Babak Belurs

Senin, 05 Oktober 2020

Coronavirus map LIVE: Extreme three-tier lockdown planned for England – leaked documents - Express

The draft traffic light-style plan will simplify the current network of localised restrictions which are currently in place in 25 percent of the UK. It also reveals the measures which could be imposed by Westminster as coronavirus cases skyrocket. The leaked document says the top Level Three would be “triggered in geographical areas or nationally when alert Level Two measures have not contained the spread of the virus, or where there has been a significant rise in transmission”. These measures would include closure of hospitality businesses and no social contact outside a household in any setting.

Meanwhile, a moderate Level Two would be “triggered in geographical areas or nationally when there has been a rise in transmission, which cannot be contained through local responses”.

Measures include people not being allowed to visit others outside of their household or support bubbles whilst travel should be limited to essential reasons only.

Weddings and funerals would be limited to 15 attendees whilst receptions would be banned.

Level One contains restrictions currently in place across England which includes the 10pm curfew on hospitality businesses and the “rule of six” for meeting others.

A Government spokesman said of the measures: "We are seeing coronavirus cases rise at a rapid rate across the country and, given how serious this virus is, it is vital everyone plays their part by following the rule of six, washing their hands, practising social distancing and wearing a mask in enclosed spaces.

"As we have shown, we are prepared to take action decisively when it is necessary, and it is of course right to look how we make sure everyone understands and complies with the restrictions that will keep us all safe."

It comes after a technical glitch meant almost 16,000 COVID-19 cases went unreported and led to a delay in efforts to trace contacts of people who tested positive for the virus.

Public Health England (PHE) said a technical issue resulted in 15,841 cases between September 25 and October 2 being left out of the reported daily coronavirus cases.

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8am update: Ireland could return to full lockdown measures

The leaders of Ireland's three coalition parties are to meet with chief medical officer Dr Tony Holahan today to discuss a potential return to lockdown.

Dr Holohan and NPHET have recommended that the whole country moves to Level 5 - the highest level of the Government's COVID-19 plan.

Cabinet ministers are said to have been taken aback by the proposals and there are concerns that such a move would be damaging to the economy.

If approved by Cabinet, it would represent a return to the strictest possible public health measures, similar to those seen in April and May.

However, in a Level-5 scenario, schools and creches would remain open.

People would be asked to stay within 5km (three miles) of their homes, while all non-essential retail outlets would close.

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2020-10-05 06:58:00Z
52781101738966

Minggu, 04 Oktober 2020

Covid-19: Government launches £238m scheme for jobseekers - BBC News

Jobseekers will be offered coaching and advice on moving into "growing sectors" as part of a £238m employment programme, the government has said.

Job Entry Targeted Support is aimed at helping those out of work because of Covid-19 for three months.

Work and Pensions Secretary Therese Coffey said it would give people "the helping hand they need".

But Labour said the scheme "offers very little new support" and it was "too little too late".

Last month, official figures showed that the UK unemployment rate had risen to its highest level for two years, with young people particularly hard hit.

The Job Entry Targeted Support (JETS) scheme will "boost the prospects of more than a quarter of a million people across Britain", Ms Coffey said.

"We have provided unprecedented support for jobs during the pandemic, including through furlough and subsidising the incomes of the self-employed, doing all we can to protect people's livelihoods, but sadly not every job can be saved," she said.

The Department for Work and Pensions says it is recruiting an additional 13,500 "work coaches" to help deliver the new scheme.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak said the scheme would "provide fresh opportunities to those that have sadly lost their jobs, to ensure that nobody is left without hope".

"Our unprecedented support has protected millions of livelihoods and businesses since the start of the pandemic, but I've always been clear that we can't save every job," he said.

"I've spoken about the damaging effects of being out of work, but through JETS we will provide fresh opportunities to those that have sadly lost their jobs, to ensure that nobody is left without hope."

However, Labour's shadow work and pensions secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, said: "By the government's own admission at least four million people could lose their jobs during the crisis. All it can muster in response are piecemeal schemes and meaningless slogans.

"This new scheme offers very little new support and relies on already overstretched work coaches on the ground, while many of the new work coaches promised have yet to materialise.

"It's too little too late again from a government that simply can't get a grip on this jobs crisis."

'Difficult trade-offs'

Mr Sunak is due to address the Conservative Party Conference later, saying the government has been faced with "difficult trade-offs and decisions" during the coronavirus pandemic.

He will say that while he cannot protect every job, "the pain of knowing it only grows with each passing day".

Mr Sunak will say his "single priority" as chancellor is "to create support and extend opportunity to as many people as I can".

