Covid in Scotland: Scottish ministers to consider Christmas plans - BBC News

Reuters

A plan to allow some household mixing "for a small number of days" over Christmas is being considered by the Scottish government.

It is understood that the four UK nations have agreed in principle to ease restrictions over the festive period.

However, the Scottish government said no final agreement has been reached and discussions are ongoing.

Health experts have warned the move to relax the rules is not without risks.

The Cabinet Office said ministers from England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland had endorsed a "shared objective of facilitating some limited additional household bubbling for a small number of days".

• Seven things that may be different this Christmas
• What are the Covid regulations where you live?

The BBC understands that one option under consideration is that three households could be allowed to meet up for five days over the festive period.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson had been hoping to announce arrangements for the Christmas period on Monday, but this has been delayed until at least Tuesday to allow the Scottish and Welsh cabinets to agree the plans.

Any announcement is also expected to include rules on travelling between nations.

PA Media

Linda Bauld, professor of public health at Edinburgh University, told BBC radio's Good Morning Scotland that people should make their own decisions about what they feel comfortable doing.

She said: "At the moment we still have levels of infection in the community across the UK that are higher than we would wish.

"If we come together with people from different households at the time of year when the windows are closed, physical distancing is difficult, it is an opportunity for the virus to spread, so this is really really tough."

Professor Bauld added: "It is up to us to decide, even if government says 'OK, you can get together indoors with other people', let's all make our own risk assessment about the people we care about and ourselves and say how are we going to apply that to our own personal circumstances."

'Trade-off'

Jillian Evans, head of health intelligence at NHS Grampian, told Good Morning Scotland she was against restrictions being eased "simply because it's Christmas".

She added: "It certainly sounds as if that it's a trade-off - that you behave now, keep transmission low, then we might be able to do something over Christmas that resembles something familiar to us.

"The best Christmas present we can give to people is to keep them safe - it really is the bottom line.

"The best way to keep safe is to try and avoid the risk as much as possible and if you must meet family, which most of us are longing to do, try to do it outdoors if you possibly can - and fingers crossed we get a dry and less windy and wet Christmas time."

• LEVELS: What are the restrictions in your area?
• NUMBERS: Five key figures to watch out for
• LOCKDOWN: Six months that changed our lives
• CASES: Where are the latest cases in Scotland?
• WHO? The people who have died with Covid-19

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiL2h0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmJiYy5jby51ay9uZXdzL3VrLXNjb3RsYW5kLTU1MDQwNTc20gEzaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuYmJjLmNvLnVrL25ld3MvYW1wL3VrLXNjb3RsYW5kLTU1MDQwNTc2?oc=5

2020-11-23 09:45:00Z
CBMiL2h0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmJiYy5jby51ay9uZXdzL3VrLXNjb3RsYW5kLTU1MDQwNTc20gEzaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuYmJjLmNvLnVrL25ld3MvYW1wL3VrLXNjb3RsYW5kLTU1MDQwNTc2

AstraZeneca and Oxford university say vaccine shows high efficacy - Financial Times

The coronavirus vaccine developed by Oxford university and AstraZeneca has exceeded regulatory requirements for effectiveness in phase 3 trials, giving another boost to hopes that the disease can be defeated.

The vaccine will be submitted for approval “immediately” after Oxford and AstraZeneca said two different dosing regimens showed different levels of effectiveness in trials in the UK and Brazil.

When the vaccine was given as a half dose, followed by a full one at least one month later, efficacy — a measure of how a vaccine prevents infection or severe disease in trials — was 90 per cent. When the jab was given as two full doses at least one month apart, efficacy was 62 per cent. The average efficacy was 70 per cent.

The results were better than the 50 per cent efficacy sought by both the US Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency.

Andrew Pollard, chief investigator of the trial at Oxford, said: “These findings show that we have an effective vaccine that will save many lives.”

The difference in efficacy between the two Oxford vaccine doses was unexpected. The scientists speculate that the lower first dose may have primed the immune system in a way that made it more receptive to the second jab, but more research will be needed to confirm this.

The Oxford-AstraZeneca jab became the great hope of British science and during the summer was regarded worldwide as the leader in the Covid-19 vaccine race, as its clinical trials proceeded first in the UK and then across the world. AstraZeneca planned to enrol up to 60,000 trial participants globally, more than any other vaccine candidate.

But Oxford fell behind Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech when its trial was halted following the illness of one participant — an adverse event that was not said to be caused by the vaccine. In the UK and Brazil, the trial resumed after a few days but in the US the delay lasted several weeks; US trial data were not included in the interim analysis published on Monday.

Matt Hancock, the UK’s health secretary, said vaccinations could start next month, with the bulk of the rollout taking place after January, subject to regulatory approval. The UK has secured 100m doses of the jab.

