to return fulltime to the office following the pandemic. 10 november on the eve of new rules coming into force in england that require care home staff to be double vaccinated, some bosses fear losing as much as 8% of their workforce. french vaccine manufacturer valneva is seeking an apology from the uk government after doubt was cast over whether its vaccine would be approved. 11 november the college of paramedics warns that people's lives are being put at risk by unacceptably lengthy waits for an emergency response when calling 999. the first documented case of a dog testing positive for covid is reported. the uk health security agency believes the dog caught the virus from its owner, but stresses that such instances are rare. the uk government confirms school pupils in england will be given advance notice of some content for 2022 exams due to disruption caused by covid. labour mp chris evans has stressed the need for a wales-specific covid inquiry, describing the need as a "moral" one, because bereaved families in wales have particular questions that need answering. 12 november prime minister boris johnson warns of "the storm clouds gathering over parts of the european continent" are a reminder that people should have their booster vaccine if invited. covid cases in europe have seen an increase while the uk appears to be bucking that trend. astrazeneca confirms it will begin to draw an income from its vaccine after signing a series of for-profit deals. the company had previously stated it would only begin to make a profit from the vaccine once covid was no longer a pandemic. the ministry of defence approves the extension of military help for nhs lanarkshire and nhs borders until december. the help from the mod had been scheduled to expire on 10 november. according to i, unnamed sources told them that the uk government has produced three scenarios showing how the final stage of the covid-19 pandemic could be played out. an optimistic scenario would see the pandemic being declared over between 2021 and 2023, a central scenario (considered the most likely) would see it end between 2023 and 2024, while a pessimistic scenario (considered the least likely) would see the pandemic continuing until 2026, with more restrictions and a waning of vaccine effectiveness. 13 november epidemiologist professor neil ferguson suggests that extending the covid booster vaccine programme to people aged under 50 would help to reduce transmission rates of the virus. former health secretary matt hancock has reportedly been approached about writing a book about his experiences during the pandemic, but is undecided about doing so. 14 november health secretary sajid javid confirms that over a million vaccines have been given to children aged 12–15. 15 november the joint committee on vaccination and immunisation extends the booster vaccine programme to all adults over the age of 40, while also offering 16- and 17-year-olds a second dose; previously they had been offered only one. a study commissioned by youth charity ditch the labels notes that online hate speech in the uk and us increased by 20% during the pandemic. covid pass requirements in wales are extended to cinemas, theatres and concert venues. 16 november figures produced by the office for national statistics indicate there were 1.17 million job vacancies during october. figures produced by nhs digital indicate childhood obesity increased during 2020–21, with 14% of children classed as obese, up from 10% the previous year. poverty, lockdowns and mental health problems are cited as contributing factors in the rise. 17 november the vaccination advice for children aged 12–17 is updated, with the new recommendation that they should wait twelve weeks to get vaccinated following a covid infection; previously the advice had been to wait four weeks. northern ireland's ministers vote to introduce mandatory covid passports for northern ireland from december, which will need to be produced for entry into pubs, restaurants and nightclubs. 18 november the latest figures show that almost 13 million people have had a booster vaccine, roughly 24% of the population. the uk government publishes a list of 50 companies that were given fast-track vip contracts to supply personal protective equipment (ppe) following the covid outbreak.