Coronavirus news: Packed scenes spark concern as pubs reopen across England and holiday makers flock to coast
The latest updates from Saturday 4 July
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Your support makes all the difference.People relished their first pub drinks in more than three months, went to restaurants and finally got haircuts on Saturday as England took its biggest steps yet towards the resumption of normal life after the coronavirus lockdown.
Some pubs started serving from 6 am, sparking worries of over-indulgence, while a number of hairdressers were reported to have opened at the stroke of midnight.
In Spain, more than 200,000 people in the north-eastern region of Catalonia were sent back into lockdown after several new outbreaks of the coronavirus were detected.
'The way our country reacted to the pandemic has largely proved to be right'
German chancellor Angela Merkel has said that "the way our country reacted to the pandemic has largely proved to be right".
The country has over 190,000 confirmed cases and has started testing asymptomatic people in care homes.
Ms Merkel paid tribute to the elderly, who like elsewhere in the world, have been particularly hard hit and faced long stints of loneliness, cut off from their relatives.
"The most painful thing was surely not to be able to see children and grandchildren for many weeks," she said on Saturday.
↵A candlelit vigil was held by NHS staff and campaigners on Friday night to pay tribute to those who have died throughout the coronavirus pandemic, reports Sabrina Barr.
Sunday 5 July marks the 72nd anniversary of the NHS, which was launched in 1948 by then-minister for health Aneurin Bevan.
The day will be commemorated with a variety of celebrations, including a nationwide clap, which is hoped to become an annual tradition.
Two days prior to the 72nd birthday of the national health service, a vigil took place as part of a procession in central London to honour people who have lost their lives during the Covid-19 crisis, including NHS staff.
Organised by the People’s Assembly and health campaigns Together, Keep Our NHS Public and We Own It, the evening procession started at St Thomas’ Hospital before travelling across Westminster Bridge towards Downing Street.
Read more below:
National Gallery shows art lovers what to expect on reopening
The National Gallery has given a glimpse of what to expect when it reopens.
The Gallery will be the first of the big institutions to open its doors, as the coronavirus lockdown eases, when it welcomes visitors on Wednesday.
On Saturday, it held a press view - demonstrating the new procedures which will be in place.
Visitors will follow one or two of three one-way art routes instead of meandering through the vast Gallery at leisure.
All visits - including free tickets to see its main collection - must be booked in advance.
There will be a separate entrance and exit and two-metre social-distancing measures in place throughout, while visitors are recommended to wear a face covering.
An "enhanced cleaning regime will be in operation" and "higher efficiency filters in the air-conditioning system" have been installed.
The Royal Academy Of Arts and Tate are opening later in the month.
(Members of staff and the media wearing protective face coverings move through a room inside the National Gallery)
More than 25,500 children are living in poverty in Leicester – and the extended lockdown will exacerbate the suffering of thousands of families in the city, a leading charity has warned.
Deprivation in Leicester is expected to rise, Save the Children said, after new restrictions were enforced following a surge in Covid-19 cases.
The city council reported 944 positive tests in the two weeks to 23 June – about one in 16 of the total UK cases during that period – while hospital admissions for coronavirus have crept up to between six and 10 a day.
Amid the government’s decision to place Leicester back into lockdown, with all schools and nonessential shops closed, concern has been raised over the continuing struggles of the city’s poorest children.
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New French PM to focus on saving factory jobs
France's new prime minister said on Saturday his government will focus on keeping French manufacturing jobs and bringing others back to France from lower-wage countries as it tries to dig the country out of deep recession.
Prime minister Jean Castex made the announcement on his first outing in his new job, to a semiconductor factory near Paris that received extensive government aid to survive the coronavirus lockdown in France.
He did not lay out how his government would save jobs, but called for investment in training and new production tools. Mr Castex and president Emmanuel Macron are expected to announce the makeup of the new Cabinet in the coming days.
Its goal will be to work out how "to ensure the return of jobs and the sustainable maintenance of industrial jobs exposed to global competition," Mr Castex told reporters at the X-FAB factory in Le Coudray-Montceaux.
The government sees the factory, which makes semiconductors used in cars, phones and other equipment, as an example of European cooperation and innovation.
More than a dozen US states record largest daily increases in July
In just the first four days of July, 14 states have posted a daily record increase in cases of Covid-19 and the surge, mainly in southern and western states, has alarmed public health officials ahead of the holiday weekend to celebrate the Fourth of July.
Florida's record rise of 11,458 new cases on Saturday - the second time in three days that its caseload increased by more than 10,000 - was more than any European country's daily peak at the height of the outbreak there.
North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Alaska, Missouri, Idaho and Alabama all registered new daily highs on Friday, while Texas hit a new peak for hospitalisations. The daily US tally of cases stood at 53,483 on Friday, below the previous day's record 55,405.
Despite the jump in infections, the average daily death toll in the US has gradually declined in recent weeks, a reflection of the growing proportion of positive tests among younger, healthier people who are less prone to severe outcomes.
Evidence suggests the surge is not simply due to expanded testing, with the percentage of tests coming back positive in Florida rising to 14.8 per cent in the past two weeks compared to 8.3 per cent the two weeks prior, according to a Reuters analysis. The World Health Organisation says a rate over 5 per cent is concerning.
A record global rise in daily coronavirus cases has been recorded by the World Health Organisation, as the Covid-19 pandemic intensifies throughout much of North and South America.
The latest figures from the WHO show that 212,326 cases have been confirmed across the world in the 24 hours up to 2pm on 4 July.
The largest increases were reported in the US, Brazil and India – taking the cumulative total past the previous record of 189,077, set on 28 June.
More than 11 million cases have now been recorded globally since the beginning of the pandemic.
The WHO warned more than a month ago that the epicentre of the pandemic had shifted to the Americas, where the rate of infection has been accelerating for weeks.
Read more below:
11 officers hurt breaking up unlicensed music event in London
Eleven police officers were injured while trying to break up an unlicensed music event in west London, the latest in a series of illegal gatherings in the city over the past couple of weeks that have descended into violence.
Police said everyone in attendance at the event in White City had been dispersed by 1.15am on Saturday morning, a few hours after complaints were first received of a mass gathering at a housing project.
The Metropolitan Police said bricks and other objects were thrown at officers on their arrival. Specially trained public order officers clad in protective gear then arrived to get control of the situation.
The police force said two officers suffered broken bones, while nine others sustained non-serious injuries. No arrests have been made.
Detective chief inspector Luke Wyllie said police are in the process of identifying those involved in the "violence and disorder."
Packed Soho sparks concern amid reopening of London pubs
Concern has been raised over the reopening of pubs in London after scenes from Soho appeared to show people failing to observe social distancing rules.
Numerous pictures and videos have been shared online of packed, crowded streets in the famous London district.
One Twitter user wrote: "Just seen the scenes in Soho. It's as if the health care workers who risked their lives trying to deal with the pandemic were just wasting their time."
Sharing a video of groups gathered in the streets, another wrote: "Soho lockdown is over."
The latest figures show the R rate range has risen above 1 in London - meaning cases of the virus could be growing again.
In the capital, the range is thought to be between 0.8 and 1.1. Across the UK, the government says the estimated R number is between 0.7-0.9.
On Friday, England's chief medical officer, Professor Chris Whitty, warned that "this virus is a long way from gone.
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