"We will not let talent wither, or waste, we will help all who want it, find new opportunity and develop new skills," he is expected to say.

In an interview with the Sun ahead of his speech, Mr Sunak also defended his Eat Out to Help Out scheme after suggestions it may have helped fuel the second wave of coronavirus cases.

The chancellor said the scheme had helped prop-up two million jobs and that he had no regrets about paying for it.

Mr Sunak also strongly pushed back on the idea of further lockdowns, which he said would be detrimental not just to the economy but to society as well.

"Lockdowns obviously have a very strong economic impact, but they have an impact on many other things," he said.

On the 22:00 curfew on pubs and restaurants, Mr Sunak said ministers were implementing such rules "to try and nip this in the bud", but he acknowledged it was "frustrating".

"Everyone is very frustrated and exhausted and tired about all of this," he told the paper.

Labour's shadow chancellor Anneliese Dodds said her party had urged Mr Sunak to introduce a wage support scheme that incentivised employers to keep more staff on, but "he ignored these calls and now nearly a million jobs are at risk when the furlough scheme ends in a few weeks' time".

"When he speaks at Conservative Party Conference, Rishi Sunak must promise to get a grip of the jobs crisis before it's too late," she said.

"If he doesn't, Britain risks an unemployment crisis greater than we have seen in decades - and Rishi Sunak's name will be all over it."

It comes as the furlough scheme ends this month, to be replaced by the government's new wage subsidy programme, the Job Support Scheme, on 1 November.

Under the Job Support Scheme, if bosses bring back workers part time, the government will help top up their wages with employers to at least three-quarters of their full-time pay.

Nearly three million workers - or 12% of the UK's workforce - are currently on partial or full furlough leave, according to official figures.

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2020-10-05 01:32:59Z
52781101992260

Why the missing 15,841 COVID-19 cases will affect everyone - Sky News

We still don't know why 15,841 confirmed cases of coronavirus were effectively lost in the English testing system.

The prime minister called it a "computer problem". Elsewhere it's been referred to as a "glitch".

What we do know is that on 24 September something went wrong with the computer system connecting the Lighthouse Laboratories to Public Health England (PHE). Normally, new cases are passed by Test and Trace to PHE, which then add them to the daily totals. But, starting on 24 September, some results didn't appear.

I've seen a copy of a note sent by PHE to directors of public health in the northwest, which contains a table showing how the lost cases built up. On the first day, 957 weren't filed. On 2 October, the day the problem was discovered, 4,786 cases weren't added to the system.

That's almost 5,000 positive cases that weren't included in the daily national total and - most importantly - weren't passed to Test and Trace.

The note contains some important comments on the practical impact of this news. First, it makes clear that this issue does not affect anyone's results. Everyone who tested positive was informed and asked to self-isolate "in the normal way".

The note also claims that the problem with the data did not change any local lockdowns, saying it had "no impact on the decisions" that were made at the all-important GOLD meeting which rules on local restrictions. It adds: "If anything, it shows that the virus is in an endemic phase and rising."

Whether that is accurate remains to be seen. What is undeniable: the impact of this issue on Test and Trace. None of these positive cases have been contact traced, so Test and Trace is now dealing with a substantial backlog. One contact tracer says they greeted the news with "dread".

An impact for Test and Trace is actually an impact for everyone. More than 15,000 people have gone untraced at a moment when the virus is spreading fast - and the vast majority of those will now be too late to catch in time. England's most important defence against the virus was bypassed by an internal error.

We now know that the coronavirus figures have been drastically underestimated for over a week. The effect of this issue may yet last longer.

I'm told a "serious incident" was declared in Test and Trace yesterday. With so much at stake, serious is definitely the word.

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2020-10-05 00:48:15Z
52781101992260

Covid: 16,000 coronavirus cases missed in daily figures after IT error - BBC News

Nearly 16,000 cases of coronavirus were not entered into the national computer system used for official figures because of a technical glitch, Public Health England has said.

Some of the unreported cases were then added to Saturday's figure of 12,872 new cases and Sunday's 22,961 figure.

PHE said all of the cases "received their Covid-19 test result as normal".

But it means their close contacts were not approached to self-isolate, BBC Health Editor Hugh Pym says.

The daily figures for the end of the week were "actually nearer 11,000", rather than the around 7,000 reported, our correspondent added.

According to PHE, the cases were missed off daily reports between 25 September and 2 October.

However, it has insisted the IT problem has been resolved and all cases have now been handed over to the test and trace system.

Labour has described the glitch as "shambolic".

