Category Archives: Coronavirus outbreak

Coronavirus live news: Italy introduces border tests for French visitors; new cases at highest level, warns WHO

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Italian health minister says ‘we have to be cautious’; Iran death toll one of worst in Middle East; Madrid residents advised not to travel

The EU Council, scheduled for later this week, has been postponed after its president tested positive, reports Euronews political editor, Darren McCaffery.

MEANS: EU Council due to be held this Thursday and Friday has been postponed until next week, 1st and 2nd of September

The UN summit is proving to be a bad-tempered event.

In a recorded video, the US president, Donald Trump, called Covid-19 the “China virus”, adding: “We must hold accountable the nation that unleashed this plague upon the world.”

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Covid: Sturgeon announces Scotland-wide ban on household visits

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First minister also confirms 10pm curfew on pubs, bars and restaurants from Friday

Household visiting will be banned across Scotland, as Nicola Sturgeon moves to limit a key driver of coronavirus infections before the winter.

While Boris Johnson’s statement on Tuesday did not include direct limits on socialising, Scotland’s first minister said she would be extending nationwide from Friday the ban on household visiting already in place in the west of Scotland, where she said the limits were already having an impact on escalating infection rates.

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Coronavirus: Boris Johnson sets out new restrictions to last ‘perhaps six months’

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PM announces 10pm closing for pubs, a ban on indoor team sports and new weddings curbs

The UK is at a “perilous turning point” and must act, Boris Johnson has told MPs, announcing new restrictions for England including slashing the size of wedding celebrations and bans on indoor team sports, as well as a return to home working.

Speaking in the Commons on Tuesday, Johnson announced a ban on indoor team sports, such as five-a-side football, and said plans for a partial return of sports fans to stadiums from 1 October had been “paused”. Wedding celebrations will be limited to just 15 guests, half of what was previously permitted, though funerals will be allowed to go ahead with up to 30 mourners.

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Number of new weekly coronavirus cases at record high, says WHO

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Announcement comes as Covid deaths increased by 27% in Europe week on week

The weekly number of new recorded coronavirus infections worldwide was last week at its highest level to date, the World Health Organization has announced, as deaths from Covid-19 in Europe increased by more than a quarter week on week.

Almost 1 million people have now died from the coronavirus since it emerged in China at the beginning of the year.

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We must increase lending to the world’s poorest countries now – or pay the price later

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Larger economies have been flexible and creative coping with Covid’s impact – the same mindset needs to be applied to helping poorer countries

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) predicts Africa will suffer its worst recession since the 1970s. For the first time since the 1990s, extreme poverty will increase. The annual death toll from HIV, tuberculosis and malaria is set to double. We also fear a near doubling in the number of people facing starvation. Many girls out of school will never go back. Life expectancy will fall.

All this will fuel grievances, and in their wake conflict, instability and refugee flows, all giving succour to extremist groups and terrorists. The consequences will reach far and last long. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and G20 nations will feel the blowback just as some start to see light at the end of the Covid tunnel.

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Face shields ineffective at trapping aerosols, says Japanese supercomputer

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Simulation using world’s fastest supercomputer casts doubt on effectiveness in preventing spread of coronavirus

Plastic face shields are almost totally ineffective at trapping respiratory aerosols, according to modelling in Japan, casting doubt on their effectiveness in preventing the spread of coronavirus.

A simulation using Fugaku, the world’s fastest supercomputer, found that almost 100% of airborne droplets of less than 5 micrometres in size escaped through plastic visors of the kind often used by people working in service industries.

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‘Bring it on’: New Zealand tourist hotspots bank on holidays to ease Covid pressures

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Regional mayors hope the easing of restrictions means boom time for domestic tourism

Covid-19 restrictions have been dropped and school’s almost out for a fortnight – to the delight of mayors in New Zealand’s tourism hotspots, where there are hopes the holidays will boost coffers in the struggling tourism sector.

“Bring it on, bring it on,” said David Trewavas, the mayor of Taupō district – an area in the central North Island that is home to some of the country’s most famed skiing and hiking. “You can even have a mass gathering down here.”

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Ren Zhiqiang – who called Chinese president a ‘clown’ – jailed for 18 years

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Former real estate mogul was investigated after criticising Xi Jinping over his handling of the coronavirus pandemic

China has sentenced an influential former property executive and critic of President Xi Jinping to 18 years in prison for corruption.

Ren Zhiqiang, the former chairman of Huayuan, a state-owned real estate group, was also fined 4.2m yuan, Beijing No. 2 Intermediate Court said on its website on Tuesday.

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Joe Biden blames Trump’s ‘lies and incompetence’ for coronavirus death toll – video

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Joe Biden said Donald Trump's 'lies and incompetence' since the start of the coronavirus pandemic had led to the 'one of the greatest losses in American history' as he spoke at an aluminum plant in Manitowoc, Wisconsin.

