This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/politics/live/2020/sep/21/uk-coronavirus-news-latest-whitty-and-vallance-to-present-data-showing-how-trend-in-uk-heading-in-wrong-direction
The article has changed 18 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 7 | Version 8 |
|---|---|
| UK coronavirus live news: four more areas of Wales to go into lockdown; Whitty calls for reduced social contacts | UK coronavirus live news: four more areas of Wales to go into lockdown; Whitty calls for reduced social contacts |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| Restrictions for Newport, Bridgend, Merthyr Tydfil and Blaenau Gwent; Whitty calls for ‘break in unnecessary links between households’ | Restrictions for Newport, Bridgend, Merthyr Tydfil and Blaenau Gwent; Whitty calls for ‘break in unnecessary links between households’ |
| Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s first minister, said it was “good” Johnson is hosting a Cobra emergency planning meeting tomorrow morning. “That’s very positive,” she said, during her briefing on Monday, soon after Downing Street confirmed Cobra would take place. (See 1.33pm.) | |
| Earlier in the briefing she had expressed frustration no clear date or time for that Cobra meeting had been confirmed. | |
| She said it was essential that fresh action was taken “quickly, urgently and decisively” to suppress the pandemic and get the R number, the rate of transmission, below 1. She said the current R rate estimate for Scotland was between 0.9 and 1.4. | |
| Commenting on the news that Boris Johnson will speak to the Welsh first minister, Mark Drakeford, this afternoon (see 12.26pm), the Welsh health minister, Vaughan Gething, said this was a “helpful step forward” and such direct communication was necessary if UK-wide measures were to be taken. | |
| Boris Johnson is going to make a statement to MPs tomorrow, Jacob Rees-Mogg, the leader of the Commons, has announced. | |
| Ministerial statements like this normally take place at 12.30pm on a Tuesday. That would allow Johnson to announce new coronavirus restrictions to MPs after rubber-stamping them earlier at cabinet and at Cobra - although to make the Commons for 12.30pm, he would have to ensure both meetings were quite brisk. | |
| At the weekend there were suggestions that Johnson might make his announcement in the form of a TV address to the nation. This is what he did when he announced the original hard lockdown in March, and when he announced the first lockdown easing in May. But recently the government faced fierce criticism for not announcing the rule of six in the Commons first, and No 10 now seems to be ensuring that MPs won’t be able to complain about being sidelined. | |
| From the Times’s Steven Swinford | From the Times’s Steven Swinford |
| The Science Media Centre has published on its website reaction to the Whitty/Vallance briefing from five leading scientists. They are all supportive. One of them, Prof Jackie Cassell, deputy dean at Brighton and Sussex Medical School, says one feature of the briefing that was particular welcome was the fact that “there was none of the bombast about future world-leading technical solutions that have undermined trust and distracted from the basics in recent weeks and months.” | The Science Media Centre has published on its website reaction to the Whitty/Vallance briefing from five leading scientists. They are all supportive. One of them, Prof Jackie Cassell, deputy dean at Brighton and Sussex Medical School, says one feature of the briefing that was particular welcome was the fact that “there was none of the bombast about future world-leading technical solutions that have undermined trust and distracted from the basics in recent weeks and months.” |
| The Downing Street lobby briefing has just ended, and No 10 has confirmed that Boris Johnson will chair a meeting of Cobra, the government’s emergency committee, tomorrow morning. | The Downing Street lobby briefing has just ended, and No 10 has confirmed that Boris Johnson will chair a meeting of Cobra, the government’s emergency committee, tomorrow morning. |
| Cobra, which includes the leaders of the devolved administrations, used to meet regularly at the start of the crisis, normally to agree lockdown measures being imposed in sync by the four nations of the UK. It has not met recently (ministers have claimed that other government committees are doing the job it used to perform) but in recent days Keir Starmer, Nicola Sturgeon and Mark Drakeford have been saying it should be convened to address what must be done about the rise in Covid cases. | |
| The fact that a meeting has now been scheduled suggests that Johnson will be announcing new restrictions at some point after it’s over tomorrow. | The fact that a meeting has now been scheduled suggests that Johnson will be announcing new restrictions at some point after it’s over tomorrow. |
| The Welsh health minister, Vaughan Gething, said the fresh restrictions in four new areas in south Wales (see 12.43pm) would come into force at 6pm tomorrow. | The Welsh health minister, Vaughan Gething, said the fresh restrictions in four new areas in south Wales (see 12.43pm) would come into force at 6pm tomorrow. |
| The new restrictions will apply to everyone living in Blaenau Gwent, Bridgend, Merthyr Tydfil and Newport. The restrictions are: | The new restrictions will apply to everyone living in Blaenau Gwent, Bridgend, Merthyr Tydfil and Newport. The restrictions are: |
| People will not be allowed to enter or leave these areas without a reasonable excuse, such as travel for work or education; | People will not be allowed to enter or leave these areas without a reasonable excuse, such as travel for work or education; |
| People will only be able to meet people they don’t live with outdoors for the time being. They will not be able to form, or be in, extended households; | People will only be able to meet people they don’t live with outdoors for the time being. They will not be able to form, or be in, extended households; |
| All licensed premises will have to close at 11pm. | All licensed premises will have to close at 11pm. |
| Gething said: | Gething said: |
