Editor Brian Harrod Provides Comprehensive up-to-date news coverage, with aggregated news from sources all over the world from the Roundup Newswires Network
Diagnostic tool being piloted by NHS England shows ‘impressive results’ in spotting tumours in early stages
A simple blood test that can detect more than 50 types of cancer before any clinical signs or symptoms of the disease emerge in a person is accurate enough to be rolled out as a screening test, according to scientists.
The test, which is also being piloted by NHS England in the autumn, is aimed at people at higher risk of the disease including patients aged 50 or older.
Rory Boland, travel editor for consumer group Which?, said travellers still needed to be “extremely cautious” about booking trips abroad. He said: “Countries can be downgraded quickly and with little warning, as we saw with Portugal, while several European countries have introduced quarantine requirements for UK residents. “Restrictions around international travel are changing regularly and when they do, the cost to holidaymakers is significant. “Most providers will not pay refunds if a country is moved from green to amber, and ‘free’ amendments are often anything but, with many companies requiring significant notice of any changes and bookings for new dates usually costing hundreds of pounds. Travel insurance is also unlikely to pay out in these circumstances. “It is only advisable to book if you are able to do 14 days’ quarantine, can be flexible about destination and dates, and book with a provider that guarantees refunds in the event of traffic light changes or quarantine requirements.”
Eluned Morgan MS, minister for health and social services in Wales, said: “International travel is resuming but the pandemic is not over and protecting people’s health remains our main priority.
“Our strong advice continues to be not to travel overseas unless it is essential because of the risk of contracting coronavirus, especially new and emerging variants of concern.
Working seven days a week as a nurse and a fitness instructor, while bringing up two young daughters, Rebecca Logan led an extremely active life – until she contracted Covid-19 while working in the emergency department of a hospital in Northern Ireland.
Over a year after first falling ill, the 40-year-old is still suffering from long Covid. For Logan, that means she can only walk for five minutes before needing to rest, and there is a constant ringing in her ears. Her husband has had to pick up the slack at home, alongside his job as a school principal.
A public inquiry was the only way to get justice for those affected by this scandal, which went on for two decades and was covered up for 20 years more, writes Diana Johnson MP
After nearly 40 years of campaigning and the refusal by the state to acknowledge the harm done to thousands of people, the NHS infected blood inquiry was finally announced in 2017 when all opposition parties in the Commons came together, threatening to vote against Theresa May’s minority government.
More than 9,200 Covid cases were reported in the UK on Sunday, the day before it was originally planned that all remaining Covid restrictions in England would be lifted.
It came as figures revealed that more than 1m Covid jabs were booked in two days following the invitation on Friday for all adults in England to come forward for vaccination.
Londoners received tens of thousands of Covid jabs in just a few hours on Saturday as football grounds in the capital were transformed into mass vaccination centres.
Huge jab clinics have been set up at the London Stadium, Stamford Bridge, the Tottenham Hotspur stadium, the Valley, home of Charlton Athletic, and Selhurst Park.
Nadhim Zahawi, the vaccine deployment minister, is responding to a Commons urgent question.
He says average Covid deaths are now down to nine per day.
The conclusions of the report (pdf) into Islamophobia in the Conservative party as set out in the document itself (pages 59 to 61) are much stronger, and more interesting, than the conclusions as set out in the press notice from the inquiry. (See 10.50am.) Here are the key points.
Judging by the extent of complaints and findings of misconduct by the Party itself that relate to anti-Muslim words and conduct, anti-Muslim sentiment remains a problem within the party. This is damaging to the party, and alienates a significant section of society.
The Conservative and Unionist party of the United Kingdom has faced sustained allegations of discriminatory behaviours and practices against minority groups, with Islamophobia being the most prominent and damaging allegation in recent years. The perception that the party has a ‘Muslim problem’ is widespread, with numerous instances of party members and elected officials alleged to have behaved in a discriminatory manner.
We discovered some examples of discrimination and anti-Muslim sentiment, most of which were at local association level. We did not, however, find evidence of a party which systematically discriminated against any particular group as defined by the Equality Act 2010, or one in which the structure of the party itself disadvantaged any group, on a direct or indirect discriminatory basis.
While the party leadership claims a ‘zero tolerance approach’ to all forms of discrimination, our findings show that discriminatory behaviours occur, especially in relation to people of Islamic faith. The data collection of such incidents is weak and difficult to analyse, hampering early identification of problems and effective remedial action. The party needs to be explicit and specific about what ‘zero tolerance’ means in the context discrimination, both in policy and practice.
There are shortcomings in the codes of conduct, too, which are not adequate given the twenty-first century social media landscape and 24-hour rolling news cycle. As we have suggested, these should be strengthened and merged into a single code of conduct.
The Investigation recommends that all major political parties consider, in discussion with the EHRC, the creation of a cross-party, non-partisan, and independent mechanism for handling complaints of discrimination against their parties or party members on the basis of Protected Characteristics. This could be similar to the current Parliamentary Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme for Sexual Misconduct.
The investigation has chosen not to recommend or endorse any particular form of equality or diversity training. Our brief perusal of published literature confirms that few, if any, of the suggested training models have been proven to show any sustained change in behaviours or attitudes, while there is some evidence of potentially adverse consequences such as promoting divisions, fostering a ‘shame and blame’ culture and the training being perceived as patronising and infantilising. In healthcare, where cultural diversity training has been extensively used to reduce health inequalities, evidence for its effectiveness is lacking.
Up to 8,700 patients died after catching Covid-19 while in hospital being treated for another medical problem, according to official NHS data obtained by the Guardian.
The figures, which were provided by the hospitals themselves, were described as “horrifying” by relatives of those who died.
