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| UK coronavirus live news: Boris Johnson back at work amid talk of easing lockdown | UK coronavirus live news: Boris Johnson back at work amid talk of easing lockdown |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| Prime minister under pressure to explain how schools and businesses will be able to reopen without putting lives at risk | Prime minister under pressure to explain how schools and businesses will be able to reopen without putting lives at risk |
| More from Argar, who appears to be doing the media rounds for the government this morning. The health minister said Britons should expect “dramatic increases” in the number of people being tested for coronavirus. | |
| Asked if the government would meet its target of testing 100,000 people a day by the end of the month, he told the BBC: “We’ve seen in recent days an exponential increase in the number of tests being made available and we’ve increased dramatically the eligibility for them.” | |
| He added that the rollout of testing would not be a “smooth increase” and would instead rise dramatically day-by-day. | |
| Argar also said he would be investigating reports that some NHS staff were waiting 25 days to receive their test results. | |
| “The test results should be within around 48 hours,” he told LBC. “Longer delays than that - and there may be in some cases a scientific, clinical reason why a particular test doesn’t work or is delayed. | |
| Johnson returns to lead the government as the country enters its fifth week in lockdown, and faces calls from Labour for clarity over how the measures will begin to be lifted. | |
| This morning, health minister Edward Argar echoed comments made by the foreign secretary Dominic Raab yesterday, saying that “we’re not there yet” when it comes to easing social-distancing. | |
| He told BBC Breakfast: “I understand the frustrations that people are having with these measures, they are restrictive and they are very difficult.” | |
| However, there are growing concerns about the economic impact of lockdown. On Sunday, Gerard Lyons, Johnson’s economics adviser when he was London mayor, warned the UK could be the hardest-hit western economy if it does not unlock soon. | |
| This handy analysis from my colleague Robert Booth looks at the key areas the government will need to consider when easing the measures: | |
| Health minister Nadine Dorries has welcomed the prime minister’s return to work but added that others who had been in intensive care with the virus would still be off work. | |
| Dorries, who herself tested positive for Covid-19 in March, said other patients who had spent time in an ICU would need at least three months to recover, in comparison to the three-weeks Johnson has taken off. | |
| The government’s plans to move to tracking and tracing to deal with the next phase of the pandemic pose a “real logistical challenge”, a scientific adviser has said. | |
| Professor Peter Horby, chairman of the New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group (Nervtag), said the strategy would be “critical” as the UK emerged from lockdown. | |
| He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: | |
| He added that speed could prove an issue, as results were needed quickly so that transmission could be reduced. | |
| Prisoners will make personal protective equipment (PPE) for NHS hospital workers during the coronavirus crisis, according to reports. | Prisoners will make personal protective equipment (PPE) for NHS hospital workers during the coronavirus crisis, according to reports. |
| Inmates at eight prisons across the country will begin making scrubs and face visors this week as prices for equipment surge, justice secretary Robert Buckland is said to have told the Telegraph. | Inmates at eight prisons across the country will begin making scrubs and face visors this week as prices for equipment surge, justice secretary Robert Buckland is said to have told the Telegraph. |
| The items will cost around a third of current market rates, and will be made as part of a larger UK manufacturing race. John Lewis has also brought a group of its workers back from furlough to make clinical gowns amid worldwide shortages. | The items will cost around a third of current market rates, and will be made as part of a larger UK manufacturing race. John Lewis has also brought a group of its workers back from furlough to make clinical gowns amid worldwide shortages. |
| Buckland told the paper: | Buckland told the paper: |
| Category B and C prisons which are involved in the effort include Swansea, Channings Wood in Devon, Wakefield, Highpoint in Suffolk, Whatton in Nottinghamshire and New Hall in West Yorkshire, which holds women and young offenders. | Category B and C prisons which are involved in the effort include Swansea, Channings Wood in Devon, Wakefield, Highpoint in Suffolk, Whatton in Nottinghamshire and New Hall in West Yorkshire, which holds women and young offenders. |
| According to the paper, prisoners will make scrubs for around £5 a set, in comparison with their £15 price tag on the open market. | According to the paper, prisoners will make scrubs for around £5 a set, in comparison with their £15 price tag on the open market. |
| An initial order is said to have been made for 5,000 scrub tops and 5,000 laundry bags to be manufactured, while inmates will be paid a standard weekly wage of around £12.50. | An initial order is said to have been made for 5,000 scrub tops and 5,000 laundry bags to be manufactured, while inmates will be paid a standard weekly wage of around £12.50. |
| Good morning. Prime minister Boris Johnson has returned to Downing Street to lead the UK’s response to coronavirus, as ministers warned that physical distancing must become the “new normal” – even when the lockdown is eased. | Good morning. Prime minister Boris Johnson has returned to Downing Street to lead the UK’s response to coronavirus, as ministers warned that physical distancing must become the “new normal” – even when the lockdown is eased. |
| Johnson is under pressure to explain how schools and businesses will be able to reopen without putting lives at risk, while the government has begun to set out how it hopes to manage the next phase of the pandemic, including by imposing quarantine restrictions on all arrivals at UK airports. | Johnson is under pressure to explain how schools and businesses will be able to reopen without putting lives at risk, while the government has begun to set out how it hopes to manage the next phase of the pandemic, including by imposing quarantine restrictions on all arrivals at UK airports. |
| On Sunday, hospital deaths from Covid-19 rose by 413, taking the total to 20,732. Although it is the lowest daily total since the end of March, the number is expected to increase again during the week.Elsewhere, scientists on the government’s coronavirus advisory group have continued to voice concerns over the involvement of Johnson’s key adviser, Dominic Cummings, in meetings. | On Sunday, hospital deaths from Covid-19 rose by 413, taking the total to 20,732. Although it is the lowest daily total since the end of March, the number is expected to increase again during the week.Elsewhere, scientists on the government’s coronavirus advisory group have continued to voice concerns over the involvement of Johnson’s key adviser, Dominic Cummings, in meetings. |
| One attendee of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) told the Guardian they felt Cummings’ interventions had sometimes inappropriately influenced what is supposed to be an impartial scientific process. | One attendee of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) told the Guardian they felt Cummings’ interventions had sometimes inappropriately influenced what is supposed to be an impartial scientific process. |
| I’m Amy Walker, steering you through this morning’s UK updates. Do feel free to get in touch with tips and suggestions. You can email me at amy.walker@theguardian.com or contact me via Twitter @amyrwalker. | I’m Amy Walker, steering you through this morning’s UK updates. Do feel free to get in touch with tips and suggestions. You can email me at amy.walker@theguardian.com or contact me via Twitter @amyrwalker. |