COVID-19 Coronavirus UK and World News update 24th May 2020.

The UK added 2,409 cases today and now has reported a total of 259,559 positive cases of COVID-19. We completed 110,401 tests yesterday. 8,951 people are in hospital, down 11% from this time last week. 

In the 24 hours up until 5pm yesterday, we lost another 118 people who have tested positive to COVID-19. We now very sadly have a total of 36,793 losses of life in all settings.

England 149,308 / 32,760

Northern Ireland 4,570 / 505

Scotland 15,101 / 2,261

Wales 13,309 / 1,267

Rep. Of Ireland 24,639 (+57) cases and 1,608 (+4) losses of life. 

There have now been a total of 5,462,638 reported cases worldwide. The number of people who have lost their lives worldwide to COVID-19 is 345,406. Already 2,286,820 people have recovered.

The UK government is in a bit of disarray at the moment. Many MP's from all parties are unhappy and utterly exasperated with Dominic Cummings' lockdown flouting, especially now unproven witnesses have come forward to say they saw the family out on a day trip to Barnard Castle. It's also alleged Mr Cummings returned to London, and then drove back up to Durham on a later occasion, where he was seen at Houghall Woods with his wife.  

It's really not going so well for anyone trying to defend his actions. 

Led By Donkeys this lunchtime parked a van outside his house playing video and audio clips of people who have suffered horrendously because of COVID-19. 

Today's UK briefing had a special surprise guest, Prime Minister of Great Britain, Boris de Pfeffel Johnson, and with him was Professor Stephen Powis of NHS England. 

Boris started by saying "I want to begin by answering the big question everyone's been asking for the last 48 hours, and that is, 'Is this government asking you, the people, the public, to do one thing, while senior people here in government do something else?'. He has spent several hours with Dominic Cummings and concluded that:

"In travelling to find the right kind of childcare, at the moment when both he and his wife were about to be incapacitated by Coronavirus, and when he had no alternative, he followed the instincts of every father, and every parent.... I believe that in every respect, he has acted responsibly, and legally and with integrity." 

COVID-19 Coronavirus UK and World News update 23rd May 2020.

The UK added 2,959 cases today and now has reported a total of 257,154 positive cases of COVID-19. We completed 116,585 tests yesterday. 9,331 people are in hospital, down 11% from this time last week. 

In the 24 hours up until 5pm yesterday, we lost another 282 people who have tested positive to COVID-19. We now very sadly have a total of 36,675 losses of life in all settings.

England 148,724 / 32,666

Northern Ireland 4,545 / 504

Scotland 15,041 / 2,245

Wales 13,169 / 1,260

Rep. Of Ireland 24,506 cases and 1,592 losses of life. (Not yet reported today).

There have now been a total of 5,360,914 reported cases worldwide. The number of people who have lost their lives worldwide to COVID-19 is 341,829. Already 2,187,269 people have recovered.

Scandalous political news of the day is that Dominic Cummings (Boris' top aide) drove from London to Durham, to isolate at his parent's house when he had symptoms of COVID-19. Apparently it was because his wife was ill and nearby relatives were on standby to help with the kids and do their shopping for them, however it remains against the spirit of the lockdown, against the lockdown rules and potentially moves COVID-19 around the country. He's had support from people including Health Secretary Matt Hancock, and a few choice words from people who have kept to the lockdown, including plenty who have had to manage alone. 

Today's UK briefing was with Grant Shapps, Minister for Transport, and Dr Jenny Harries, Deputy Chief Medical Officer. 

A public transport fund of £283m to start returning to full service, but even at best we can only manage 1/5 of previous passenger numbers. 

PLEASE walk, cycle or drive if you can - in that order. Consider travelling off peak if possible. 

There'll be jolly people at stations to offer assistance (and I imagine remind you to maintain social distancing). 

This bank holiday weekend they're fixing Leeds station and the track to Wakefield, as well as about 490 projects that can happen much more quickly while we're all at home. 