Better than expected results from Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna — showing efficacy close to 95 per cent — spurred widespread optimism and market rallies, though their vaccines are sold at profit, and much of their projected supply for next year has been secured by richer nations. By contrast, AstraZeneca, along with Johnson & Johnson, has said it will sell its inoculation at cost to the world during the pandemic. J&J trials are ongoing.

The jab is priced at about $3 to $4 a dose, supply deals suggest, a fraction of the price of other vaccines. AstraZeneca has agreed to sell it at cost to developing nations in perpetuity. The vaccine can be stored long-term at normal fridge temperature, between 2C and 8C. Others require a storage temperature as low as -70C. AstraZeneca is targeting the manufacture of up to 3bn doses next year. Depending on regulatory approval, different dosing regimens could mean more doses are available.

“This vaccine is more suitable for rollout in poorer countries because it only requires refrigeration,” said Ellen ‘t Hoen, the director of Medicines Law & Policy, a research group. “They had the foresight to work with vaccine producers in developing countries early on [such as India’s Serum Institute] and those producers will be able to provide the vaccine as soon as the regulators give the green light.”

AstraZeneca has received approximately 3.2bn orders of its jab, data by Airfinity shows.

Suerie Moon, the co-director of the Global Health Centre at Geneva’s Graduate Institute, said a key trait of the vaccine was that it was “funded, developed and licensed with global access as a central objective”.

Prof Pollard told a news briefing on Monday morning: “We have a vaccine for the world.”

Additional reporting by Harry Dempsey in London

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiP2h0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmZ0LmNvbS9jb250ZW50LzJkYTk3YTU2LTIzZGYtNDM0NS05MTU3LTZkYzhlYzMyMmM2OdIBP2h0dHBzOi8vYW1wLmZ0LmNvbS9jb250ZW50LzJkYTk3YTU2LTIzZGYtNDM0NS05MTU3LTZkYzhlYzMyMmM2OQ?oc=5

2020-11-23 07:42:00Z
52781201196167

Covid-19: Oxford University vaccine shows 70% protection - BBC News

Oxford University/John Cairns

The coronavirus vaccine developed by the University of Oxford stops 70% of people developing Covid symptoms, a large-scale trial shows.

It is both a triumph and a disappointment after vaccines by Pfizer and Moderna showed 95% protection.

However, the Oxford jab is far cheaper, and is easier to store and get to every corner of the world than the other two.

So it will still play a significant role in tackling the pandemic, if it is approved by regulators.

There is also intriguing data that suggests perfecting the dose could increase protection up to 90%.

The Oxford researchers have performed the normally decade-long process of developing a vaccine in around 10 months.

"The announcement today takes us another step closer to the time when we can use vaccines to bring an end to the devastation caused by [the virus]," said the vaccine's architect Prof Sarah Gilbert.

The UK government has pre-ordered 100 million doses of the Oxford vaccine, enough to immunise 50 million people.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock told BBC Breakfast we would be "something closer to normal" by the summer but "until we can get that vaccine rolled out, we all need to look after each other".

What did the trial show?

More than 20,000 volunteers were involved, half in the UK, the rest in Brazil.

There were 30 cases of Covid in people who had two doses of the vaccine and 101 cases in people who received a dummy injection.

The researchers said it works out at 70% protection.

When volunteers were given two "high" doses the protection was 62%, but this rose to 90% when people were given a "low" dose followed by a high one. It's not clear why there is a difference.

"We're really pleased with these results," Prof Andrew Pollard, the trial's lead investigator, told the BBC.

He said the 90% effectiveness data was "intriguing" and would mean "we would have a lot more doses to distribute."

There were also lower levels of asymptomatic infection in the low followed by high dose group which "means we might be able to halt the virus in its tracks," Prof Pollard said.

When will I get it?

In the UK there are four million doses ready to go, with another 96 million to be delivered.

But nothing can happen until the vaccine has been approved by regulators who will assess the vaccine's safety, effectiveness, and that it is manufactured to high standard. This process will happen in the coming weeks.

However, the UK is ready to press the go button on an unprecedented mass immunisation campaign that dwarfs either the annual flu or childhood vaccination programmes.

Care home residents and staff will be first in the queue, followed by healthcare workers and the over-80s. The plan is to then work the way down the age groups.

How does it work?

The vaccine is a genetically modified common cold virus that used to infect chimpanzees.

It has been altered to stop it causing an infection in people and to carry the blueprints for part of the coronavirus, known as the spike protein.

Once these blueprints are inside the body they start the producing the coronavirus' spike protein, which the immune system recognizes as a threat and tries to squash it.

