VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

photo : reuters

South Korea on Thursday proposed expanding its capital gains taxes to include a larger number of affluent stock investors, in its push to reduce inequality by levying more from the wealthy and less from general share trading.  As quoted by Reuters on Thursday (June25) finance minister Hong Nam-ki  in a policy meeting starting 2023 stated taxes of up to 25% will be imposed on annual capital gains exceeding 20 million won or $16,627 for retail investors. That would affect about 300,000 people, or the top 5% of all stock investors, in Asia's fourth-largest economy. It would also mark a significant expansion of current rules as capital gains taxes are only applied to large shareholders with stakes exceeding 1% or 1 billion won ($831,373) of listed stocks. Currently, no retail investors of listed shares are subject to capital gains taxes unless they are classified as "large shareholders"//Reuters

photo : sertv

Panama on Wednesday tapped a new health minister to replace Rosario Turner, the public face of its response to the coronavirus pandemic, whose spread has been accelerating in the country in recent weeks. As quoted by Reuters on Thursday (June25) Luis Sucre, who has served as deputy health minister since July of last year, was named the new health minister. President of Panama Laurentino Cortizo  during a brief television address stated that  the country has a debt to (Turner) that cannot be repaid. Cortizo added a task of this magnitude certainly constitutes a marathon that cannot be victorious without a solid sense of teamwork and without the necessary replacements to ensure the achievement of a strong victory. Cortizo also announced new ministers to lead the ministries of social development as well as housing and land Planning. Panama has registered a total of 28,030 cases of coronavirus and 547 deaths so far//Reuters

photo : abc

Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Thursday (June 25) that he has confidence the country could move ahead with easing restrictions as it can respond and deal with new coronavirus outbreaks. As quoted by Reuters (June25) there will be outbreaks , the government can't go stop-go-stop-go and  it can't flick the light on-and-off-on-and-off-and-on-and-off, Morrison said, referring to restrictions to curb the spread of the virulent disease. So what  Morrison is saying is  the government  is going ahead, it built the protections to deal with outbreaks. Australia reported its first COVID-19 death in more than a month on Wednesday, as concerns about a second wave of infections saw thousands of people queue, sometimes for hours, to be tested for the virus//Reuters

photo : bbcnews

From the 4th July in England the 2-metre social distancing rule should still be observed where possible. But where it's not people are advised to keep a distance of 1 metre from others, while using other forms of protection such as face masks. People in England will be able to go out and socialize in pubs and restaurants as well as staying in hotels and at campsites. Barbers and hairdressers will reopen and outdoor gyms, playgrounds, and theme parks will also be open again. In the Commons on Tuesday, PM Johnson said announcing the biggest easing of lockdown yet, he said two households in England will be able to meet indoors and stay overnight - with social distancing.

"Thanks to our progress we can now go further and safely eased the lockdown in England. At every stage caution will remain our watch word. Our principal is to trust British public to use their common sense in a full knowledge of the risk, remembering that the more we open up the more vigilant we will need to be" Prime minister said. 

Other venues reopening in England include cinemas, museums and galleries. But some places will still remain closed, including nightclubs, indoor gyms, and swimming pools. It means that thousands of businesses across England have just 11 days to get ready to open again. And there will be strict new rules in place to protect customers. The chief medical officer for England Professor Chris Whitty stressed PM Johnson's plan was not "risk-free".

"The advise to use stay at 2 metre if you can stay at 2 metres remains. And the the one metre is one metre plus mitigation which bring it into line in other areas that’s why people must take it seriously. Personally I’m not comfortable with it, this is the balance of risk it’s like many things in medicine you don’t go for the operation unless you have to, it’s a balance of risk" professor whitty said. 

The 2m social-distancing rule will be replaced with a "one-metre plus" rule, meaning people should stay at least 2m apart where possible, but otherwise should remain at least 1m apart while taking steps to reduce the risk of transmission, such as wearing face coverings. The 2m rule will remain in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Following the prime minister's announcement, health leaders called for a "rapid and forward-looking assessment" of how prepared the UK would be for a new outbreak of the virus//NK