Lots of other new road and rail schemes will happen, examples below:

They're replacing lots of stations axed by the Beeching Act - including the Ivanhoe line for Leicester to Burton, and branch lines in Somerset and Isle of Wight. 

The A66 will be finished too. 

More park and ride outside town centres.

We need to permanently change the way we use transport (bit long term that one!). 

From next month you can apply for a £50 Bicycle Maintenance Voucher. 

Press asked if it was appropriate to drive hundreds of miles to isolate nearer to family if you have symptoms of coronavirus (snigger). Grant and Jenny knew they were had. There was nothing they could say that helped the position. Press hammered them. 'Is it okay for anyone to drive all those miles if people can't attend funerals, see dying loved ones? What is the travel advice if you are ill? How far can you go to be near people to help you with shopping? "2 senior aides have already resigned after breaking lockdown, what is different about Dominic Cummings?" etc'.

They had an admirable attempt, but nope. They did manage to remind us that if you are vulnerable it would be a safeguarding issue, so in that case appropriate. They also managed to suggest TWICE that Dominic Cummings is not capable of looking after his own 4 year old by himself without it becoming a safeguarding issue - which I'm pretty sure is not what they intended. I can't comment, they know him, I don't. Surely even he can open spaghetti hoops. 

They had no chance. Second time running I bet Jenny has hit the gin straight afterwards.

COVID-19 Coronavirus UK and World News update 22nd May 2020.

The UK added 3,287 cases today and now has reported a total of 254,195 positive cases of COVID-19. We completed 140,497 tests yesterday. 9,307 people are in hospital, down 14% from this time last week. 

In the 24 hours up until 5pm yesterday, we lost another 351 people who have tested positive to COVID-19. We now very sadly have a total of 36,393 losses of life in all settings.

England 147,745 / 32,417

Northern Ireland 4,504 / 501

Scotland 14,969 / 2,221

Wales 12,984 / 1,254

Rep. Of Ireland 24,506 cases and 1,592 losses of life. 

There have now been a total of 5,255,285 reported cases worldwide. The number of people who have lost their lives worldwide to COVID-19 is 336,817. Already 2,122,399 people have recovered.

The SAGE advice that the UK government received, which we are told led to their decision to plan to reopen schools to more pupils from 1st June (subject to us meeting conditions), was published today on the gov dot uk website......  SAGE studied the possible effects of 9 different options (including 'stay as is' and 'all back to school as normal'). Bizarrely none of these modelled options was chosen as the Government's actual plan. Awesome. Following the science hmmmm? I'm leaving that there.

Today's UK briefing was with Priti Patel, who is like a feisty teenager putting forward an argument for not doing the washing up. Grrrr....

She was joined by Paul Lincoln of UK Border Force and Patrick Vallance, UK Science Chief. 

The UK government plans for quarantine will happen from 8th June. Anyone arriving to the UK will need to self-isolate for 14 days at their own arrangement and expense 

Arrivals will be expected to provide addresses for spot checks. 

Failure to co-operate could result in removal from the UK or refusal of entry. 

A fixed penalty of £1,000 for non-compliance, repeat/serious offenders could end up in court. 

Exemptions include seasonal agricultural workers, road hauliers, medical professionals, foreign officials (E.g. French police), Ireland, Jersey, Guernsey and Isle of Man. 

(It all sounds fairly standard and is pretty much what you'll find with most countries.)

Slides show the UK has a current R rate between 0.7 and 1.0. 

2-3 out of every 1,000 people in the UK actually had COVID-19 on any given day from 4th May to 17th May.  

The Government briefing ended with a reminder it is 7 years since Lee Rigby lost his life, and 3 years since the Manchester Arena bomb. 2 events which affected my own local community directly. She spoke with genuine respect. I never thought Priti Patel would make me cry.  

COVID-19 Coronavirus UK and World News update 21st May 2020.

