Coronavirus news: Boris Johnson urges public to abide by new Covid rules through ‘unquestionably difficult’ winter
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Your support makes all the difference.In a televised address following the announcement of new rules including early pub curfews and stricter face mask requirements, Mr Johnson warned further restrictions would follow if the public flouted the rules and claimed the government would “use the army if necessary” to enforce the laws.
Read more:
The new rules for travelling abroad
Why is 10pm the magic time for a pub curfew?
What are the new places you need to wear a face mask in England?
PM refuses to apologise for ‘gross incompetence’
Boris Johnson has refused to apologise for the government’s “gross incompetence” as the prime minister announced new restrictions to slow the spread of Covid-19.
Speaking in the Commons, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, Edward Davey, asked the prime minister to apologise for its failures in the Test & Trace system and its lack of clear communication.
Boris Johnson refuses to apologise for ‘gross incompetence’ leading to restrictions
The latest breaking news, comment and features from The Independent.
Starmer calls for furlough replacement scheme
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has called for the government to work with Labour on a package of measures to replace the furlough scheme.
He said: "There's a big gap here and will he now accept that withdrawing the furlough scheme in one fell swoop would be a disaster and actually at complete odds with the measures he's just announced for possibly up to six months.
"And will he take us up on his offer to work with him and trade unions and businesses on a replacement scheme that protects jobs and businesses?"
London mayor and PM discuss situation in capital
London mayor Sadiq Khan and Boris Johnson discussed the worsening situation for coronavirus in the capital during a “constructive telephone call” this morning.
A spokesman for Mr Khan said: "They discussed the rapidly worsening situation in London, including increasing ICU admission rates, and the need to go further now to prevent a disastrous full lockdown in future including mandatory face coverings for hospitality workers and more widespread wearing of face coverings.
"It is clear that London has unique needs and challenges and additional measures need to be examined which are suitable for the capital.
"Sadiq and the PM agreed to speak more regularly."
The new rules for travelling abroad
The four nations of the UK have introduced new restrictions aimed at reducing the growth in coronavirus infections. These are the implications if you plan to travel abroad.
Dogs to sniff out infected patients at airports
An airport in Finland will trial using trained dogs to sniff out passengers who are carrying coronavirus, Helen Coffey reports.
The pilot project, taking place at Helsinki Airport, will start this week with 16 dogs – four per shift – enrolled in the scheme.
It follows a study by the University of Helsinki’s Veterinary Faculty, which demonstrated that trained dogs could smell Covid-19 with close to 100 per cent certainty.
Helsinki Airport to use dogs to sniff out passengers infected with coronavirus
Initial tests suggest trained dogs can smell the virus with nearly 100 per cent certainty
NHS tests will be capped to 100,000 a day
The government has confirmed plans to cap NHS testing for coronavirus with hospitals limited to carrying out 100,000 tests a day.
On Friday, The Independent revealed NHS hospitals had been told by NHS England not to launch their own testing of staff and patients unless they had prior approval from the national test and trace service, led by Baroness Dido Harding.
If hospitals did go ahead and test for the virus without approval, due to the capped budget imposed by the DHSC, they would not be reimbursed for the spending and would have to meet the costs from their own budgets.
Read more from health correspondent Shaun Lintern:
NHS coronavirus tests will be capped to 100,000 a day
Hospitals will need prior approval from test and trace before launching their own testing
Ban on households mixing in Scotland
Nicola Sturgeon has announced a new ban on households mixing indoors across Scotland from Wednesday, and a 10pm curfew for pubs and restaurants.
The Scottish first minister also said the measures introduced to restrict hospitality in England by Boris Johnson just hours before will not “on its own be sufficient to bring the R number down”.
Scotland bans households mixing indoors as Nicola Sturgeon criticises Boris Johnson's new plan
The latest breaking news, comment and features from The Independent.
Premier League ‘disappointed’ by delay to fans returning to stadiums
The Premier League have expressed their disappointment at the government’s decision to delay the return of fans to stadiums.
The planned return of spectators to sports venues in England from 1 October could be on hold for six months due to fears over a second wave of coronavirus infections.
Prime minister Boris Johnson announced a range of restrictions in the House of Commons on Tuesday including those related to mass gatherings.
Premier League 'disappointed' at move to delay return of fans to stadiums
The planned return of spectators to sports venues in England from 1 October could be on hold for six months due to fears over a second wave of coronavirus infections
‘More funding needed for policing pandemic’
Responding to the prime minister's announcement on the latest social distancing measures, the national chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales John Apter said: "More funding for policing this pandemic is much needed.
"The service needs all the help it can get as financial pressures on forces are increasing day-by-day - but today's announcement lacked any detail. We will wait for that before we celebrate too much.
"Since the start of this pandemic, police and military have been working together on logistics.
"This has and continues to work well; but the announcement from the Prime Minister has been seized by some as a suggestion that the military will be on streets helping the police to enforce Covid regulations. This is not what policing has asked for and not what it needs.
"This is an ever-changing situation and police officers will continue to do an incredible job at adapting quickly.
"The vast majority of the public complied with the restrictions placed on them. These restrictions affect us all, but this is about keeping each other as safe as possible. I would hope the public will carry on doing the right thing to help protect fellow citizens to minimise the spread of the virus."
Rise in hospital admissions for women aged 20 to 40
Calum Semple, professor of child health and outbreak medicine at the University of Liverpool, has said Covid-19 hospital admissions for women aged 20 to 40 have increased.
Prof Semple, who is also a member of the government's Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage), said the rise could be attributed to work and caring responsibilities.
Speaking in an independent capacity, he told BBC Breakfast: "We are seeing a rise now in hospital admissions and particularly worryingly, although we are still seeing mostly elderly people, we are now seeing an excess in the age between 20 and 40 in women.
"That's partly to do with their roles in society, but it does really show that this is not just a problem of the frail elderly, this is a problem that can affect people between 20 and 40 just as well.
"These people will be working in hospitality, also in caring roles, some will be parents of school children.
“It's mainly to do with their public sector and public facing roles.”
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