UK PM sets out 'moonshot' plan for mass testing

ReutersCopyright: Reuters

And here is an overview of some of the biggest coronavirus-related stories from around the world:

• US President Donald Trump knew Covid-19 was deadlier than the flu before it hit the US but wanted to play down the crisis, a new book by American journalist Bob Woodward has said
• Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has warned of a “massive second wave” of coronavirus infections if people are not mindful of the disease
• Countries cannot start “cutting corners” in the race to develop a vaccine against the coronavirus, the chief scientist of the World Health Organization has said
• Russia has entered the last phase of trials for its fast-track coronavirus vaccine, which has been viewed with scepticism by some western experts
• The former prime minister of Italy, Silvio Berlusconi, said he was fighting to overcome “this hellish disease” after being admitted to hospital with Covid-19 last week
• The Czech government has announced that face masks will be mandatory indoors from Thursday, after the country saw a record spike in new cases
• France has recorded 8,577 new confirmed coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours, the second-biggest daily rise it has seen so far
• The United Nations has warned that millions of children’s lives are being put at risk by disruptions to health services during the pandemic
• Globally, there have now been more than 27.6 million cases of the virus and almost 900,000 deaths, data collated by Johns Hopkins University says

We're about to wrap up for the day. Here's what you need to know about coronavirus in the UK today if you're just catching up:

• PM Boris Johnson set out a new "rule of six" in England, restricting gatherings to a maximum of six people, enforced by police able to issue fines or make arrests. He said "we must act" to avoid another lockdown as virus cases rise.
• He also outlined a "moonshot" plan to control the virus with mass testing, possibly by next spring.
• The UK reported another 2,659 coronavirus cases, the fourth day running of over 2,000 reported cases.
• Meanwhile, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said increasing numbers of people in England are seeking tests when they don't have any Covid-19 symptoms - which he called an "inappropriate" use of the system.
• Doncaster Racecourse has been told by local health officials to stop spectators attending its St Leger meeting after Wednesday's opening day "on the grounds of public health and public safety".
• Northern Ireland's health minister Robin Swann has said he will recommend the executive tightens restrictions to stop the spread of Covid-19 when ministers meet on Thursday.
• A health data expert has warned Merthyr Tydfil could be the next area to see a local lockdown in Wales, where a further 165 people have tested positive.
• Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon did not rule out following England in reducing the number of people who can meet at the same time, as official figures suggest the number of people who died in Scotland at the height of the coronavirus outbreak was a third higher than usual.

Mind the GapCopyright: Mind the Gap

A social-distancing app that alerts someone when a colleague is too close is being used by Network Rail, which looks after Britain's railways.

Mind The Gap uses audio and Bluetooth signals to detect if users are in close proximity to one another.

It has been piloted at Network Rail, whose staff now use the app widely, and it's being rolled out to other companies.

The technology uses inaudible ultra-high frequency sounds and Bluetooth to calculate the distance between phones, so it does not require an active internet connection to work.

Although many contact-tracing apps have found it hard to accurately detect distances with Bluetooth, Hack Partners, which designed the app, says the combination of the technology with audio measuring, gives an accuracy of between 6-8cm.

Find out more here.

Hannah BatchelorCopyright: Hannah Batchelor

With the new rules on social gatherings being introduced in England on Monday, the BBC headed to Cambridge to see how they were going down.

Hannah Batchelor runs both a dance academy and a children's party business in the city and she believes both will be affected by the new limit of six people, particularly the party side.

"It is definitely going to have a negative impact on my party business as with the new guidelines I can't really run children's parties.

"It would make such parties effectively illegal gatherings and I don't think that's something parents are going to want.

"That part of my business I won't be able to run for the foreseeable future."

Read more from other people who have also been affected.

ReutersCopyright: Reuters

As we reported earlier, a new book has shed light on what US President Donald Trump knew about the coronavirus, and how dangerous it was, as early as February.

