Bank of England warns of deepest recession on record
The Bank of England has warned that the coronavirus pandemic will push the UK economy towards its deepest recession on record. It said the economy was on course to shrink 14% this year, based on the lockdown being relaxed in June. Scenarios drawn up by...
Coronavirus: PM to review lockdown restrictions with cabinet
Boris Johnson will review the coronavirus lockdown in England with his cabinet later, after suggesting some rules could be eased from Monday. By law the government must review the restrictions every three weeks, and Thursday marks the latest deadline. The prime minister will address the...
Coronavirus: UK detention centres ’emptied in weeks’
The number of people held in UK immigration removal centres has dropped by more than two thirds during the pandemic, figures reveal. More than 700 detainees were released between 16 March and 21 April as the government responded to concerns about the spread of infection....
Former CDC director reveals ’10 plain truths’ about the pandemic
Dr. Tom Frieden, the former director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, laid out “10 plain truths” about Covid-19 on Wednesday as he spoke at a House Appropriations Committee hearing on the pandemic response. “In my 30 years in global public health,...
UK coronavirus death toll passes 30,000
At least 30,076 people have died from coronavirus in the UK, the country’s Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick said on Wednesday. The country now has the highest confirmed death toll in Europe and the second-highest death toll in the world, behind the United States. The number...
London’s Heathrow Airport is testing technology to screen for coronavirus
Heathrow Airport CEO John Holland-Kaye said the UK government must work with the international community to establish a common standard for how to avoid measures, such as quarantine, that will “completely kill the travel sector”. He noted that there is no commonly, internationally established health...
Prime Minister Boris Johnson says he wants some lockdown easing in the UK on Monday
The UK leader announced that the government’s plan for moving forward during the pandemic will be presented to Parliament on Sunday, in the hope that some new measures to ease the country’s lockdown will be adopted the following day. He did not explicitly mention any...
It’s 12 p.m. in London and 7 a.m. in eastern US. Here’s the latest.
If you’re just joining our live coverage of the global coronavirus pandemic, here are some key headlines today: Trump to disband task force: The White House coronavirus task force will begin winding down later this month, according to a senior White House official. This comes...
Former British PM Theresa May criticizes lack of “coherent international response” to Covid-19
Former British prime minister Theresa May has criticized world leaders for their “inability to forge a coherent international response” to the novel coronavirus pandemic, in an opinion piece for the Times of London on Wednesday. May, who was prime minister from 2016 until the summer...
It’s just past 8 p.m. in Washington and 11 a.m. in Hong Kong. Here’s the latest on the pandemic
The novel coronavirus has infected more than 3.6 million people globally and killed at least 257,000. If you’re just joining us now, here are the latest developments: Trump to disband task force: The White House coronavirus task force will start to wind down later this...
Coronavirus: Why is the UK’s COVID-19 death toll higher than other EU countries?
The UK has overtaken Italy to become the country worst hit by COVID-19 in Europe, according to latest government death counts. The disease has now killed 29,427 people in the UK, compared with 29,315 in Italy. While current death tolls give a broad idea of...
UK charities urge government to better protect carers suffering ‘intolerable pressures’
Care workers on the frontline of the COVID-19 pandemic are fighting back. A letter, signed by over 100 organisations including Oxfam, Carers UK and Unison union, warns that carers are facing ‘intolerable pressure’, and have been undervalued and under-rewarded for far too long. “All of...
UK coronavirus death toll overtakes Italy’s to become highest in Europe
The number of people who have died from coronavirus in the UK is now the highest in Europe and second only to the US globally. The UK today surpassed Italy’s death toll, as Britain’s foreign secretary announced the number of those who have died from...
British death toll may have neared 30,000 before end of April, UK data shows
The UK’s Covid-19 death toll may have been significantly higher than previously thought, with almost 30,000 registered deaths until April 24 (April 26 in Scotland), the latest data released by statistics bodies across the UK reveals. A total of 29,998 fatalities in the United Kingdom...
It’s just past 7 a.m. in New York and 12 p.m. in London. Here’s the latest on the coronavirus pandemic
If you’re just joining us, here’s the latest on the coronavirus pandemic. US death toll projected to double: An influential coronavirus model often cited by the White House forecasts that 134,000 people will die of coronavirus in the US by August, nearly double its previous...
