Researchers find that even exposure to levels below EU limits has an impact
Infants exposed to even low levels of air pollution experience reduced lung function as children and teenagers, researchers have found.
Their study found that exposure to air pollution in the first year of life reduced lung function development from the ages of six to 15, even at pollution levels below EU standards.
Continue reading...Education secretary says English schools should work with parents to encourage children to return to school. This live blog is now closed. For coronavirus updates, please head to the global live blog
Hi. That’s all from me, Caroline Davies, for today. Thank you for your time. For further updates, please follow the global coronavirus live blog.
Related: Coronavirus live news: Hong Kong man's second Covid-19 infection gives rise to immunity concerns
Here is a summary of today’s key developments.
Continue reading...While a cure-all drug or therapy is a long way off, there have been some breakthroughs
Many different drugs and therapies are being trialled and used on patients with Covid-19. There are some positive results, which may be beginning to bring the hospital death toll down, but there is still a long way to go towards something that will cure all comers. These are some of the most promising.
Continue reading...Coronavirus restrictions mean repatriation of remains would have taken three months
A Sudanese migrant who drowned while attempting to cross the Channel from France to England has been buried in Calais after coronavirus restrictions meant it would have taken three months for his body to be repatriated to Sudan.
More than 150 fellow Sudanese attended Abdulfatah Hamdallah’s funeral in Calais on Monday morning, according to his cousin.
Continue reading...Senior police official Mohamad Mat Yusop says he believes London teenager climbed out of hotel window herself
Malaysian police have insisted there is no indication the London teenager Nora Quoirin was abducted from the resort in which she was staying with her family, on the first day of an inquest into her death.
Nora’s body was found unclothed beside a stream last August, more than a mile away from the holiday resort she was staying at, following a 10-day search operation. She had been sharing a room with her brother and sister, but when the family awoke one morning she had disappeared and a large window in the hotel room was open.
Continue reading...Campaigners demand more rules for lorries after initial hope pandemic would mean less traffic
A coronavirus-related drop in traffic and new protected bike lanes have failed to make Berlin’s roads safer for cyclists, as the German capital reports a four-year record in fatalities.
A woman run over by a right-turning articulated lorry in the district of Reinickendorf on Friday became Berlin’s 14th official cycling fatality of 2020 – more than twice as many as the six recorded in 2019.
Continue reading...AstraZeneca insists it has not discussed ‘emergency use authorisation’ with the US
The company manufacturing the Oxford University coronavirus vaccine has said it is not in talks with the Trump administration about fast-tracking its vaccine for emergency use ahead of November’s presidential elections.
With both Russia and China pressing ahead with inoculations involving experimental vaccines yet to pass final efficacy and safety trials, the Trump administration has become increasingly frustrated with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which the president has tried to suggest is slowing approval of a vaccine for “political reasons”.
Continue reading...Man cleared of virus in April but has now tested positive again; France to impose reciprocal quarantine on travellers returning from UK; ‘Very low evidence’ for plasma therapy authorised by Trump — WHO
The number of new, confirmed cases of Covid-19 in France has risen by 1,955 compared to the previous day, although the increase in new cases was less than in previous days.
The French health ministry said the number of deaths from Covid-19 had risen by 15 from the previous day to stand at 30,528 casualties, while the total number of confirmed Covid-19 cases stands at 244,854.
Hi everyone, this is Jessica Murray taking over the blog for the next few hours.
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Continue reading...Chinese government has been administering a vaccine candidate to selected groups of key workers since July; Trump authorises plasma treatment for coronavirus amid attacks on FDA; send children to school, UK PM urges. Follow the latest updates
Australian theatres are reopening – nervously and with mandatory masks and temperature checks – Elissa Blake reports for the Guardian.
Sydney Theatre Company has announced it is ready to open the doors of the Roslyn Packer theatre and present its first show since March.
Related: Australian theatres nervously reopen with mandatory masks and temperature checks
The Chinese government has been administering a vaccine candidate to selected groups of key workers since July, a senior health official told state media yesterday.
Zheng Zhongei, head of the national health commission’s science and technology centre, told CCTV the government had authorised “emergency use” and it was in line with the law, the South China Morning Post has reported.
