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| UK coronavirus news: government says it’s ‘too early’ to say when lockdown will end as death toll reaches 5,373 | UK coronavirus news: government says it’s ‘too early’ to say when lockdown will end as death toll reaches 5,373 |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| Dominic Raab confirms he has not spoken to Boris Johnson since Saturday as PM remains hospital ‘for observation’ | Dominic Raab confirms he has not spoken to Boris Johnson since Saturday as PM remains hospital ‘for observation’ |
| Evening summary | |
| It is too early for the UK government to consider an exit strategy for the lockdown. The foreign secretary, Dominic Raab, said shifting the focus from social distancing measures could mean “we won’t get through the peak as fast as we need to”. | |
| The prime minister is continuing to run the country from his hospital bed. Raab insisted that Boris Johnson remained “in charge” during Tuesday’s Downing Street press conference, despite him being admitted to St Thomas’s Hospital in London with persistent symptoms yesterday. | |
| The UK death toll from Covid-19 has surpassed 5,000. The department of health and social care confirmed that as of 5pm on Sunday, 5,373 people had died. As of this morning, 51,608 people had tested positive for the virus. | |
| Social distancing measures “are working” and have slowed coronavirus-related hospital admissions. Professor Dame Angela McLean said the growth in admissions “is not as bad as it could have been” had the lockdown not been put in place. | |
| Police have observed early indications of an increase in suicide attempts and suicides during the lockdown. Sgt Simon Kempton, the operational lead for Covid-19 at the Police Federation of England and Wales, said it was “far too early to say if that’s a real trend” but added that the burden on police was starting to rise. | |
| Debenhams is set to go into administration. Bosses of the department store chain have filed a notice of intent to appoint administrators, affecting around 22,000 workers. | |
| Ed Miliband has returned to the shadow cabinet. The former Labour leader was appointed as shadow business secretary by Keir Starmer, while Lord Falconer also returns as shadow attorney general. | |
| Tens of thousands of British nationals are feared stranded in Pakistan, according to the shadow minister Emily Thornberry, as more than 75 MPs demanded action in a letter sent to the foreign secretary, Dominic Raab. | |
| Thornberry, a former shadow foreign secretary and now shadow international trade secretary, has been collecting data from Labour MPs who have been deluged with calls and emails from constituents. She has given Raab a detailed plan of action the party wants to see urgently enacted. | |
| Her letter comes amid growing anger that the UK’s £75m airlift operation has resulted in charter flights to Peru, India, South Africa and Nepal but not Pakistan. | |
| You can read more on this story from Nimra Shahid and our reporter Lisa O’Carroll here: | |
| The reliance on online learning during the UK’s coronavirus-enforced school closures is being challenged by parents, who say that councils in England have a legal obligation to provide children from disadvantaged families with access to laptops and broadband.The legal action is being backed by the Good Law Project, the veteran of bruising Brexit court battles. Its aim is to help state school pupils who are having to rely on their parents’ phones or share equipment with adults working from home, or whose families simply can’t afford the costs.The group has parents living in Southwark who are to sue the council to meet its obligations under the education act. Jolyon Maugham, the Good Law Project’s director, said: “Local authorities in England have a clear obligation to ensure that all children can access teaching, so there’s a very strong claim against them to ensure that they are doing so.”The group wants to move with urgency, to get local authorities to act by the end of the Easter holidays later this month. | |
| Scottish Labour has called for Holyrood to be recalled to debate a spate of deaths in care homes linked to the coronavirus epidemic and the crisis over the resignation of the chief medical officer, Catherine Calderwood, on Sunday. | |
| Elaine Smith, Labour’s business manager in the Scottish parliament, has written to Ken Macintosh, its presiding officer, to urge him to call the parliament back from recess so the Scottish government could be questioned about it. | |
| Holyrood is now suspended until 19 April for the Easter recess but because of the social-distancing and lockdown regulations, its sittings have been cut to one per week. It sat last Wednesday but will not meet again until Wednesday April 22. | |
| It has emerged that 16 elderly residents of the Burlington care home in Glasgow, many of whom had serious underlying health issues, have died over the last week with Covid-19 like symptoms but were not tested or taken to hospital. Two members of staff at the home are being treated for Covid-19. | |
| She said that “requires urgent scrutiny”. Age Scotland, the charity for older people, said there were questions about a lack of NHS support in Scottish care homes, and a lack of personal protection equipment for care workers. | |
| Smith said it was unfair that opposition parties were unable to challenge the Scottish government about these controversies, but had to rely on media questioning the first minister once a day in online news conferences. | |
| “It is unacceptable that questions to the first minister are solely left to the Scottish press with members of parliament having to follow developments via the media. | |