The Democratic presidential nominee noted the country was about to hit the 'tragic milestone' of recording 200,000 deaths from Covid-19, adding that number represented many 'empty chairs' for families who had lost loved ones to the virus

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Trump says he wants supreme court seat filled ‘before the election’ – live

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Hello! Kari Paul here in California taking over for the next few hours. Stay tuned for updates.

That’s it from me today. My west coast colleague. Kari Paul, will take over the blog for the next few hours.

Here’s where the day stands so far:

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Italian airport quashes claims of secret Boris Johnson trip

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President of Perugia airport contradicts press reports that PM visited on 11 September

An Italian airport has quashed reports the prime minister landed there to make a secretive trip to the country less than a fortnight ago, a claim described by Downing Street as “completely untrue”.

Related: From scandal to PR cock-up: how the Boris Johnson Perugia mystery unravelled

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Raising of UK Covid alert level opens door to major restrictions

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Chief medical officers agree jump to level 4, meaning virus is ‘high or rising exponentially’

The UK’s Covid-19 alert level has been raised to four, meaning the virus is “high or rising exponentially” – a move which will give Boris Johnson cover for significant new restrictions to stem the surge of the virus.

The health secretary, Matt Hancock, said the change “reflects the significant shift in the current threat posed by coronavirus”. He added: “This country now faces a tipping point in its response and it is vital everybody plays their part now to stop the spread of the virus and protect lives.”

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Can the UK avoid 50,000 Covid-19 cases a day?

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Continued doubling of infection rate feared by top advisers is unlikely to happen, say some experts

On one thing, everyone agrees: the UK is at a turning point.

After a summer of crowded beaches and pubs reopening, followed by children returning to school and employees going back to the workplace, new cases of Covid-19 are definitely on the rise.

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‘Landmark moment’: 156 countries agree to Covid vaccine allocation deal

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Covax plan will counter rising threat of ‘vaccine nationalism’, prioritising vulnerable healthcare systems and frontline workers

A coalition of 156 countries has agreed a “landmark” deal to enable the rapid and equitable global distribution of any new coronavirus vaccines to 3% of participating countries’ populations, to protect vulnerable healthcare systems, frontline health workers and those in social care settings.

The Covid-19 vaccine allocation plan – co-led by the World Health Organization and known as Covax – has been set up to ensure that the research, purchase and distribution of any new vaccine is shared equally between the world’s richest countries and those in the developing world.

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Scottish ministers considering strict new Covid rules, leak reveals

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Local lockdowns in school holidays, travel restrictions and shutting hairdressers among possible measures

Scottish ministers are considering far-reaching restrictions to combat the surge in Covid cases including local lockdowns linked to school holidays next month, travel restrictions, closing play parks and shutting down hairdressers.

The measures were revealed in a leaked document marked “official sensitive”, which also shows the Scottish government could issue a “general message” that people should again stay at home accept for essential shopping and exercise and also avoid public transport.

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Madrid’s Teatro Real cancels opera after social distancing protests – video

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Audience members clapped and shouted in protest over a lack of social distancing measures in Madrid on Sunday night causing an opera to be pulled at the last minute.

A performance of Verdi’s A Masked Ball at the Teatro Real was abandoned after two failed attempts to begin. The decision was made to bring down the curtain at about 9.10pm.

One member of the audience said there were rows of more than a dozen people without any gaps between them. In a statement, theatre management said the house had been operating at just 51.5% of its total capacity

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‘The seasons are against us’: what we learned from UK’s top Covid scientists

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Patrick Vallance and Chris Whitty’s briefing predicted an autumn of rising deaths and difficult lockdown choices

The UK government’s most senior scientists, England’s chief medical officer, Chris Whitty, and the chief scientific adviser, Sir Patrick Vallance, have given a televised briefing about the recent increases in coronavirus cases, and what to expect – unusually, doing so without a politician there as well. Here is what we learned.

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Madrid opera halted by audience protest over lack of social distancing

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Spectators at Teatro Real say they were crammed into seats without space between them

A performance of Verdi’s A Masked Ball was abandoned in Madrid on Sunday night after audience members protested over the lack of social distancing measures – especially for those in cheaper seats.

One member of the audience at the Teatro Real opera house said there were rows of more than a dozen people without any gaps between them.

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Coronavirus symptoms: how to tell if you have a common cold, flu or Covid

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Fever, runny nose, headache? Lost your sense of taste or smell? Your guide to differentiating between the three illnesses

With winter approaching, the UK is entering the traditional seasons for colds and flu, with the additional complication this year that symptoms of those two illnesses can be broadly similar to those experienced by people who have caught the coronavirus and may be at risk of spreading it.

The NHS in England has produced a guide to differentiate between the three types of illnesses, which health experts hope will make it clearer to people whether they have an illness they would have most likely brushed aside last year, but which this year might lead them to think they need to self-isolate or seek to have a coronavirus test.

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