UK coronavirus hospital deaths rise by 847 to 14,576 April 17, 2020 The UK’s coronavirus hospital death toll rose by 847 yesterday, meaning 14,576 people have now died in Britain’s hospitals from the virus. The number is slightly lower than the daily rise of 861 reported for the day ending Wednesday. The previous daily rise had been 761. Britain recorded its highest daily death toll on April [...]
China says Wuhan coronavirus death toll 50 per cent higher than previously reported April 17, 2020 The Chinese city Wuhan which was at the heart of the coronavirus outbreak today upped its official death toll from coronavirus by 50 per cent to 3,869, state TV reported. The city where the novel coronavirus first infected humans added another 1,290 victims on top of the 2,570 previously counted, which reflected delays, omissions and [...]
Funding Circle receives accreditation for government’s CBILS coronavirus loan scheme April 17, 2020 Peer-to-peer lender Funding Circle said today it had received accreditation from the British Business Bank (BBB) to take part in the government’s coronavirus business interruption loan scheme (CBILS). It is the first alternative lender to receive accreditation to lend to customers via the emergency scheme which is designed to help small and medium-sized businesses stay [...]
Rishi Sunak expands coronavirus loan scheme to include all UK businesses April 16, 2020 The government has expanded its £330bn coronavirus loan scheme to cover all financially viable UK businesses regardless of size. The Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loans Scheme (CLBILS) will allow companies with a turnover of more than £45 million to apply for up to £25 million of finance. Firms with a turnover of more than £250 [...]
UK needs coronavirus testing and tracing ‘command centre’ to beat virus April 16, 2020 The UK must create a 24/7 coronavirus testing and tracing “command centre” to exit its Covid-19 lockdown, according to a new report. A study from right-leaning think tank Policy Exchange said the command centre should be created “to oversee and implement a national testing and tracing strategy for hunting down and defeating Covid-19”. The report [...]
UK extends coronavirus lockdown for at least three more weeks April 16, 2020 The UK will remain in coronavirus lockdown for at least the next three weeks, after today’s meeting of the government’s top scientific body. Foreign secretary Dominic Raab said at today’s press briefing that “the advice from Sage (Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies) is that relaxing any of the [social distancing] measures in place would risk [...]
Coronavirus: Westminster to return through ‘virtual parliament’ April 16, 2020 Parliament is set to resume next week, with MPs allowed to quiz ministers through the video conference app Zoom. The House of Commons Commission gave approval today for up to 120 MPs to take be on video conference at a time, with a further 50 allowed to sit in the House of Commons under social [...]
UK would ‘say no’ to EU request for extension of Brexit trade talks April 16, 2020 The UK will refuse any request for a Brexit trade deal extension by the EU, according to the Prime Minister’s official spokesman. On a call to journalists today, the spokesman reiterated the governmnt’s position, saying that an extension to the 31 December deadline would hamper the UK’s longterm response to the coronavirus crisis. UK chief [...]
UK must beef up coronavirus economic response, says think tank April 16, 2020 The UK government must take “further radical policy steps” to tackle the economic fallout from coronavirus, a think tank has said, amid huge uncertainty over the length of the outbreak. The Resolution Foundation praised the government’s response so far, which includes £330bn of lending and a scheme to pay furloughed workers’ wages. Yet it said [...]
First of UK ventilators wins approval as private sector ramps up production April 16, 2020 Regulatory approval has been granted for thousands of new ventilators through the government’s private sector call to arms. Penlon’s Prima ES02 model is the first to be green lit by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), as a part of the “Ventilator Challenge”, a month after the rallying cry was issued. The government has [...]