Category Archives: UK news

Mask rage: ‘One man told me I shouldn’t be allowed out if I can’t wear one’

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With face coverings compulsory in many settings, people unable to comply for health reasons are being challenged and abused

In the past few weeks, Paul Feeley has been abused four times for not wearing a mask on public transport. “I have a disability lanyard, which signifies I have a hidden disability. I tried to show it … And all I got back was a complete torrent of abuse.”

The most recent incident took place just after he first spoke to the Observer on Thursday. The abuse has made Feeley, who suffers from fibromyalgia, borderline personality disorder and panic attacks, feel “extraordinarily angry, anxious and upset”. He is unable to wear a face covering due to his medical conditions, and legally he is exempt – but he is now worried about travelling on buses and trams in his home town of Manchester. “One man said to me, ‘If you can’t wear a mask, you shouldn’t be allowed out.’”

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Steve Bannon hails Dominic Cummings and predicts lurch to right for No 10

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Architect of Donald Trump’s presidential campaign reveals admiration for Boris Johnson’s aide in interview on dark politics

Steve Bannon, who has previously backed a range of notorious far-right political figures, has publicly endorsed Dominic Cummings for the first time, calling him a “brilliant guy”.

Donald Trump’s former chief strategist also said that Boris Johnson will become an increasingly populist prime minister after jettisoning his political positioning as a “globalist” to “opportunistically jump on Brexit”.

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Coronavirus near me: are UK Covid-19 cases rising in your local area?

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Latest updates: how has Covid-19 progressed where you live? Check the week-on-week changes across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

The map shows local authorities where the number of cases has increased week-on-week and where it has fallen. Some of this is due to natural fluctuations, especially in areas where there are very few cases, and so a rise from 1 to 2 is a doubling. Increased testing also means that more cases may be being detected than previously, although the impact of this between one week and the next is likely to be slight.

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Sowing doubt: people around world receive mystery seed parcels

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Packages marked as ‘earrings’ spark biosecurity concerns and global investigations into origins

There is not much that Jan Goward does not grow in her small Eastbourne garden. “I grow everything,” she says. “I’ve got the exotics: the aubergines, the chillies …”

But some mystery seeds she received in the post this week – ostensibly from Singapore, and marked as stud earrings – will not be joining them.

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Digested week: I get to see my mother for the first time since March

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So much, yet so little, has happened since lockdown, not least Grant Shapp’s ruined holiday

Monday

You can’t help but feel a little sorry for Grant Shapps’s family. After all, if you can’t trust the transport secretary not to ruin his own holiday, then who can you? Back in April, Grant told the Today programme that he definitely wouldn’t be travelling abroad this summer, but some time between then and last Saturday he must have changed his mind after having negotiated safe “air corridors” between Britain and various countries.

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Underage girl forced to have sex with Prince Andrew, US court document claims

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Papers part of 2015 civil court case by Virginia Roberts Giuffre against Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell

The sex offender Jeffrey Epstein allegedly tried to gather incriminating material against Prince Andrew by forcing an underage girl to have sex with him, according to newly released court documents.

The papers released by a court in New York say the alleged encounter took place on the late US financier’s private island in the US Virgin Islands. A document claims Epstein instructed the girl, referred to as Jane Doe #3, but known to be Virginia Roberts Giuffre, to “give the prince whatever he demanded and report back to him on the details of the sexual abuse”.

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Alan Parker, director of Midnight Express and Bugsy Malone, dies aged 76

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Director who first made his mark in the 1970s and had later hits including Fame and The Commitments, became the chair of the UK Film Council

•Peter Bradshaw on Alan Parker: a maker of glorious films with a gift for connecting with audiences
•A life in pictures

Alan Parker, the British director behind a string of hits including Midnight Express, Bugsy Malone, and The Commitments, has died aged 76.

The news was announced by a representative, who said he had died on Friday “after a lengthy illness”.

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English beaches packed despite Covid-19 social distancing plea

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Tens of thousands descend on south coast on hottest day of the year

Tens of thousands of people descended on beaches on the south coast of England on the hottest day of the year, prompting some local authorities to plead with people to stay away so that social distancing could be maintained.

While many parts of the north of England were facing a fresh lockdown, stretches of beaches at Bournemouth, Poole and Brighton were packed.

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As cases surge, we must learn from past mistakes | Letters

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At the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, the government failed to heed warnings from other countries, writes Giselle Green – it must not do so again. Plus letters from Phil Coughlin, Geoff Naylor, Heather Massie and David Wilkinson

Instead of waiting to see which countries experience a surge in coronavirus cases, I would hope that the government is actively looking into the reasons why. Among the factors being blamed for Spain’s spike are “a rush out of lockdown, opening the borders, patchy compliance with physical distancing, and inadequate contact tracing”, with outbreaks emerging from bars and clubs, and seasonal fruit and vegetable pickers (Why are travellers to the UK from Spain being asked to quarantine?, 28 July). With the exception of reopening nightclubs, it appears we are making the same mistakes as our Spanish neighbours. Right at the start of the pandemic we ignored the lessons of other countries, with devastating consequences. Let’s not do so again.
Giselle Green
London

• You report that scientists are “concerned” and “anxious” that a surge in Covid-19 infections in the coming winter months could be exacerbated by “normal winter illnesses” (Covid-19 new cases and deaths will remain high for weeks, warn UK health leaders, 29 July). I wonder if they have taken into account that the measures taken to control Covid-19, such as social distancing, hand washing and use of face masks, should be equally effective at reducing the spread of winter coughs, colds and flu, which hopefully may result in a less cataclysmic winter than they are forecasting.
Phil Coughlin
Houghton-le-Spring, Tyne and Wear

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Baldness and rashes? Experts split over unusual Covid-19 risk factors and symptoms

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Academics analyse whether hair and hearing loss may also be linked to coronavirus

From hearing loss and rashes, to being tall and bald, as the Covid-19 pandemic develops, a host of new symptoms and risk factors are being linked to the virus. We take a look at the evidence.

