Sturgeon panic: R-rate spikes in Scotland as SNP chief declares 'this is SERIOUS' - Express

Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has pleaded with Scots to "take this seriously" after the rate of coronavirus infection surged in the country. Ms Sturgeon told the coronavirus briefing that the R number, which signifies the average number of people who would be infected by another infectious person, had spiked. The SNP leader went on to explain that the R-number in Scotland is likely to be above 1 and could be as high as 1.4.

She opened her briefing by confirming that there had been 101 new positive cases in the past 24 hours, and 53 of those had been in the Greater Glasgow health board area.

Indoor gathering restrictions are now in place for 2 weeks in the Greater Glasgow & Clyde health board area.

Ms Sturgeon then said announced the rise in the R-rate, which means the spread of the virus is increasing, not decreasing in Scotland.

She said: “The virus is spreading again here, just as it is elsewhere in the UK and Europe.”

JUST IN: SNP mocked for promising next referendum will be 'final' 

However, the First Minister insisted that overall prevalence of the virus remains low in Scotland.

Ms Sturgeon was grilled over whether she had been "over-optimistic" in June when she said "the virus was in retreat and we were moving nearer to normality".

The reporter from ITV Border cited Nicola Sturgeon's quotes on the 19th June, when she said: "The virus has not gone away but I can say the virus in Scotland is now firmly in retreat.

"If we all keep doing the right thing, I am more optimistic than I've been in a long time that we are on track to getting normality back in our lives."

The SNP leader argued that she always said it would be "a long haul" to combat the virus

She added: "The virus will take every opportunity we give it.

"So we have to make sure we don’t give it that opportunity.”

Last week, the UK said its estimate for R across the UK was between 0.9 and 1.1.

The estimate for R in England was also between 0.9 and 1.1.

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2020-09-03 12:18:00Z
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Coronavirus UK: Nicola Sturgeon gives update after new quarantine rules announced – watch live - Guardian News

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1. Coronavirus UK: Nicola Sturgeon gives update after new quarantine rules announced – watch live  Guardian News
2. Really? SNP mocked for vowing next referendum will be 'final' - even if they lose again  Express
3. UK coronavirus live: Scotland's R number 'probably now above 1' and could be 1.4, says Nicola Sturgeon  The Guardian
4. Nicola Sturgeon must focus on Covid, not independence – Scotsman comment  The Scotsman
5. Scots should ask hard questions on independence  Financial Times
6. View Full coverage on Google News

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2020-09-03 11:13:19Z
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Coronavirus: Weekly cases at highest level since end of May, figures show - Sky News

The weekly number of coronavirus cases in England in late August was the highest since the end of May, according to government figures.

A total of 6,732 new cases were confirmed between 20 August and 26 August - an increase of 6% on the previous week, NHS Test and Trace data showed.

But comparisons between recent and past cases should be made with caution.

The number of confirmed cases is heavily dependent on how many people are tested.

This has changed significantly since the start of the pandemic, with the number of tests processed each day increasing substantially.

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Community testing has also expanded, whereas previously access was limited to symptomatic patients and key workers.

The latest figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show that new infections in the community in England are continuing to level off.

More from Covid-19

Between 14 and 20 August, an estimated 28,200 people in private households had COVID-19 - the equivalent of around 0.05% of the population.

Earlier on Thursday morning, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the UK is finding a "higher and higher proportion" of people who have coronavirus.

He told Sky's Kay Burley that there are "operational challenges from time to time, but the testing system works well".

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Some 69.4% of close contacts of people who tested positive for coronavirus were reached through Test and Trace in the week ending 26 August, down from 77.1% in the previous week and the lowest weekly percentage since the system's launch.

For cases handled by local health protection teams, 97.3% of contacts were reached and asked to self-isolate in the same period.

In comparison, 59.8% of contacts were reached in cases handled either online or by call centres.

A total of 73,081 people who tested positive for COVID-19 in England have had their cases transferred to the system since its launch in May.

Of this total, 57,368 (78.5%) were reached and asked to provide details of their recent contacts.

Some 13,958 were not reached, while a further 1,755 people could not be tracked down because their contact details had not been provided.

The government is hoping to improve the speed of its testing by pledging a £500m funding package to support trials of a 20-minute COVID-19 test.