Meanwhile, the head of the government's vaccine taskforce, Kate Bingham, has told the Financial Times that less than half of the UK population could be vaccinated against coronavirus.

"There is going to be no vaccination of people under 18," she said.

"It's an adult-only vaccine for people over 50, focusing on health workers and care home workers and the vulnerable."

Earlier, Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned it may be "bumpy through to Christmas" and beyond as the UK deals with coronavirus.

Speaking to the BBC's Andrew Marr, the PM said there was "hope" in beating Covid, and called on the public to "act fearlessly but with common sense".

At a time when the testing system has come under intense scrutiny after reports of delays and a system struggling to keep up with demand, the latest revelation could not have come at a more awkward moment for the government at Westminster.

Because the nearly 16,000 extra positive test results had been not entered into the test and trace system, their recent contacts were not immediately followed up.

Experts advise that ideally contacts should be tracked down within 48 hours.

Officials say the technical problem - thought to be IT related - has been resolved, with all the new cases added into totals reported over the weekend.

But all this will hardly improve public confidence in the testing system in England.

And it muddies the waters for policy makers and officials trying to track the spread of the virus at what the prime minister has called a "critical moment".

On Sunday, the government's coronavirus dashboard said that, as of 09:00 BST, there had been a further 22,961 lab-confirmed cases of coronavirus in the UK, bringing the total number of cases in the UK to 502,978.

A note on the dashboard said: "The cases by publish date for 3 and 4 October include 15,841 additional cases with specimen dates between 25 September and 2 October - they are therefore artificially high for England and the UK."

Public Health England's interim chief executive Michael Brodie said a "technical issue" was identified overnight on Friday, 2 October in the process that transfers Covid-19 positive lab results into reporting dashboards.

"After rapid investigation, we have identified that 15,841 cases between 25 September and 2 October were not included in the reported daily Covid-19 cases. The majority of these cases occurred in the most recent days," he said.

"Every one of these cases received their Covid-19 test result as normal and all those who tested positive were advised to self-isolate."

He said they worked with NHS Test and Trace to "quickly resolve the issue and transferred all outstanding cases immediately into the NHS Test and Trace contact tracing system".

"We fully understand the concern this may cause and further robust measures have been put in place as a result," he said.

Test and Trace and Public Health England joint medical adviser, Susan Hopkins, added that "a thorough public health risk assessment was undertaken to ensure outstanding cases were prioritised for contact tracing effectively".

PHE said NHS Test and Trace have made sure there are enough contact tracers working, and are working with local teams to ensure they also have sufficient resources to be urgently able to contact all cases.

The number of call attempts is being increased from 10 to 15 over 96 hours.

Labour's shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth said: "This is shambolic and people across the country will be understandably alarmed.

"(Health Secretary) Matt Hancock should come to the House of Commons on Monday to explain what on earth has happened, what impact it has had on our ability to contain this virus, and what he plans to do to fix test and trace."

A Department of Health spokesman earlier said the issue had not affected people receiving test results, and all those who tested positive had been informed in the normal way.

News of the glitch in the daily count first emerged late on Saturday, when the UK announced more than 10,000 new coronavirus cases for the first time since mass testing began.

The government said the technical issue meant some cases during the week were not recorded at the time, so these were included in Saturday's data.

The daily total saw a significant rise from 4,044 on Monday to a then-high of 7,143 on Tuesday. However, over the next four days the daily total remained stable - varying between 6,914 and 7,108 - at a time when continued increases might have been expected.

Then came the big leap in numbers - a far bigger day-on-day increase than at any time in the entire pandemic - which was announced on Saturday, five hours later than usual, and was accompanied by the government explanation.

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2020-10-05 00:29:54Z
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Three 18-year-olds and a 21-year-old man die after taking drugs in the northeast during lockdown - Daily Mail

Three 18-year-olds and a 21-year-old man die after taking drugs in the northeast during lockdown as police issue urgent warning

Two women, 18, and a man died, 21, in Newcastle. Man, 18, died in Tyne and Wear
Drugs are believed to have played a part in all four deaths with postmortems due
Investigation has been launched with police asking for information on suppliers

By Milly Vincent For Mailonline

Published: 22:29 BST, 4 October 2020 | Updated: 00:52 BST, 5 October 2020

Police are issuing an urgent drugs warning after three teenagers and a 21-year-old man died over the weekend during local lockdown in the North East.

Investigations have been launched after two women, both aged 18, and a 21-year-old man died in Newcastle, and an 18-year-old man died in Washington, Tyne and Wear.