AFP

When the immune system comes into contact with the virus for real, it now knows what to do.

Are the results disappointing?

After Pfizer and Moderna both produced vaccines delivering 95% protection from Covid-19, a figure of 70% is relatively disappointing.

However, anything above 50% would have been considered a triumph just a month ago.

This vaccine can also be stored at fridge temperature, which means it can be distributed to every corner of the world, unlike the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines, which need to be stored at much colder temperatures.

Oxford's manufacturing partner, AstraZeneca, is preparing to make three billion doses worldwide.

What difference will this make to my life?

A vaccine is what we've spent the year waiting for and what lockdowns have bought time for.

However, producing enough vaccine and then immunising tens of millions of people in the UK, and billions around the world, is still a gargantuan feat.

Life will not return to normal tomorrow. but the situation could dramatically as those most at risk are protected.

The deaths in the first wave were heavily concentrated in the over-80s and those in care homes. Protect those and this situation looks dramatically different.

Follow James on Twitter"

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiKmh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmJiYy5jby51ay9uZXdzL2hlYWx0aC01NTA0MDYzNdIBLmh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmJiYy5jby51ay9uZXdzL2FtcC9oZWFsdGgtNTUwNDA2MzU?oc=5

2020-11-23 07:23:00Z
52781202944233

COVID Christmas: What to expect during the festive season - Sky News

Coronavirus rules will be relaxed over Christmas across the UK under a plan to let people celebrate with their families.

Leaders in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have agreed their respective restrictions should change to be harmonised "for a small number of days" over the festive period.

While the details are still being worked out, the aim of allowing "additional household bubbling" was confirmed in a statement released on Sunday.

Image: MPs will get a vote on the new restrictions replacing England's lockdown

The prime minister is also working on the regional tier system due to come back into effect when the national lockdown in England ends on 2 December

Boris Johnson is to detail his winter strategy on Monday afternoon and ministers will set out which tier each area is going into on Thursday.

Advertisement

What is expected over Christmas?

Several households - potentially three - could be allowed to create a bubble temporarily between 24 and 28 December.

The plans could cover all four nations of the UK, according to reports.

Restrictions on church services could also be lifted allowing Christmas Day services to be held.

Official confirmation of the objective to let families see each other came in a statement from Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove following talks with leaders in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

"Ministers endorsed a shared objective of facilitating some limited additional household bubbling for a small number of days," he said, adding talks are also under way with the Irish government to let people in Northern Ireland see family living there.

But the public will be "advised to remain cautious" and told that "wherever possible people should avoid travelling and minimise social contact", a statement from his department said.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

'There will be a price to pay for Christmas'

What is the new system - 2 December until Christmas - going to look like?

The country will move back into a three-tier system of regional restrictions, which was in force from 14 October until 5 November.

More areas are expected to enter the higher end of the tiered-system next month and, while many measures will be similar to those in place previously, the tiers will be strengthened in some areas.

• Non-essential retail will be allowed to open in all three tiers
• Gyms will be allowed to open
• The 10pm curfew for pubs and restaurants will be scrapped
• A mass testing programme is to be launched in Tier 3 areas, using the Army, like the pilot programme in Liverpool

Image: Measures under Tiers 1, 2 and 3 of England's lockdown system

How long will the new system last?

The government is optimistic restrictions can be gradually reduced in the run-up to spring if vaccines are approved by regulators, allowing the rollout to begin next month before a wider programme in the new year.

But with no vaccines having been approved the timeline is uncertain.

What was the original tier system?

• Tier 1 (Medium): Rule of six if meeting indoors or outdoors; pubs and restaurants shut at 10pm
• Tier 2 (High): No household mixing indoors; rule of six applies outdoors; pubs and restaurants shut at 10pm
• Tier 3 (Very high): No household mixing indoors or in some outdoor spaces; pubs and bars not serving meals are closed

Will Boris Johnson get his plan past the House of Commons?

A large group of Conservatives will be glad the harsher national lockdown is coming to an end but 70 of them, called the "COVID Recovery Group" of backbench Tories, have released a letter calling for the prime minister to publish a "cost/ benefit analysis" of the new system.

"We cannot support this approach further unless the government demonstrates the restrictions proposed for after 2 December will... save more lives than they cost," they wrote.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak refused three times to commit to the demand when interviewed on Sophy Ridge On Sunday, only saying: "It's right that we look at all of the impacts of fighting coronavirus in the round and they are not just economic."