Mr Hancock told Sky News he wants the UK to "go further" to expand mass testing using new technologies.

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2020-09-03 10:52:02Z
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Coronavirus: Weekly cases at highest level since end of May, figures show - Sky News

The weekly number of coronavirus cases in England in late August was the highest since the end of May, according to government figures.

A total of 6,732 new cases were confirmed between 20 August and 26 August - an increase of 6% on the previous week, NHS Test and Trace data showed.

But comparisons between recent and past cases should be made with caution.

The number of confirmed cases is heavily dependent on how many people and who is tested.

This has changed significantly since the start of the pandemic, with the number of tests processed each day increasing substantially.

Advertisement

Community testing has also expanded, whereas previously access was limited to symptomatic patients and key workers.

Earlier on Thursday morning, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the UK is finding a "higher and higher proportion" of people who have coronavirus.

More from Covid-19

He told Sky's Kay Burley that there are "operational challenges from time to time, but the testing system works well".

Some 69.4% of close contacts of people who tested positive for coronavirus were reached through Test and Trace in the week ending 26 August, down from 77.1% in the previous week and the lowest weekly percentage since the system's launch.

For cases handled by local health protection teams, 97.3% of contacts were reached and asked to self-isolate in the same period.

In comparison, 59.8% of contacts were reached in cases handled either online or by call centres.

A total of 73,081 people who tested positive for COVID-19 in England have had their cases transferred to the system since its launch in May.

Of this total, 57,368 (78.5%) were reached and asked to provide details of their recent contacts.

Some 13,958 were not reached, while a further 1,755 people could not be tracked down because their contact details had not been provided.

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2020-09-03 10:34:58Z
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Bolton COVID spike caused by holidaymaker returning from Spain and going on a pub crawl - Express

Speaking on TalkRADIO, the Tory MP claimed to have been told that one of the causes of a recent spike in coronavirus cases in Bolton that led to new lockdown restrictions being imposed by Matt Hancock, was the return of a holidaymaker from Spain. Mr Green claimed the holidaymaker failed to quarantine upon his return and went on a pub crawl. He suggested, however, this was not the only reason behind the spike.

He said: "The only suggestion I've heard so far to what's happened in Bolton is that someone who had been on holiday in Spain, came back, didn't go into quarantine.

"He had coronavirus and went on a pub crawl.

"That's so far the only explanation of a contributing factor in Bolton.

"But I'm not sure that's the whole story.

"I think there's far more than that and the source of these figures in Bolton needs to be found as soon as possible."

READ MORE: Matt Hancock snaps at BBC's Nick Robinson over COVID policies

Councils with high coronavirus infection rates should be given charge of their own test and trace efforts, Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has argued.

Mr Burnham appealed for the powers on Wednesday following a U-turn by Health Secretary Matt Hancock on a decision to lift local lockdown restrictions in Bolton and Trafford on the same day the changes were due to be made.

Council leaders in both boroughs had pleaded for the ban on two households mixing to be maintained but regional chiefs woke up thinking the restrictions had been lifted overnight, as was the case with previous Government lockdown changes.

But the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) insisted the alterations were not due to take place until midday.

Mr Hancock said he took "swift and decisive" action in respect of Bolton and Trafford but Labour's Mr Burnham said the Government had been guilty of a "Whitehall knows best" attitude.

The Labour politician said power to run test and trace programmes should be handed to Greater Manchester councils so a "more sophisticated, targeted approach" could be taken.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4's PM programme, Mr Burnham said: "Throughout this crisis, we've had a 'Whitehall knows best' mentality at play and it continues.

"It really isn't good enough when the front line is very much with us now - we need to be empowered to take the decisions to protect our communities rather than constantly waiting for Government to get its act together.

"I'm very clear about what we need: local control of test and trace with door-to-door teams - in Oldham, that is what got their numbers down and that is what we need across all of Greater Manchester.

"We need financial support for people to self-isolate, particularly people on low wages or who are self-employed - that is critical because we are just not seeing people comply with the national test and trace system."