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Ex-British army officer faces 13 years in Romanian jail over ayahuasca ceremony

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Exclusive: Thomas Lishman charged with prominent local figures in ‘landmark human rights case’

A former British army officer is facing up to 13 years’ imprisonment in Romania for facilitating an ayahuasca ceremony in which the hallucinogenic Amazonian healing medicine was consumed by prominent figures, including the former head of the country’s secret police.

Thomas Lishman, 58, was arrested on 15 December last year as police and special forces raided a retreat centre outside Bucharest at dawn. It followed an evening where attendees sat in a circle meditating and drinking ayahuasca, a brew which is said to lead to mystical life-changing experiences. Some were later taken to hospital to provide blood samples.

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What are the new lockdown rules in northern England?

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All you need to know about the updated coronavirus measures affecting more than 4m people

More than 4 million people across swathes of northern England were given less than three hours’ notice on Thursday night that they must endure tighter lockdown restrictions to stem a resurgence of Covid-19 cases.

But what what exactly do the new measures mean for those living in affected areas in the north and elsewhere in England?

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Kylie Moore-Gilbert granted meeting with Australian ambassador to Iran

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Exclusive: British-Australian academic will meet diplomat for first time since sudden move to a new notorious prison

The imprisoned British-Australian academic Kylie Moore-Gilbert is set to be granted a meeting with Australia’s ambassador to Iran as soon as Sunday.

Following reports in the Guardian that Dr Moore-Gilbert was seriously unwell in Qarchak prison and had been removed from quarantine because she was attempting to write to the ambassador for help, the state-run Mizan news agency reported she was in “perfect health”.

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Coronavirus live news: WHO reports record daily rise in global cases

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New cases jump to 292,500, Irish Cup final played in front of fans; global death toll passes 674,000; France confirms ‘marked increase’ in cases

Sanofi SA and GlaxoSmithKline Plc said they are in advanced discussions with the European Commission to supply up to 300 million doses of the drugmakers’s experimental Covid-19 vaccine.

The doses would be manufactured in European countries including France, Belgium, Germany and Italy.

Florida reported another record increase in Covid-19 deaths on Friday.

The state health department said Florida registered 257 fatalities, a record for the fourth straight day despite predictions that the U.S. coronavirus epicenter could be shifting to the Midwest.

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Lifestyle changes could delay or prevent 40% of dementia cases – study

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Addressing 12 factors such as excessive drinking and air pollution exposure may have significant effect, experts say

Excessive drinking, exposure to air pollution and head injuries all increase dementia risk, experts say in a report revealing that up to 40% of dementia cases worldwide could be delayed or prevented by addressing 12 such lifestyle factors.

Around 50 million people around the world live with dementia, including about 850,000 people in the UK. By 2040, it has been estimated there will be more than 1.2 million people living with dementia in England and Wales. There is currently no cure.

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Hong Kong: China says it will not recognise UK overseas passports

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Ambassador’s warning comes in response to UK’s special visa offer to Hong Kong citizens

China will not recognise the British national (overseas) passport as a legal travel document, raising the prospect that the 3 million Hong Kong citizens eligible for the passport will be banned from leaving Hong Kong by the Chinese government.

The warning was made at a press conference by the Chinese ambassador to the UK, Liu Xiaoming, in which he also warned that it was hard to imagine a global Britain that bypassed or excluded China. Decoupling from China would mean decoupling from growth and the future, he suggested.

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British trafficking victim sues Priti Patel alleging abuse of personal data

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Lawyers argue human rights of ‘extremely vulnerable’ woman were breached by Home Office access to personal and confidential details

A British victim of trafficking is bringing a case against the home secretary, Priti Patel, arguing that her department unlawfully accessed personal information including details of her intimate thoughts.

If the case succeeds it could have implications for tens of thousands of others who may also have had their personal information accessed by officials. Five other survivors of trafficking have threatened the minister and her office with legal proceedings on this issue.

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Parts of northern England face new restrictions – as it happened

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Spain reports 1,229 new infections; France rules out full lockdown despite rise in cases; Japan sees record high for new cases for second day in a row. This blog is now closed. Stay up to date on our new blog below

We closing this blog now, but you can stay up to date on all of the latest global coronavirus news on our new blog below.

Related: Coronavirus live news: England tightens restrictions, WHO says 'young people' behind some spikes

And finally... just minutes before the new restrictions come into force, the Department of Health has finally posted some more details of the rules on its website.

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Coronavirus live news: France rules out ‘catastrophic’ second national lockdown despite rise in infections

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French prime minister says full lockdown must be avoided; number of global cases passes 17m; Japan to lift ban on re-entry of some foreign residents starting next week

Governments have the right to restrict protests on public health grounds, within reason, the UN Human Rights Committee said, as demonstrations clash with coronavirus outbreaks around the world.

The committee stepped in to formulate its legal interpretation having seen a gap in the international norms being tested before the pandemic started, since when the matter has become more pressing.

The protection of ‘public health’ ground may exceptionally permit restrictions to be imposed, for example where there is an outbreak of an infectious disease and gatherings are dangerous.

It’s understandable and acceptable that for health reasons there may be limits on your rights.

The Philippine government’s Covid-19 task force confirmed 3,954 new infections on Thursday, the country’s largest single-day increase in new cases.

The information on the surge in infections, which was a sharp increase from the record 2,539 cases confirmed on 8 July, was mentioned in a regular circular issued by the inter-agency task force.

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