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UK coronavirus live: Alok Sharma leads daily briefing as death toll rises by 170 to 34,636 UK coronavirus live: £84m pledged to produce a working vaccine as death toll rises by 170 to 34,636
(32 minutes later)
Death rate rises in England and Scotland; Crown court jury trials to start on Monday; Boris Johnson acknowledges frustration over lockdown rulesDeath rate rises in England and Scotland; Crown court jury trials to start on Monday; Boris Johnson acknowledges frustration over lockdown rules
Sharma wraps up the briefing by thanking the public for the action they are taking to reduce the R rate.
Q: One of the government’s five tests for lifting lockdown is that any supply issues with PPE and tests are solved, and the NHS can meet future demand. Are we there yet and if not, what is your best estimate for when we will be there?
Powis responds that the government is leading on procurement of PPE and securing tests. The situation has improved with PPE over the past few weeks but continues to be a challenge, he said, with many countries internationally seeking supplies.
Testing capacity has increased, he said, and all patients who present to hospital in an emergency are tested whether they show symptoms or not.
NHS staff are tested if they show symptoms, but hospitals are now starting to be be encouraged to test asymptomatic staff as well, he added.
The next question asks about regional differences to the easing of lockdown measures across the country.
Sharma said the government wants children to go back to school because “early learning is vital”, and this will happen at the earliest from 1 June.
He said academy chains across the country will bring pupils back to school when the government says it is safe to do so.
BBC political correspondent Vicky Young asked:
Q: Is the government is guaranteeing that the test, track and tracing system will be in place by 1 June, when many primary school pupils are due to return to classrooms in England?
I want to thank teachers as they have managed to keep schools open for the children of essential workers, Sharma said.
“Safety is absolutely paramount,” Sharma said. “That’s why we’ve set out measures ensuring smaller class sizes.., regular cleaning of surfaces, children washing their hands... that’s how we’ll ensure children and teachers are safe.”
Q: Why are visitors from France to the UK to be exempt from quarantine rules?
“I think there’s a trade-off between the health of the nation and the health of the economy”, Sharma said.
He added that discussions have taken place with the French president Emmanuel Macron, which will be made available in due course.
There are no journalists live on screen today due to issues with Zoom, so Sharma will be reading questions out.
However, the first question is from a member of the public, Peter, from County Durham,
Q: The R rate in the North East and Yorkshire is now the highest in England. Does the government acknowledge that a phased geographically-based lifting of the lockdown would have been a better option?
Sharma responded that when national monitoring becomes more precise the government can look at different approaches for regions, but it is too soon for this right now.
Powis added that when we know the direct R rate - rather than discerning the R rate from modelling - the spread in different regions will become clearer.
The number of daily confirmed cases is stable, said Powis, showing the rate of infection is slowing, but this is reliant on people continuing to abide by the social distancing measures.
The number of Covid-19 patients in hospitals throughout all parts of the UK continues to fall, he added.
The reduction has been greatest in London, but the fall has also been occurring in other parts of the country, although slower in some areas.
The number of people attending A&E has risen, said Professor Stephen Powis, the national medical director of NHS England.The number of people attending A&E has risen, said Professor Stephen Powis, the national medical director of NHS England.
A&E figures have show a record low number visits, as people avoided hospitals during the coronavirus outbreak.A&E figures have show a record low number visits, as people avoided hospitals during the coronavirus outbreak.
Powis said the number of people seeking help for things such as heart attacks “has now gone back to normal”.Powis said the number of people seeking help for things such as heart attacks “has now gone back to normal”.
He said people are listening to the message that they should be using the NHS as normal when they need it.He said people are listening to the message that they should be using the NHS as normal when they need it.
Sharma also announced the government is investing a further £93m in the Vaccines Manufacturing Innovation Centre at Harwell in Oxfordshire, ensuring it opens in summer 2021, ahead of schedule.Sharma also announced the government is investing a further £93m in the Vaccines Manufacturing Innovation Centre at Harwell in Oxfordshire, ensuring it opens in summer 2021, ahead of schedule.