| New local lockdown restrictions are to be imposed on four more areas of south Wales affecting more than 400,000 people. | New local lockdown restrictions are to be imposed on four more areas of south Wales affecting more than 400,000 people. |
| The restrictions are being introduced in Newport, Bridgend, Merthyr Tydfil and Blaenau Gwent, the Welsh government has announced. | The restrictions are being introduced in Newport, Bridgend, Merthyr Tydfil and Blaenau Gwent, the Welsh government has announced. |
| Local lockdowns are already in place in Caerphilly and Rhondda Cynon Taf. | Local lockdowns are already in place in Caerphilly and Rhondda Cynon Taf. |
| In all, it means more than 800,000 people in Wales will be subject to local lockdown restrictions, out of a population across the country of 3 million. | In all, it means more than 800,000 people in Wales will be subject to local lockdown restrictions, out of a population across the country of 3 million. |
| Nicola Sturgeon has said the Scottish government endorses the alarming warnings this morning about the potential for a substantial increase in Covid-19 deaths and cases from Patrick Valance and Chris Whitty. | Nicola Sturgeon has said the Scottish government endorses the alarming warnings this morning about the potential for a substantial increase in Covid-19 deaths and cases from Patrick Valance and Chris Whitty. |
| She said: “Doing nothing in the face of this quite rapid spread now isn’t an option.” | She said: “Doing nothing in the face of this quite rapid spread now isn’t an option.” |
| Speaking during today’s routine coronavirus briefing, Sturgeon said she is due to speak to Boris Johnson on Monday afternoon where she would urge him to agree to a joint “four nations” strategy on imposing a much tougher lockdown. | Speaking during today’s routine coronavirus briefing, Sturgeon said she is due to speak to Boris Johnson on Monday afternoon where she would urge him to agree to a joint “four nations” strategy on imposing a much tougher lockdown. |
| She said Michael Gove, the Cabinet Office minister, promised her and other devolved government leaders on Saturday that there would be a Cobra emergency meeting on Monday or Tuesday, but the exact timing of that had not yet been confirmed. | She said Michael Gove, the Cabinet Office minister, promised her and other devolved government leaders on Saturday that there would be a Cobra emergency meeting on Monday or Tuesday, but the exact timing of that had not yet been confirmed. |
| She said the Scottish government would be willing to delay a Scottish government decision on exactly what new measures would be required but said the prime minister had to act urgently and decisively. “Because of the urgency of the situation we cannot, must not and will not wait,” she said. | She said the Scottish government would be willing to delay a Scottish government decision on exactly what new measures would be required but said the prime minister had to act urgently and decisively. “Because of the urgency of the situation we cannot, must not and will not wait,” she said. |
| Sturgeon added that she expected to address the Scottish parliament on the new emergency measures in the next two days. | Sturgeon added that she expected to address the Scottish parliament on the new emergency measures in the next two days. |
| She said there had been 255 new positive cases over the last 24 hours, with 103 new cases in the Greater Glasgow and Clyde health board, 47 in Lanarkshire and 30 in the Lothians. There had been no further deaths recorded overnight, but another 10 people were now in hospital, with the total number of confirmed cases at 73. | She said there had been 255 new positive cases over the last 24 hours, with 103 new cases in the Greater Glasgow and Clyde health board, 47 in Lanarkshire and 30 in the Lothians. There had been no further deaths recorded overnight, but another 10 people were now in hospital, with the total number of confirmed cases at 73. |
| Here is some reaction to the Whitty/Vallance briefing from MPs. | Here is some reaction to the Whitty/Vallance briefing from MPs. |
| From the Labour MP Geraint Davies | From the Labour MP Geraint Davies |
| From the Green MP Caroline Lucas | From the Green MP Caroline Lucas |
| From Richard Burgon, the Labour MP and secretary of the leftwing campaign group of Labour MPs | From Richard Burgon, the Labour MP and secretary of the leftwing campaign group of Labour MPs |
| From the Lib Dem MP Wera Hobhouse | From the Lib Dem MP Wera Hobhouse |
| Downing Street has announced that Boris Johnson will be speaking by phone to Nicola Sturgeon, the first minister of Scotland, Mark Drakeford, the first minister of Wales, and Arlene Foster and Michelle O’Neill, first minister and deputy first minister of Northern Ireland respectively, later today. | Downing Street has announced that Boris Johnson will be speaking by phone to Nicola Sturgeon, the first minister of Scotland, Mark Drakeford, the first minister of Wales, and Arlene Foster and Michelle O’Neill, first minister and deputy first minister of Northern Ireland respectively, later today. |
| Sturgeon and Drakeford have been particularly critical of Johnson for not communicating with them regularly. Last week Drakeford said that he had only spoken to Johnson once since May and that this was “simply unacceptable to anyone who believes that we ought to be facing the coronavirus crisis together”. | Sturgeon and Drakeford have been particularly critical of Johnson for not communicating with them regularly. Last week Drakeford said that he had only spoken to Johnson once since May and that this was “simply unacceptable to anyone who believes that we ought to be facing the coronavirus crisis together”. |
| There was “a vacancy at the heart of the United Kingdom”, Drakeford said last week. | There was “a vacancy at the heart of the United Kingdom”, Drakeford said last week. |
| You can find all the slides from the Whitty/Vallance coronavirus briefing here. | You can find all the slides from the Whitty/Vallance coronavirus briefing here. |
| From the Welsh first minister Mark Drakeford | From the Welsh first minister Mark Drakeford |