The UK added 2,615 cases today and now has reported a total of 250,908 positive cases of COVID-19. We completed 128,340 tests yesterday. 9,543 people are in hospital, down 14% from this time last week. 

In the 24 hours up until 5pm yesterday, we lost another 338 people who have tested positive to COVID-19. We now very sadly have a total of 36,042 losses of life in all settings.

England 146,662 / 32,117

Northern Ireland 4,481 / 494

Scotland 14,856 / 2.184

Wales 12,846 / 1,247

Rep. Of Ireland 24,391 (+76) cases and 1,583 (+12) losses of life. 

There have now been a total of 5,138,992 reported cases worldwide. The number of people who have lost their lives worldwide to COVID-19 is 331,696. Already 2,050,461 people have recovered.

"The Home Office is extending the offer of indefinite leave to remain, free of charge, to the families and dependants of NHS support staff and social care workers who die as result of contracting coronavirus.

The offer of indefinite leave to remain will be effective immediately and retrospectively."

This afternoon Boris Johnson has also asked the Home Office to exempt NHS and care workers who were originally born elsewhere from having to pay the Immigration NHS surcharge for using the NHS. 

Don't ask and you don't get. Ask and sometimes they pay attention. 

Today's England briefing was with Matt Hancock, the stand-in Prime Minister, plus Prof Chris Whitty, Chief Medical Officer and  Prof John Newton, coordinator of the national testing effort. 

He started by mentioning Mental Health Awareness Week. It really is okay to not always be okay -  especially right now. We are ALL a bit scared. 

A further £4.2m is being allocated to mental health charities including The Samaritans, Mental Health UK and Young Minds. 

He talked about the Oxford Vaccine (more below) and the antibody testing (more below). 

The UK's random antibody surveillance testing is showing us information about UK spread. So far the results suggest that: 

Around 17% of people in London and

Around 5% or greater of people across England

have tested positive for coronavirus antibodies. That's higher than earlier results seemed to show, and really does bring down our mortality rate massively. It's still horrific, but it is actually good news. 

Public Health England have authorised use of the 2 different reliable antibody (did I have it?) tests, and over 10m have been ordered. They'll be rolled out across the UK from next week, to NHS workers and social care firstly. 

A 20 minute swab test (have I got it?) is being trialled from today. They've been using these in Asia for a long time. 

The UK Test, Track and Trace (shouldn't we have 'isolate' on the end of that?) is on target to launch for 1st June. It is anticipated we have testing capacity to cope. 

Robbie Savage, ex-Wales and Man Utd/Crewe/Derby etc football player (and newspaper columnist) asked a question at today's UK briefing. Because the world wasn't mad enough already... 

I'm a bit of a therapy-sceptic, and I'm not known for being wishy-washy, so when I am offered 'therapy books' I politely decline. A light-hearted book about trying 37 of them appealed to me - will any of them be any good? 

COVID-19 Coronavirus UK and World News update 20th May 2020.

The UK added 2,472 cases today and now has reported a total of 248,293 positive cases of COVID-19. We completed 177,216 tests yesterday (that's really impressive). 9,953 people are in hospital, down 13% from this time last week. 

In the 24 hours up until 5pm yesterday, we lost another 363 people who have tested positive to COVID-19. We now very sadly have a total of 35,704 losses of life in all settings.

Rep. Of Ireland 24,251 cases and 1,561 losses of life. Not yet reported today.

There have now been a total of 5,037,764 reported cases worldwide. The number of people who have lost their lives worldwide to COVID-19 is 326,413. Already 1,993,037 people have recovered.

"For everything COVID19 has taken from us, it has also given us something: 

A reminder of what really matters and the opportunity to forge a common future.

Dark and difficult days may lie ahead. But guided by science, together we will overcome."

Dr Tedros, Head of WHO, at the World Health Assembly.

Today's UK briefing was with newbie Oliver Dowden, the Digitial, Cultural, Media and Sport (DCMS) Secretary and Prof Stephen Powis of NHS England.