He added that six drugs for treating the virus have now entered clinical trials.He added that six drugs for treating the virus have now entered clinical trials.
Sharma also confirmed that Oxford University has confirmed a global licensing agreement with AstraZeneca, which will make 30 million vaccine doses available to the UK by September if the trials are successful, as part of an agreement for 100 million doses in total.Sharma also confirmed that Oxford University has confirmed a global licensing agreement with AstraZeneca, which will make 30 million vaccine doses available to the UK by September if the trials are successful, as part of an agreement for 100 million doses in total.
The UK will be the first to get access, he said.The UK will be the first to get access, he said.
Sharma said the government has already invested £47m in the Oxford University and Imperial College London vaccine trials, but is today announcing a further £84m funding to help accelerate their work.Sharma said the government has already invested £47m in the Oxford University and Imperial College London vaccine trials, but is today announcing a further £84m funding to help accelerate their work.
He said this money will be used to start mass producing the Oxford vaccine is the trials prove successful, so it can be distributed to the UK population straight away.He said this money will be used to start mass producing the Oxford vaccine is the trials prove successful, so it can be distributed to the UK population straight away.
The funding will also allow Imperial to launch phase three of its vaccine trial later in the year.The funding will also allow Imperial to launch phase three of its vaccine trial later in the year.
An update on the vaccine taskforce that Sharma announced last month, to coordinate government, academia and industry in the effort to find a Covid-19 vaccine.An update on the vaccine taskforce that Sharma announced last month, to coordinate government, academia and industry in the effort to find a Covid-19 vaccine.
Imperial College is also making good progress, and is looking to move into clinical trials in mid-June, Sharma added.Imperial College is also making good progress, and is looking to move into clinical trials in mid-June, Sharma added.
Sharma offers a reminder that the government has implemented a coronavirus alert level system, based on the R level (rate of infection across the country) saying we are on our way to level three, having been in level four since the start of lockdown.Sharma offers a reminder that the government has implemented a coronavirus alert level system, based on the R level (rate of infection across the country) saying we are on our way to level three, having been in level four since the start of lockdown.
A week on from when Boris Johnson announced the easing of lockdown restrictions in England, he reminds people that they should be going back to work if they are unable to work at home, and that people can meet one other person at the park while maintaining two metre distance.A week on from when Boris Johnson announced the easing of lockdown restrictions in England, he reminds people that they should be going back to work if they are unable to work at home, and that people can meet one other person at the park while maintaining two metre distance.
He said people should wear face coverings in shops and on public transport and work at home where possible.He said people should wear face coverings in shops and on public transport and work at home where possible.
The latest coronavirus figures:The latest coronavirus figures:
91,206 tests were carried out yesterday91,206 tests were carried out yesterday
There have been 3,142 new recorded casesThere have been 3,142 new recorded cases
10,035 people are in hospital with Covid-19, down 15%, from 11,817, this time last week10,035 people are in hospital with Covid-19, down 15%, from 11,817, this time last week
34,636 have died after contracting Covid-19, an increase of 170 fatalties since yesterday34,636 have died after contracting Covid-19, an increase of 170 fatalties since yesterday
Due to a technical issue, today’s numbers do not include Northern Ireland cases, Sharma said.Due to a technical issue, today’s numbers do not include Northern Ireland cases, Sharma said.
The government’s daily coronavirus briefing is being led by the business secretary, Alok Sharma, today.
He’ll be talking about the latest developments in the country’s search for a vaccine
Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester, has tweeted the regional R numbers - that is, the rate at which people are passing on infections to others in different parts of the country.
The data shows that the rate of infection is current highest in the North East and Yorkshire, and lowest in London.
“I hope the Government will agree at some point to publish the regional R numbers at the Downing Street briefing,” Burnham said.
“But, until that happens, I will highlight them myself on a regular basis. Here’s the latest numbers that I have seen.”
He didn’t specify exactly which date the numbers refer to.
An R value above 1 means the epidemic will start to grow exponentially again, which would result in a new surge of cases.