Confusion is reigning after airlines swiftly increased the number of planes travelling to “amber list” holiday destinations from the UK, before the prime minister contradicted ministers over whether trips to such places were permitted. They are not, in fact, allowed, Boris Johnson said.
But if we always believed what the PM said, well, we would be rather foolish. The ins and outs of the guidance are quite nuanced.
A coronavirus outbreak on Mount Everest has infected at least 100 climbers and support staff, a mountaineering guide said, giving the first comprehensive estimate amid official Nepalese denials that the disease has spread to the world’s highest peak.
Lukas Furtenbach of Austria, who last week halted his Everest expedition due to virus fears, said one of his foreign guides and six Nepali Sherpa guides had tested positive.
I think with all the confirmed cases we know now confirmed from (rescue) pilots, from insurance, from doctors, from expedition leaders, I have the positive tests so we can prove this … We have at least 100 people minimum positive for Covid in base camp, and then the numbers might be something like 150 or 200.”
Family doctors are being forced out of their jobs after developing long Covid, prompting demands for the government to compensate NHS staff with the debilitating condition who cannot work.
GPs struggling with the condition have told the Observer they felt “shocked and betrayed” when their colleagues removed them from their posts because of prolonged sick leave.
Bulgaria focused on protecting the economy over saving older people from Covid. Ultimately, it will achieve neither
April will forever be in my memory as a month of painful unfairness: it is when I had my first Covid-19 vaccine in the UK and my unvaccinated father died of the virus in Bulgaria. I’m a middle-aged, healthy woman. My father was a vulnerable 85-year-old with underlying health conditions.
I have a pile of letters from the NHS that arrived for my father since January, inviting him to get a vaccination in London, the city he left for his native Bulgaria six months before. With sadness and disquiet, I wonder why Bulgaria did not protect my father in his old age while the UK’s NHS has made every endeavour to do so. Why have I been protected in my middle age while about 90% of Bulgarians over 80 have not?
Jenny McGee, who kept vigil by PM’s bedside when he was sick with Covid, derides government’s handling of pandemic
A nurse who cared for Boris Johnson when he was gravely ill with Covid-19 says she has handed in her resignation, such is her disillusionment with the “lack of respect” shown by the government for the NHS and healthcare workers.
Jenny McGee, who kept vigil by the prime minister’s bedside for two days when he was in intensive care, also revealed that his staff had later attempted to co-opt her into a “clap for the NHS” photo opportunity with him during what she thought would be a discreet thank you visit to Downing Street.
Shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth has accused Boris Johnson of a “reckless failure to protect our borders” as the Indian variant threatened to derail progress to ending coronavirus restrictions in June.
The Labour MP said: “People across the country will be deeply concerned and tonight’s news brings into sharp focus Boris Johnson’s reckless failure to protect our borders in this crisis.
There is a “realistic possibility” that the Indian coronavirus variant could be as much as “50% more transmissible” than the Kent strain, the Scientific Advisory Group for emergencies (Sage) has said.
The minutes of the meeting between the government’s scientific advisers on Thursday said that it is “highly likely that this variant is more transmissible than B.1.1.7 (high confidence), and it is a realistic possibility that it is as much as 50% more transmissible”, PA reports.
It was all looking so good. After a brutal second wave in the winter, the lockdown combined with the swift rollout of vaccines forced infections, hospitalisations and deaths down to levels not seen since last summer. The vaccines performed better than expected, not only in preventing deaths, but in hampering the spread of the virus. Scientific advisers were confident about England’s cautious roadmap back to a life more normal: the worst, it seemed, was over.
Now, those same advisers are deeply worried that the new variant of concern from India, B.1.617.2, could undermine the hard-won achievement. The government strategy has been to ease restrictions as vaccines reach more people, aiming for a delicate balance that opens up society while preventing another wave that overwhelms the NHS.
Lockdown was reason behind sharp fall in number of people treated by NHS for injuries outside the home, say researchers
Lockdown led to the smallest number of people on record being treated by the NHS for injuries caused by violence away from the home, a study shows.
The closure of pubs, clubs and other venues that sell alcohol as part of the bans on social mixing was a key reason for the sharp decline in serious violence, the researchers say.
Button batteries and magnets found in certain types of children’s toys associated with complications
There has been a fivefold increase in magnet ingestion over the past five years in young children amid a steady rise in hospital admissions in London caused by the swallowing of foreign objects, doctors have said.
While most of the time objects pass out of the body naturally without incident, button batteries and small permanent magnets found in cordless tools, hard disk drives, magnetic fasteners and certain types of children’s toys have been associated with complications.
The number of Covid-19 patients in French intensive care units fell below 5,000 for the first time since late March on Sunday, Reuters is reporting that health ministry data showed.
The number was down for a sixth day in a row at 4,971, against 5,005 the previous day, the ministry said.
The United States is closer to getting the coronavirus pandemic under control and health officials are focused on the next challenge: getting more Americans vaccinated, the White House Covid-19 response coordinator Jeff Zients said on Sunday, Reuters reports.
“I would say we are turning the corner,” Zients said in an interview with CNN’s “State of the Union.”
The government has been urged to publish details of up to £2bn in Covid-19 contracts awarded to private healthcare companies, including some that have helped fund the Conservative party.
Contracts to provide extra capacity during the pandemic have been handed to 17 firms since March 2020.
Revolutionary HeartFlow technology turns CT scan into 3D image, allowing treatment five times faster
Patients with life-threatening coronary heart disease will be treated five times faster thanks to 3D scans being introduced on the NHS that allow for a diagnosis in just 20 minutes.
The revolutionary technology can turn a regular CT scan of the heart into a 3D image, allowing doctors to diagnose them rapidly, NHS England said.