Continue reading...Witnesses have described the moment people formed a human chain to rescue a man in danger in the sea at Durdle Door in Dorset. The incident happened on 20 August as large waves crashed on to the Jurassic coast. Beachgoers were unsure if he was waving or in trouble, but when it became clear he needed help they began their rescue
Continue reading...Man towed away by undercurrent pulled back by people joining hands to create chain
Witnesses have described the moment beachgoers formed a human chain to rescue a man in danger in the sea by the Durdle Door.
The incident happened on Thursday, as large waves crashed in around the popular tourist attraction on the Jurassic coast.
Continue reading...Recently introduced tax would have raised £500m, helping to reduce Britain’s huge Covid bill
The UK government is preparing to drop a recently introduced tax on global technology companies such as Facebook, Google and Amazon, due to fears that the so-called “Facebook tax” could jeopardise a post-Brexit trade deal.
Rishi Sunak is reportedly planning to ditch the digital services tax which was expected to generate about £500m to help pay towards the huge cost of the government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic.
Continue reading...England's chief medical officer has warned that failing to return children to school in September would pose a greater risk to them than catching Covid-19.
Whitty and the chief medical officers of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland released a rare joint statement advising on children returning to schools
While some scientists believe the virus has become less deadly, others look at the factors that suggest otherwise
Are Covid-19 death rates decreasing?
Most statistics indicate that although cases of Covid-19 are rising in many parts of Europe and the United States, the number of deaths and cases of severe complications remain relatively low. For example, patients on ventilators have dropped from 3,000 at the epidemic’s peak in Britain to 70. At the same time, the number of cases in the UK have begun to rise in many areas.
Why lies behind this trend?
Doctors are unsure exactly what is going on. Some suggest that medical interventions are more successful at treating those who suffer complications from the disease. For example, the drug dexamethasone was recently shown to improve survival rates among patients requiring ventilation. Others argue that different factors are involved. One suggestion is that Covid-19 is now becoming a disease of younger people who are less likely to die or suffer serious complications.
The controversial app’s users are ignoring geopolitical battle over its digital security, says Richard Waterworth
TikTok’s UK chief has strenuously denied the video-sharing app, which Donald Trump has threatened to ban, shares data with China.
Richard Waterworth told the Observer that the UK and European arm of TikTok was growing quickly, despite the “turbulent” geopolitical battle in which the Chinese-born app has found itself.
Continue reading...Some say the young are flouting the rules, others doubt the statistics. Most are anxious about what a lockdown will bring
If news that Birmingham was facing a local lockdown troubled drinkers around the Gas Street basin on Thursday afternoon, they were determined to forget it.
“This is the first time I’ve got dressed up and come to town,” said Pam, who didn’t want to give her full name, as she fluffed her pink hair. “I know what’s going on, I’ve worked in Covid wards. I’m not worried being here, but it does feel weird.”
Continue reading...Worker alleges she was unfairly sacked from Covid-19 testing site, but G4S disputes claims
A mixed race woman was disciplined and later sacked from a G4S coronavirus testing centre after suggesting colleagues could adopt the black power salute for a photo in support of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement.
The outsourcing giant said Kenya Scarlett had previously been confrontational and demanding; it claimed no one had taken issue with expressing support for BLM.
Continue reading...Fredie Blom said earlier this year he had ‘lived this long because of God’s grace’
A 116-year-old South African man believed to be among the world’s oldest people has died, his family said.
Born on 8 May 1904, Fredie Blom told Agence-France Presse earlier this year he had “lived this long because of God’s grace”. South African media have described Blom as “unofficially” the world’s oldest man.
Continue reading...Historic bridge’s arms stuck at different angles on Saturday following mechanical fault
Tower Bridge was stuck open for over an hour because of a mechanical fault, causing central London traffic to be gridlocked.
The historic bridge’s two arms were stuck at different angles after opening to allow ships to pass underneath on the River Thames on Saturday evening, with witnesses saying they failed to come down at the same time.
Continue reading...Man Utd footballer charged with attacking police officer on Mykonos after late-night brawl
Harry Maguire was set to fly back to England on Saturday night, cutting short a holiday on the Greek island of Mykonos that ended with the Manchester United and England defender accused of attacking a police officer after a late-night brawl.
Maguire was released on Saturday morning after spending two nights in police cells, but will be tried in a Greek court on Tuesday on two charges of “serial bodily harm” and “serial insult”. After the hearing, Maguire was asked by reporters outside the courthouse if he was still at liberty. “Right now, yes,” the 27-year-old’s lawyer said, according to Sky News.
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