In Singapore, new data has shown that almost half of the country’s migrant workers have been infected with Covid-19 in the past nine months.
The new figures show that 152,000 foreign workers, which is about 47%, have been infected.
The men, most of whom live in large dormitories where several men share a room amid cramped facilities, have essentially been quarantined from the rest of the population since cases exploded in April.
The new figure is a combination of the normal PCR coronavirus tests – which checks whether a person currently has the virus and a separate drive of serology tests which trace whether a person has had it in the past.
And with Christmas fast approaching, governments around Europe are having to make tough decisions on whether to ease coronavirus restrictions in time for the holiday period.
In Netherlands, Prime Minister Mark Rutte says the country will go into a strict lockdown for five weeks, from 15 December to 19 January.
Non-essential shops, cinemas, hairdressers and gyms closed on Tuesday and schools will follow on Wednesday. Citizens have been told to refrain from booking non-essential travel abroad until mid-March.
Restrictions will be eased slightly for the three days of Christmas, when Dutch households are allowed three instead of two guests, not counting children under 13.