| “[I] hope you will agree that parliament should not now continue with an Easter break whilst questions remain unanswered regarding these issues and that the Scottish Government must be held to account and scrutinised by members during these unprecedented times of national crisis.” | |
| The number of confirmed cases of Covid-19 among prisoners has increased by a fifth in three days, the latest figures have shown. | The number of confirmed cases of Covid-19 among prisoners has increased by a fifth in three days, the latest figures have shown. |
| As at 5pm on Sunday, 107 prisoners had tested positive for coronavirus across 38 prisons, up 21% from 88 inmates across 29 jails as at 5pm Thursday. There are 83,000 prisoners in England and Wales in 117 prisons. | As at 5pm on Sunday, 107 prisoners had tested positive for coronavirus across 38 prisons, up 21% from 88 inmates across 29 jails as at 5pm Thursday. There are 83,000 prisoners in England and Wales in 117 prisons. |
| The number of prison staff who have tested positive rose during the same period from 15 across nine prisons to 19 staff across 12 prisons, while the number of infected prisoner escort and custody services (Pecs) staff remained at four. | The number of prison staff who have tested positive rose during the same period from 15 across nine prisons to 19 staff across 12 prisons, while the number of infected prisoner escort and custody services (Pecs) staff remained at four. |
| On Saturday, the justice secretary, Robert Buckland, announced that up to 4,000 risk-assessed prisoners who are within two months of their release date will be temporarily released from jail. | On Saturday, the justice secretary, Robert Buckland, announced that up to 4,000 risk-assessed prisoners who are within two months of their release date will be temporarily released from jail. |
| The Downing Street press conference has now finished. Raab said planning for the end of the lockdown was taking place, but added: | The Downing Street press conference has now finished. Raab said planning for the end of the lockdown was taking place, but added: |
| “The risk right now is if we take our focus off the strategy, which is beginning to work, we won’t get through this peak as soon as we want to.” | “The risk right now is if we take our focus off the strategy, which is beginning to work, we won’t get through this peak as soon as we want to.” |
| Whitty reiterates that it was not him who told the prime minister to go to hospital. Asked if Johnson could have pneumonia, he adds: “This is a question for him and his medical advisers, who are outstanding. | Whitty reiterates that it was not him who told the prime minister to go to hospital. Asked if Johnson could have pneumonia, he adds: “This is a question for him and his medical advisers, who are outstanding. |
| “I am absolutely not going to discuss any individual patient and I do not have the full details, nor should I.” | “I am absolutely not going to discuss any individual patient and I do not have the full details, nor should I.” |
| Whitty says he is “very confident” that the UK will develop antibody tests “over the next period”. | Whitty says he is “very confident” that the UK will develop antibody tests “over the next period”. |
| He adds that it should not be “particularly surprising to anyone who understands how tests are developed” that prototypes so far have failed. | He adds that it should not be “particularly surprising to anyone who understands how tests are developed” that prototypes so far have failed. |
| Raab suggests that he has not spoken to the prime minister today, but spoke to him “over the weekend”. | Raab suggests that he has not spoken to the prime minister today, but spoke to him “over the weekend”. |
| Boris Johnson is being “kept abreast of all the relevant developments”, although Raab chaired a meeting that he would usually chair. | Boris Johnson is being “kept abreast of all the relevant developments”, although Raab chaired a meeting that he would usually chair. |
| Whitty says that some coronavirus patients will be “perfectly capable” of working from their hospital beds, while others are not. He adds that it’s up to the individual patient and their doctor. | Whitty says that some coronavirus patients will be “perfectly capable” of working from their hospital beds, while others are not. He adds that it’s up to the individual patient and their doctor. |
| Whitty says there are several things to consider when deciding on an exit strategy for the UK’s coronavirus lockdown: | Whitty says there are several things to consider when deciding on an exit strategy for the UK’s coronavirus lockdown: |
| Direct effects of people dying from coronavirus. | Direct effects of people dying from coronavirus. |
| Indirect effects of the NHS being overwhelmed by patients. | Indirect effects of the NHS being overwhelmed by patients. |
| Effects of other healthcare being postponed during the outbreak. | Effects of other healthcare being postponed during the outbreak. |
| Long-term health effects of the socioeconomic impact. | Long-term health effects of the socioeconomic impact. |
| Raab adds that while the prime minister is “in charge”, he will continue to take doctors’ advice on what to do next. | Raab adds that while the prime minister is “in charge”, he will continue to take doctors’ advice on what to do next. |
| The chief medical officer, Chris Whitty, says he had also advised Johnson to take the medical advice of the NHS doctors who are treating him. | The chief medical officer, Chris Whitty, says he had also advised Johnson to take the medical advice of the NHS doctors who are treating him. |