Random bag today. 

The Queen's birthday honours are being delayed, so that "everyday COVID heroes" can be recognised. 

National fundraising campaigns for the NHS have raised over £800m, plus masses more at local level. The Government will match everything raised by the Big Night In - that's over £70m for frontline charities. 

The small and medium sized charity support scheme, the Coronavirus Community Support Fund, will open for applications this week, with an initial £200m fund. 

We are also releasing £150m from dormant accounts for affordable credit for social enterprises. 

He's put together a group of people you've almost heard of, to become a special Task Force and look into how best to reopen the arts, and live sports, without crowds. 

This month we've been working with Sudocrem to encourage everyone to grow something. The time is right to plant all kinds of seeds for food and flowers, and you don't need a big garden or expensive equipment to do it. 

We've been sent a simple outdoor growing kit, but even with no specialist equipment, and no big garden, you can plant things and watch them grow. 

COVID-19 Coronavirus UK and World News update 19th May 2020.

The UK added 2,412 cases today and now has reported a total of 248,818 positive cases of COVID-19. We completed 89,784 tests yesterday. 10,025 people are in hospital, down 17% from this time last week, but an increase of 617 since yesterday. 

In the 24 hours up until 5pm yesterday, we lost another 545 people who have tested positive to COVID-19. We now very sadly have a total of 35,341 losses of life in all settings.

England 144,984 / 31,530

Northern Ireland 4,421 / 482

Scotland 14,655 / 2,105

Wales 12,570 / 1,224

Rep. Of Ireland 24,251 (+51) cases and 1,561 (+14) losses of life.

There have now been a total of 4,946,173 reported cases worldwide. The number of people who have lost their lives worldwide to COVID-19 is 322,579. Already 1,936,661 people have recovered.

"Dark & difficult days may lie ahead.

But guided by science, together we will overcome.

Let hope be the antidote to fear.

Let solidarity be the antidote to division.

Let our shared humanity be the antidote to our shared threat.

Now, more than ever"

Dr Tedros, Head of the World Health Organisation. 

It's Tuesday, so the latest ONS (Office for National Statistics) figures are out for Week 18, week ending 8th May. The number of registrations was impacted significantly by the Early May Bank Holiday on the Friday:

The number of deaths registered in England and Wales was 12,657, a decrease for the third week running, but 3,081 more than the five-year average.

3,930 deaths mentioned "novel coronavirus (COVID-19)", which was 31.1% of all deaths; this is a decrease of 2,105 deaths compared with Week 18.

The number of deaths in care homes (from all causes) for Week 19 was 4,248, this is 2,247 above the five-year average. Deaths involving COVID-19 as a percentage of all deaths in care homes continued to rise to 39.2%. 

"For the second week running, all regions showed a decrease in the percentage of deaths involving COVID-19; the North West had the highest number of COVID-19 deaths (597 deaths) for the first time."

"In Wales, there were 211 deaths registered in Week 19 involving COVID-19, accounting for 30.5% of all deaths registered."

Of deaths involving COVID-19 registered up to Week 19, 66.6% occurred in hospital with the remainder mainly occurring in care homes (26.7%), private homes (4.6%) and hospices (1.2%).

The number of deaths registered in the whole UK in the week ending 8 May 2020 (Week 19) was 14,408, of which 4,426 deaths involved COVID-19.

COVID-19 Coronavirus UK and World News update 18th May 2020.

The UK added 2,684 cases today and now has reported a total of 246,406 positive cases of COVID-19. We completed 100,678 tests yesterday. 9,408 people are in hospital (first time under 10,000 in a long time) and down 13% from this time last week. 

In the 24 hours up until 5pm yesterday, we lost another 160 people who have tested positive to COVID-19. We now very sadly have a total of 34,796 losses of life in all settings.

England 144,127 / 31,010

Northern Ireland 4,401 / 476

Scotland 14,594 / 2,103

Wales 12,404 / 1.207

Rep. Of Ireland 24,200 (+88) cases and 1,547 (+4) losses of life.