A short time ago, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany responded to questions about the book. In it, Trump was quoted as saying he wanted to play down the virus to avoid causing panic.

McEnany told reporters that Trump's only motivation in downplaying the dangers had been to reassure the public.

"It's important to express confidence, it's important to express calm," she said. "The president has never lied to the American public on Covid."

ReutersCopyright: Reuters

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has warned against complacency after a spike in coronavirus infections as children returned to school.

"Canadians need to continue to be vigilant," Trudeau said at a media briefing in Toronto. "The last thing that anyone wants is to have to once again shut down our economies and spend our lives to try and counter a massive second wave."

A further 1,606 new infections of coronavirus were confirmed in Canada on Tuesday, bringing the country’s overall tally to 133,748.

Health authorities said the coronavirus reproduction number, which shows how many people someone with Covid-19 is infecting, has risen to just above one, an indication that the virus is spreading.

Up to now, new coronavirus infections have been relatively stable in Canada, hovering at or below the 1,000 cases-a-day mark since the end of May.

The rise in cases comes as schools across the country started to reopen after a nearly five-month forced shutdown.

With the rules for social gatherings in England set to change, here is a refresher of what the guidance is across the UK:

BBCCopyright: BBC

ReutersCopyright: Reuters

US President Donald Trump was aware in February that the coronavirus was “deadly stuff”, but wanted to publicly downplay the threat of the disease, a new book by American journalist Bob Woodward has revealed.

Trump discussed the seriousness of the disease with Woodward in a series of interviews between December 2019 and July 2020.

On Wednesday several US media outlets, including CNN, published excerpts of the interviews, due to be featured in Woodward’s upcoming book Rage.

In one interview on 7 February, Trump admitted the virus was dangerous, airborne, highly contagious and “more deadly than even your strenuous flus”.

“This is deadly stuff,” Trump told Woodward of the coronavirus.

At the time, Trump was casting doubt on the threat posed by the disease, insisting it would disappear soon and was no worse than seasonal flu.

On 19 March, as the US coronavirus crisis began and the White House declared it a national emergency, the president told Woodward: "I wanted to always play it down. I still like playing it down, because I don't want to create a panic."

Trump is yet to comment on Woodward’s book.

Volunteers are to plant hundreds of trees in Berkshire, south-east England, over the coming months to create living memorials to those who died during the pandemic.

Environmentalist Dr Susan Millington said the three new woodlands would become somewhere beautiful for people to relax while coming to terms with their loss.

Residents can also dedicate trees to a loved one, struggling family and friends, or to honour key workers.

During lockdown, councils across England announced plans for green spaces to remember people who have died.

Newbury Friends of the EarthCopyright: Newbury Friends of the Earth

Following a rise in coronavirus cases, the government has announced that social gatherings of more than six people will be illegal in England from Monday.

But there are exemptions - in workplaces and schools, for example.

So where will the new rules apply? Will places of worship be exempt? Can a children's party still happen?

We answer your questions here.

ReutersCopyright: Reuters

Countries cannot start “cutting corners” in the race to develop a vaccine against the coronavirus, the chief scientist of the World Health Organization (WHO) has said.

A vaccine is considered vital in building widespread immunity to the coronavirus, which would allow restrictions on life to be lifted.

But there are fears that vaccine developers worldwide are moving too fast, and in doing so, compromising the safety and efficiency of the product.

"Just because we talk about speed and scale doesn't mean we start compromising or cutting corners on what would normally be assessed," the WHO's Dr Soumya Swaminathan said on Wednesday.

"The process still has to follow through rules of the game. For drugs and vaccines which are given to people, you have to test their safety, first and foremost," she said.

Dr Swaminathan issued the plea after the trial of a leading candidate for a vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University was paused due to concerns over side effects. AstraZeneca described it as a "routine" pause.

Western experts have also raised concerns about the safety of Russia's fast-track vaccine, which entered its third phase of trials on Wednesday.