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Coronavirus vaccine update: When will a coronavirus vaccine be ready? [ANALYSIS]
Must we listen to the coronabores, says VIRGINIA BLACKBURN [COMMENT]

The former Health Secretary called on ministers to produce an "exit strategy" for local lockdowns and said the region needed to move away from "blanket regulations" when trying to tackle the virus.

Mr Hancock said a "sharp increase" in COVID-19 cases in Bolton and Trafford over the past few days led to the sudden decision not to lift the local restrictions in those areas.

Bolton and Trafford had been set to join other parts of northern England in resuming social gatherings in two households for the first time in weeks, along with Stockport, Burnley, Hyndburn and parts of Bradford, Calderdale and Kirklees.

But a statement was released by DHSC shortly after midday on Wednesday, the point at which it said the restrictions had been due to be lifted in the two Greater Manchester boroughs, confirming lockdowns would persist in the areas.

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2020-09-03 09:49:00Z
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Extinction Rebellion sparks chaos at Westminster as activists BLOCK Parliament entrance - Express

Extinction Rebellion's latest protest has sparked chaos in Westminster, London after several activists from the radical climate change campaign group glued themselves to the ground outside Parliament. The activists blocked off "at least two entrances to Parliament" after gluing themselves to the ground, according to a reporter on the scene. Extinction Rebellion (XR) activists carried out the protest while MPs made their way into work at Westminster.

Extinction Rebellion said that they wanted to stop politicians from "causing more harm".

They said: “Over a year on from Parliament’s declaration of a climate and environment emergency the government’s own advisors have said they are neglecting their own inadequate targets, with only four of 21 indicators on track and only two of 31 milestones reached.

"We will not be bystanders.”

LBC correspondent Rachael Venables tweeted that the entrance by the Parliament's carriage gate had been blocked off.  

JUST IN: London's Extinction Rebellion protest given PERMISSION by Met Police

She tweeted: "Well since XR came on the scene the police have had a lot of practise at ungluing people.

"A specialist team of officers has just turned up to clear this Parliament entrance."

A number of arrests have been made at the scene. 

This comes after a renewed wave of protests from the Extinction Rebellion movement. 

Metropolitan Police officers had to clear away activists attempting to stop Prime Minister Boris Johnson from getting to Prime Minister's Questions.

A spokesperson for Extinction Rebellion, Tamsin Omand, said the protesters wanted the Prime Minister to see and hear their action on Wednesday.

Ms Omand said: "Disruption is a core tenet of how XR works and how we have managed to achieve so much in a short period of time.

"We have been outside Downing Street blocking his route on both sides and of course he's encountering us here in the square - I think we are impossible to ignore."

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2020-09-03 09:20:00Z
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Really? SNP mocked for vowing next referendum will be 'final' - even if they lose again - Express

Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon is gearing up for a fresh independence push for Scotland. The SNP leader included a law laying out the timetable for a new independence referendum in her programme for Government this week. In her remarks this week, Ms Sturgeon said the "self-sabotage" of Brexit "strengthens the case for Scotland becoming an independent country".

However, the SNP soon came under fire after they were grilled on claims they would "accept the result" of the next referendum as "final".

SNP MSP James Dornan vowed to respect the result, "just like we respected the last result".

The SNP notoriously described the 2014 independence referendum defeat as a "once-in-a-generation" vote.

However, just six years later the SNP are pushing for a fresh vote to break up the UK.

JUST IN: Nicola Sturgeon's coronavirus strategy SAVAGED by health experts

Recent polling from Panelbase suggested 55 percent favoured Scotland leaving the UK, with 45 percent preferring to stay in the union, once undecided voters were excluded.

The RT UK anchor Kate Partridge pointed out: "This is just pure politics, isn't it? Vote-winning stuff for next May?

"There isn't much chance that Westminster would approve another 'once-in-a-generation' vote just seven years on from the last one?"

Mr Dornan responded: "Westminster have a habit on saying one thing and doing another.

This prompted Partridge to ask: "If you do get a second vote, and you lose that again, will you accept that vote?"

Mr Dornan fired back: "We respected the last one! It's been seven years on, you can't say we didn't respect it.

"The Scottish Parliament continued as it always did. It didn't continue as an independent nation, but as part of the devolved settlement.

"This is just mischief put out by our opponents. We respected the result."

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2020-09-03 07:14:00Z
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