There have now been a total of 4,851,974 reported cases worldwide. The number of people who have lost their lives worldwide to COVID-19 is 318,051. Already 1,882,132 people have recovered.

"The COVID19 pandemic is a reminder of the intimate & delicate relationship between people and planet" 

Dr Tedros, Head of WHO, at the World Health Assembly opening speech. 

"The Earth has confronted several pandemics before. This is the first caused by a coronavirus. This a dangerous enemy, with a dangerous combination of features: efficient, fast and fatal. 

COVID19 can operate in the dark, spread silently if we’re not paying attention, then suddenly explode if we aren’t ready. We’ve seen the same pattern repeated in cities & countries the globe." Dr Tedros.

Today saw the opening of the 2 day 73rd annual meeting of the World Health Assembly. This is the forum through which the World Health Organization (WHO) is governed. It is the highest health policy setting body in the world, and is composed of Health Ministers from all 194 member states.

For weeks Taiwan have been asking to be included, but at the last minute postponed their request for observer status. China say they're part of China, other countries, including Australia, say they're entitled to be there, and there's no doubt their expertise with COVID-19 is invaluable. 

Australia has called for an independent coronavirus inquiry. By the time today's assembly convened, 116 countries had co-sponsored the motion. They include the African Group's 54 member states, all 27 members of the EU, Russia, Indonesia, India, Japan, Britain and Canada, Brazil, South Korea, Mexico, Turkey and New Zealand.

The Assembly started with standard greetings and introductory statements, and then an address from China’s President Xi Jinping. He made the following proposals to bring COVID-19 under control:

-- We must do everything we can for COVID-19 control and treatment;

-- The World Health Organization should lead the global response;

-- We must provide greater support for Africa;

-- We must strengthen global governance in the area of public health;

-- We must restore economic and social development;

-- We must strengthen international cooperation.

 “All along we have acted with openness, transparency and responsibility.” He pledged $2b towards the COVID19 response and help to set up hospitals and health infrastructure in Africa.

A deal has been reached over an inquiry at the World Health Assembly this afternoon. China supports a "comprehensive evaluation" of the global response to coronavirus "after pandemic under control".

Since they called their highest alert level - a Public Health Emergency of International Concern - on January 30th, the World Health Organisation have shipped diagnostics, personal protective equipment, oxygen & other medical supplies to at least 120 countries, and trained more than 2.6 million health workers, in 23 languages.

COVID-19 Coronavirus UK and World News update 17th May 2020.

The UK added 3,142 cases today and now has reported a total of 243,303 positive cases of COVID-19. We completed 91,206 tests yesterday. 10,035 people are in hospital, down from 10,484 yesterday and down 15% from this time last week. (Northern Ireland testing data isn't complete.)

In the 24 hours up until 5pm yesterday, we lost another 170 people who have tested positive to COVID-19. We now very sadly have a total of 34,636 losses of life in all settings.

England 143,311 / 30,866

Northern Ireland 4,357 / 473

Scotland 14,537 / 2,094

Wales 12,304 / 1,203

Rep. Of Ireland 24,112 (+64) cases and 1,543(+10) losses of life. 

There have now been a total of 4,770,160 reported cases worldwide. The number of people who have lost their lives worldwide to COVID-19 is 314,530. Already 1,843,376 people have recovered.

Today's UK briefing was with  Alok Sharma, Business Secretary, and with Prof Stephen Powis of NHS England, we had an update on vaccines. The human trial people are doing well, and have all had their vaccine dose as planned. 

He announced an additional £84m for the Oxford Vaccine team and Imperial College for vaccine research and trials. AstraZeneca and the gov. have come to an arrangement about manufacturing. 

He warned it is always possible we may never have a vaccine, so therapeutics (drugs and treatments) are important. 6 drugs have now entered clinical trials in the UK. He didn't mention what they were. Long, tricky names and live TV maybe?