EPACopyright: EPA

During the press conference, Sir Patrick Vallance said progress on a vaccine which protects people against the virus is going well.

More than 200 vaccines are being developed around the world and a small number are already in final phase-three trials.

It is inevitable that some people taking part in these trials may have side effects, which need to be investigated. Clinical trials are paused all the time. The trial of a vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University was paused on Tuesday.

But this isn't necessarily bad news.

The safety of a potential vaccine is paramount. The more time that's taken to research its effects in different groups of people of different ages, the more effective the vaccine will be in the long run.

Vallance also appealed for people to volunteer to take part in clinical trials if they were eligible.

During his press conference, Boris Johnson made a direct appeal to students to observe the new rules when their terms start.

He said opening universities was critical for the life chances of young people.

But he acknowledged students were in the age bracket with the highest rate of infections at the moment.

He also appealed to universities not to send students home in the event of a Covid-19 outbreak.

This was so the virus is not spread unnecessarily around the country, he said.

Johnson said: “My message to student is simple - please, for the sake of your education and your parents’ and your grandparents’ health: wash you hands, cover your face, make space, and don’t socially gather in groups of more than six, now and when term starts.”

He also confirmed the Department for Education was due to publish guidance on how universities could re-open safely shortly.

BBCCopyright: BBC

The UK Labour Party leader, Sir Keir Starmer, says he supports the new measures introduced by the government in England.

But he says the government has acknowledged there was a problem in its communications of the earlier rules, and "that has got to be fixed".

Starmer adds: "[The government] also needs to recognise the testing regime is all over the place at the moment. They can't pretend there isn't a problem, so that needs fixing as well."

A further eight people have died in the UK within 28 days of testing positive for Covid-19, bringing the total number to 41,594. Overall, daily deaths in the UK remain low.

But the number of confirmed cases is rising. The latest official figures show that as of 09:00 BST, there had been a further 2,659 lab-confirmed cases of coronavirus - bringing the total to 355,219.

BBCCopyright: BBC

BBCCopyright: BBC

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has just finished his press conference on coronavirus.

So, what did he and his scientific advisers, Chris Whitty and Patrick Vallance, say?

• Cases have risen sharply in recent weeks, especially among 17- to 21-year-olds
• The rise is not limited to a few local areas but has been seen across the country
• The PM said it was "time to act" and introduced new measures in England from Monday, including "the rule of six" to limit the number of people who can gather together
• There will be exemptions, such as for weddings and funerals, as well as in gyms and restaurants, but fines will be introduced for all those who break the rules
• Hospitality venues will be legally required to collect contact details from customers, or face fines
• Johnson also confirmed the government was working on a "moonshot" mass testing plan for tests that can give results in less than 20 minutes
• There will be a pilot on entertainment venues in Salford next month so people who test negative on the door can go and see shows
• He hopes to roll this out nationally, but we will need to wait for the results.

Read more here.

That press conference can be broken into two parts.

The first is the sombre message - that the virus is increasing again and new restrictions must be brought in for England.

For many people, the limit on social gatherings will be significant and potentially upsetting.

The introduction of nationwide measures is a big deal and something ministers wanted to avoid.

They’re doing it because they’re worried.

At the same time, the PM wanted to inject some optimism.

Boris Johnson is hoping mass tests - maybe daily - could allow people to leave the house in the morning knowing if they are transmitting the virus or not.

That would be a game changer.

But there are significant issues with the testing programme at the moment, and it is far from guaranteed, as the scientists made clear.

ReutersCopyright: Reuters

Johnson concludes the press conference by saying it has been a "dose of realism and common sense".

But the PM says: "I remain ambitious about the programme and that a lot of progress can be made in a short time".

He reiterates his message, saying: "It is very simple - it remains hands, face, make space and get a test if you have symptoms.

"But also to observe and enforce that rule of six [on gatherings].

"That's the way I think we will beat the current outbreak."

We will be bringing you a round-up of the briefing and more analysis soon so do stay with us.