LIVE UPDATES: Coronavirus NI - William Shakespeare - the first man in the world to receive Covid-19 vaccine dies

The first man in the world to receive the Covid-19 vaccine has died after a battle with an unrelated illness.
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LIVE UPDATES: Coronavirus - First man in the world to receive Covid-19 vaccine dies from unrelated illness

First man in the world to receive Covid-19 vaccine dies from unrelated illness

First man in the world to receive Covid-19 vaccine dies from unrelated illness.

William ‘Bill’ Shakespeare, 81, received his first dose of the Pfizer vaccine at the beginning of December 2020.

Mr. Shakespeare was the second person to receive the injection after 91 year-old Co. Fermanagh woman, Margaret Keenan, received her jab the day before.

A local councillor in Coventry and friend of Mr. Shakespeare’s said the best tribute people could pay to him is getting the vaccine.

“Bill will be remembered for many things, including a taste for mischief,” said councillor Jayne Iness.

West Midlands Labour group said on Twitter: “Bill made global headlines as [the first] man to have Covid vaccine.

“His decades of service to the party were recently recognised by Keir Starmer.

“Our thoughts are with Joy and Bill’s family and friends.”

75 new infections but no new deaths recorded in last 24 hours

There have been no further deaths of patients who had previously tested positive for Covid-19 in Northern Ireland.

However another 75 positive cases were confirmed by the region’s Department of Health.

On Tuesday morning there were 29 Covid-positive patients in hospital, of whom two were in intensive care.

NI travel confusion as passengers flying to Portugal tomorrow have no way of proving to authorities they are fully vaccinated against Covid-19

There is confusion in Northern Ireland as passengers due to fly from Belfast to Portugal (Faro) on Wednesday morning will not be able to prove to Portuguese authorities they have received two doses of a Covid-19 vaccine.

Portugal is on a green list of destinations people in Northern Ireland people can visit and, provided they have not tested positive for Covid-19, not have to self-isolate.

If travelling from Northern Ireland to Portugal you must provide the following:

- All passengers, excluding children up to the age of 2, travelling to or through Portugal in transit, must show a negative RT-PCR test result for SARS/COVID-19 at the time of boarding. The test must have been taken within 72 hours of departure.

- All passengers travelling to Portugal will be subject to health screening on arrival. If your temperature is 38ºc or over or you show signs of being unwell, you may be required to take a further RT-PCR COVID-19 test and remain at the airport until you receive your test result.

- If you have recovered from COVID-19 in the last 90 days, or have had both doses of the vaccine at least 15 days prior to travel, you will be exempt from showing a RT-PCR COVID-19 test on entry.

Travellers will need to show a medical report as evidence of your status. You cannot use a handwritten NHS COVID card as proof of vaccination for travel purposes.

We contacted the Department of Health (DoH) asking how people in Northern Ireland can prove to Portuguese officials they are exempt from taking RT-PCR COVID-19 because they have received two doses of the Covid-19 vaccine.

“The Department of Health is working on a solution to enable proof of vaccination to the agreed standard. It is anticipated that a paper based option will be available in the first instance, from a specialist printing service,” said a departmental spokesperson.

“This requires infrastructure to be developed, allowing citizens to request certification, securely linking to their personal data.

“Further details will follow shortly.

“In the meantime it should be noted that neither GP practices, or other HSC organisations, are able to issue letters for travel purposes.”

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