Coronavirus: UK cases jump by 3,899 as lockdown looms September 20, 2020 Confirmed cases of coronavirus rose by 3,899 in the UK today while authorities recorded a further 18 deaths. The figures come after cases jumped by 4,422 yesterday — the highest daily count since May — taking the country’s overall total to 394,257 since the pandemic began. The official death toll now stands at 41,777. These [...]
Rishi Sunak considers slashing welfare and public sector pay September 20, 2020 Rishi Sunak is reportedly planning on freezng benefits and public sector pay as a part of a bid to offset the Treasury’s coronavirus spending. The government has spent around £190bn in emergency Covid-19 funding, which has put this year’s budget deficit at an estimated £350bn – 12-times higher than pre-crisis expectations. Media speculation has been [...]
Matt Hancock threatens new coronavirus restrictions if people flout rules September 20, 2020 The government will introduce more stringent coronavirus restrictions if people do not follow the new set of rules, according to health secretary Matt Hancock. Hancock said that the UK was at a “tipping point”, as coronavirus cases rise across the conutry, and that people had become “more relaxed [about following Covid rules] over summer”. Hancock’s [...]
Coronavirus: Johnson faces calls for urgent action and COBRA meeting as cases rise September 19, 2020 Prime Minister Boris Johnson has come under pressure to take “decisive action” in the battle against coronavirus as cases rise. Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has demanded a COBRA meeting within the next 48 hours and echoed the sentiments of London mayor Sadiq Khan regarding the need to learn from March’s mistakes and implement restrictions [...]
Trump predicts Covid-19 vaccine to be available to every American by April September 19, 2020 US President Donald Trump has said he expects a vaccine for coronavirus to be available for every American by April. Speaking at a news conference on Friday, Trump told reporters he was optimistic of the vaccine being available in just seven months time and that it would be distributed within 24 hours of federal approval. [...]
US Supreme Court judge Ruth Bader Ginsburg dies of cancer aged 87 September 19, 2020 US Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died of cancer at the age of 87, the court has said. Ginsburg passed away at her home in Washington on Friday, surrounded by her family, following a battle with metastatic pancreatic cancer, the statement said. She was the oldest justice and just second woman to ever sit [...]
Just 6 per cent of UK population has Covid-19 antibodies, SAGE says September 19, 2020 Only six per cent of the UK’s population has antibodies to Covid-19, minutes from a Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) meeting earlier this month have revealed. The scientific advisers told the government that just a small proportion of the country had antibodies to coronavirus in the meeting. SAGE also informed officials that there was [...]
UK coronavirus ‘R’ rate rises to between 1.1 and 1.4 September 18, 2020 The UK’s Covid reproduction or “R” rate has risen to between 1.1 and 1.4, the government has said, in the latest evidence that coronavirus is spreading quickly again through the country. It was up from last week’s figures of between one and 1.2. The government said that the new R rate means “that on average [...]
Only a fortnight left until UK coronavirus crisis ‘out of control’, experts warn September 18, 2020 The UK only has two to three weeks to improve its Test and Trace scheme before the spread of coronavirus gets “out of control”, experts have warned today. The Independent Sage committee of scientists, chaired by former chief scientific adviser Sir David King, has issued a report to caution government of an upcoming crisis if [...]
Business groups urge chancellor to unveil autumn Budget policies early September 18, 2020 Business lobby groups have urged chancellor Rishi Sunak to make early announcements on the upcoming autumn Budget, in a move to quell fears over the current economic uncertainty. Chancellor Rishi Sunak is expected to deliver the Budget in November, though reports last week suggested the announcement could be pushed back to spring 2021 if the UK [...]