Drugs are believed to have played a part in all four deaths and postmortems are due to take place.

Assistant Chief Constable Neil Hutchison said: 'First and foremost, our thoughts go out to the families and loved ones of those who have sadly died.

An 18-year-old died at a Newcastle University halls of residence Saturday after being discovered unconscious. Pictured: Police at the scene

'Although our investigations are still at a very early stage and we continue to establish the circumstances surrounding the deaths, we are warning people against taking drugs.

'We would urge anybody thinking about taking drugs to please not take the risk. The consequences could cost you your life.

'If anyone has any information about who has supplied the drugs in question then we would also encourage them to contact us at the earliest opportunity.'

Suspected drug related deaths that took place in Newcastle and Tyne and wear this weekend

This weekend an 18-year-old man was arrested after a female student, 18, died in a Newcastle University halls of residence.

Paramedics rushed to Richardson Road in Newcastle - where the Park View student village halls are located - early on Saturday morning.

The teenager was discovered unconscious and, although medics battled to save her life, she was pronounced dead at the scene.

An investigation was launched into her death and police have now confirmed that an 18-year-old man has been arrested.

Paramedics rushed to Richardson Road in Newcastle - where the Park View student village halls (pictured) are located - early on Saturday morning

A Newcastle University spokesperson said: 'We are shocked and saddened to learn of the death of one of our students and our welfare teams are offering support to those affected.

'This is not Covid-related and as this is an active police investigation, we are unable to provide further comment at this time.'

On Sunday morning a 21-year-old man was taken ill at an address on Melbourne Street, Newcastle, and later died in hospital.

A Northumbria Police spokesperson said: 'At 8.13am today (Sunday) police were informed by the ambulance service that a man had taken ill at an address in Melbourne Street in Newcastle.

'Emergency services attended but sadly the man – aged 21 – was later pronounced dead at hospital.

'Enquiries into the circumstances around his death are ongoing. His next of kin have been informed and are being supported by specialist officers at this time.

'The investigation is at an early stage but this is not believed to be Covid-19 related death.'

Anyone who has information about the drugs should still contact Northumbria Police on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

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2020-10-04 23:52:27Z
52781100465592

Covid: 16,000 coronavirus cases missed in daily figures after IT error - BBC News

Nearly 16,000 cases of coronavirus were not entered into the national computer system used for official figures because of a technical glitch, Public Health England says.

Some of the unreported cases were then added to Saturday's figure of 12,872 new cases and Sunday's 22,961 figure.

It said all of the cases "received their Covid-19 test result as normal".

BBC Health Editor Hugh Pym said it meant the contacts of those who tested positive had not been approached.

Public Health England said the cases were missed off daily reports between 25 September and 2 October.

It added the IT problem had been resolved and all cases had now been handed over to the test and trace system.

Labour's shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth said: "This is shambolic and people across the country will be understandably alarmed.

"(Health Secretary) Matt Hancock should come to the House of Commons on Monday to explain what on earth has happened, what impact it has had on our ability to contain this virus and what he plans to do to fix test and trace."

Earlier, Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned it may be "bumpy through to Christmas" and beyond as the UK deals with coronavirus.

Speaking to the BBC's Andrew Marr, the PM said there was "hope" in beating Covid, and called on the public to "act fearlessly but with common sense".

Because the nearly 16,000 extra positive test results had been not entered into the test and trace system, their recent contacts were not immediately followed up.

Experts advise that ideally contacts should be tracked down within 48 hours.

Officials say the technical problem, thought to be IT related, has been resolved, with all the new cases added into totals reported over the weekend.

But all this will hardly improve public confidence in the testing system in England.

And it muddies the waters for policy makers and officials trying to track the spread of the virus at what the prime minister has called a "critical moment".

On Sunday, a note on the government's coronavirus dashboard said: "The cases by publish date for 3 and 4 October include 15,841 additional cases with specimen dates between 25 September and 2 October - they are therefore artificially high for England and the UK."

Public Health England's interim chief executive Michael Brodie said a "technical issue" was identified overnight on Friday, 2 October in the data load process that transfers Covid-19 positive lab results into reporting dashboards.

"Every one of these cases received their Covid-19 test result as normal and all those who tested positive were advised to self-isolate."

He said they worked with NHS Test and Trace to "quickly resolve the issue and transferred all outstanding cases immediately into the NHS Test and Trace contact tracing system".

"We fully understand the concern this may cause and further robust measures have been put in place as a result," he said.

A Department of Health spokesman earlier said the issue had not affected people receiving test results, and all those who tested positive had been informed in the normal way.

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