UK infection reproduction rate is still between 0.6 and 0.9
The UK’s Covid-19 reproduction rate is still between 0.6 and 0.9, the government’s chief scientific advisor Patrick Vallance said Tuesday. Vallance told a virtual parliamentary Health and Social Care Committee hearing that it is difficult for the UK government to get a very granular estimate...
UK government publishes scientific advice behind Covid-19 response
The British government has published the scientific advice it says has shaped its strategy to deal with the novel coronavirus outbreak in the country. “The collective evidence we have published today has played a considerable role in shaping our recommendations on when, how and why...
It’s just past 8 a.m. in London and 12:30 p.m. in New Delhi. Here’s the latest on the coronavirus pandemic
If you’re just joining us, here’s the latest on the coronavirus pandemic. Coronavirus origin: Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the most likely origin of the coronavirus outbreak was a wildlife wet market. His comments come as intelligence shared among US allies indicates the virus...
UK coronavirus death toll up by 288, lowest increase since end of March
At least 28,734 people have died from the novel coronavirus in the UK, the country’s Health Secretary Matt Hancock said today. That’s a rise of 288 from the day before, which is the lowest daily increase in the death toll since the end of March....
Scotland launches Covid-19 “Test, Trace, Isolate, Support” strategy
Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has unveiled Scotland’s next phase in its battle with coronavirus – a “test, trace, isolate, support” approach. Sturgeon denied that Monday’s announcement was an admission that it had been wrong to abandon tracing earlier in the UK’s coronavirus outbreak, in...
Boris Johnson: Quest to find a vaccine “most urgent shared endeavor of our lifetimes”
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will say the discovery of a coronavirus vaccine is the “most urgent shared endeavor of our lifetimes” at an international pledging conference on Monday. The UK is currently the biggest global donor in the efforts to find a vaccine, pledging...
Draft UK government plan to ease restrictions includes cuts to hot-desking, British media reports
A draft UK government plan to ease anti-coronavirus restrictions includes reducing hot-desking and strategies to minimize contagion where social distancing is not possible, British media reported on Monday. Additional health and safety procedures, physical screens and the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) should be...
Coronavirus: Barclays gets 200 loan applications in one minute
Businesses can apply for loans up to £50,000 from Monday under a new Treasury scheme – and are already in big demand. Barclays’ UK boss Matt Hammerstein said the bank got 200 applications for so-called bounce back loans in the first minute after they launched...
Drug dealers pose as food delivery drivers during coronavirus lockdown – Interpol
Drugs dealers are disguising themselves as food delivery drivers to continue dealing drugs, Interpol warns. Police in the UK, Ireland, Malaysia and Spain have reported instances of drug couriers posing as food delivery workers, while carrying illicit drugs such as cocaine, marijuana, ketamine and ecstasy,...
The UK has passed its coronavirus peak, Boris Johnson says
Boris Johnson has said the UK is “past the peak” of its coronavirus outbreak and is looking towards a lockdown exit strategy, as he led the British government’s coronavirus briefing for the first time since recovering from Covid-19. “We’re past the peak and we’re on...
A third of hospitalized Covid-19 patients die in the UK, study shows
A large-scale new pre-print study has found that a third of coronavirus patients admitted to UK hospitals die, and fewer than half of those put on ventilators survive. The study, called ISARIC4C and led by researchers from the University of Edinburgh, University of Liverpool, and...
British Prime Minister to face tough questions on coronavirus response for first time since recovering from virus
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will face questions at a daily government coronavirus briefing for the first time since recovering from the illness. Testing failures and a rising death toll: Johnson is expected to address questions over the UK’s failure to reach its own target...
Coronavirus: Boris Johnson to update UK on ‘steps to defeat’ the disease
Prime Minister Boris Johnson will chair a cabinet meeting later and then lead the daily coronavirus briefing for the first time since his return to work. No 10 said the PM, whose fiancee gave birth on Wednesday, will update the UK on the “fight against...
UK pledges £1.5bn for Covid-19 vaccine research
The UK government has pledged more than £1.5bn over the next five years as part of international efforts to find a Covid-19 vaccine. International Development Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan told MPs the UK would contribute the equivalent of £330m a year for the next five years...
Scottish government recommends wearing face coverings in public places
Scotland’s government is recommending that people wear face coverings in situations where maintaining social distancing is difficult, such as on public transportation or inside food shops, Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said on Tuesday. Speaking at the daily coronavirus briefing, Sturgeon acknowledged that evidence on...