Concern has been raised in recent days about the implications of lifting lockdown measures across England, when the rate of infection is higher in some areas.
There has been a sharp rise in the number of people making contact with eating disorder charities since the start of the coronavirus lockdown almost eight weeks ago.
The charity BEAT says calls to its helpline have increased by 50% and that there had been a 78% rise in contact made via social media compared with February.
Charities are concerned that a reduction in hospital services and a move to online sessions could result in an increase in new cases and setbacks for those with an active eating disorder or those in early recovery.
Caroline Price, BEAT’s director of services, said: “It’s not surprising we’ve seen such a large increase in contact. Changes in routines, living situations and care plans have the potential to trigger eating disorders. It’s more important now than ever that those who are unwell feel supported.”
Dave’s eating disorders started to return after his father died from Covid-19 six weeks ago. He says:
The 31-year-old has been in recovery for four years after fast-track treatment for severe anorexia. He says processing the grief after his father’s death, while struggling with an eating disorder has led to a deterioration in his mental health.
Hello everyone, this is Jessica Murray, I’m taking over the blog ahead of the government’s daily coronavirus briefing which is taking place at 4.30pm today.
Tobias Altschäffl has written this on what it’s like to be at a Bundesliga game as Germany kickstarts football’s post Covid-19 era.
At this afternoon’s Scottish government briefing, which was delayed and beset by technical difficulties, health secretary Jeane Freeman announced a two week pilot across three health boards to test out the software which contact tracers will use to collect the information that they need digitally. There are 600 staff ready to start work from tomorrow – there were earlier reports that no tracers had been recruited, but this appears to be because the initial recruitment came from within NHS Scotland.
Freeman was questioned about claims this morning that the Scottish government had not conducted adequate contact tracing following an early outbreak of coronavirus at a Nike conference in Edinburgh in late February.
Last week, BBC Scotland’s Disclosure programme revealed that there were multiple transmissions of coronavirus in Edinburgh on 26 and 27 February, well before the first confirmed case in the country on 1 March, but that this was not disclosed to the public.
Today the Scottish Mail on Sunday has reported that staff at a kilt shop in Edinburgh city centre that fitted conference delegates, and staff at a digital marketing business that shares an office building with Nike in Glasgow, fell ill shortly after. Workers at the two companies have claimed they were not told about the February outbreak.
Scottish Labour MP Ian Murray described the lack of information to the public or those in contact with delegates as a “national scandal”.
Freeman insisted that “all the proper clinically-led standard protocols were followed”, including the standard contact tracing. She pointed out that the success of tracing depends on the quality of information given by the ‘trigger case’.
The number of people who have died after testing positive for coronavirus in Northern Ireland has risen to 476 after three more deaths were reported by the Department of Health.
A further 12 people have died after testing positive for coronavirus in Wales, taking the total number of deaths there to 1,203.
Public Health Wales said 162 more people had tested positive for coronavirus, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 12,304.
A further nine people have died after testing positive for coronavirus, the Scottish government has said, taking the country’s total number of fatalities to 2,103.
Best-selling author Neil Gaiman has caused outrage after admitting on his personal blog that he travelled 11,000 miles from New Zealand to his holiday home on Skye to isolate, after finding lockdown with his wife and son “rough”.
After weeks of entreaties from Scotland’s politicians that people should not travel to Highland or island boltholes, as they underlined the risks this causes to local communities, local MP and the SNP’s Westminster leader Ian Blackford said: “To come from the other end of the planet is gobsmacking. We will welcome all to the Highlands when it is safe to do so. For now stay away.”
Gaiman wrote: “I needed to be somewhere I could talk to people in the UK while they and I were awake, not just before breakfast and after dinner. And I needed to be somewhere I could continue to isolate easily.” He went on to describe being “masked and gloved” on empty flights to London, and then the “surreal” drive north.
It’s fair to say that locals have found his arrival similarly surreal, with much online criticism of the author’s selfishness, and pleas that there should be no exemptions from lockdown guidance, while Gaiman insists that he has not put anyone at risk.