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiXGh0dHBzOi8vbmV3cy5za3kuY29tL3N0b3J5L2NvdmlkLWNocmlzdG1hcy13aGF0LXRvLWV4cGVjdC1kdXJpbmctdGhlLWZlc3RpdmUtc2Vhc29uLTEyMTM4ODgy0gFgaHR0cHM6Ly9uZXdzLnNreS5jb20vc3RvcnkvYW1wL2NvdmlkLWNocmlzdG1hcy13aGF0LXRvLWV4cGVjdC1kdXJpbmctdGhlLWZlc3RpdmUtc2Vhc29uLTEyMTM4ODgy?oc=5

2020-11-23 02:03:45Z
52781199919464

Plan to allow families and friends in UK to meet for Christmas - BBC News - BBC News

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiK2h0dHBzOi8vd3d3LnlvdXR1YmUuY29tL3dhdGNoP3Y9TTdiX0cwQ2d1ejDSAQA?oc=5

2020-11-22 22:30:34Z
52781199919464

COVID-19: Hopes raised families will be able to meet over Christmas as UK nations back plan - Sky News

Progress has been made on a UK-wide plan to relax COVID-19 restrictions over Christmas, as national leaders have agreed to allow household mixing "for a small number of days".

Cabinet Minister Michael Gove held talks with the first ministers of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland on Saturday, with the government hopeful of agreeing a "four nations" approach to the holiday season.

Despite not agreeing a final set of regulations, the government says ministers have "endorsed a shared objective of facilitating some limited additional household bubbling for a small number of days".

In a statement released on Sunday evening, No 10 added: "The public will be advised to remain cautious, and that wherever possible people should avoid travelling and minimise social contact."

It said talks were underway with the Irish government over travel across the Northern Ireland border and that it was hoped all arrangements would be concluded this week.

Advertisement

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

'There will be a price to pay for Xmas'

The news confirmed a story published by Sky News yesterday that coronavirus restrictions across the UK would be relaxed for Christmas.

The Daily Mail and The Sun reported that up to four households would be allowed to mix for up to five days, but Downing Street has denied that the PM will reveal how many households could mix and for how long when he unveils his "COVID Winter Plan" on Monday.

More from UK

A spokesman for the Scottish government gave little detail away about the UK-wide talks, saying only: "No agreement has been reached and discussions are continuing."

Boris Johnson, who is still isolating in Downing Street, chaired a rare Sunday afternoon cabinet meeting, and on Monday will make a Commons statement and publish his "COVID Winter Plan".

He will confirm that England's national lockdown will end on 2 December, but the country will move back into a three-tier system of regional restrictions, which was in force from 14 October until 5 November.

Downing Street has also confirmed that while some local measures will be similar to those in place previously, the tiers will be strengthened in some areas to safeguard gains made during the national lockdown.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

No 10 'psychodramas' set back COVID-19 fight

Ministers will announce on Thursday which areas in England will be in each tier, but the government has signalled that more areas will be in higher tiers to keep the virus under control and avoid another national shutdown.

Professor Calum Semple - a member of government advisory body SAGE - told Sky's Sophy Ridge on Sunday that "hopefully" some rules could be relaxed over Christmas "for a few days", but added: "There will be a price for that."

He said he broadly agreed with the idea floated by Public Health England earlier this week that for every day of looser restrictions five days of extra lockdown might be needed.

However, he said assumptions should not be made about how tough the rules might be if extra days are added, saying it did not necessarily mean "draconian restrictions".

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMifmh0dHBzOi8vbmV3cy5za3kuY29tL3N0b3J5L2NvdmlkLTE5LWhvcGVzLXJhaXNlZC1mYW1pbGllcy13aWxsLWJlLWFibGUtdG8tbWVldC1vdmVyLWNocmlzdG1hcy1hcy11ay1uYXRpb25zLWJhY2stcGxhbi0xMjEzOTY5ONIBggFodHRwczovL25ld3Muc2t5LmNvbS9zdG9yeS9hbXAvY292aWQtMTktaG9wZXMtcmFpc2VkLWZhbWlsaWVzLXdpbGwtYmUtYWJsZS10by1tZWV0LW92ZXItY2hyaXN0bWFzLWFzLXVrLW5hdGlvbnMtYmFjay1wbGFuLTEyMTM5Njk4?oc=5

2020-11-22 19:47:19Z
CBMifmh0dHBzOi8vbmV3cy5za3kuY29tL3N0b3J5L2NvdmlkLTE5LWhvcGVzLXJhaXNlZC1mYW1pbGllcy13aWxsLWJlLWFibGUtdG8tbWVldC1vdmVyLWNocmlzdG1hcy1hcy11ay1uYXRpb25zLWJhY2stcGxhbi0xMjEzOTY5ONIBggFodHRwczovL25ld3Muc2t5LmNvbS9zdG9yeS9hbXAvY292aWQtMTktaG9wZXMtcmFpc2VkLWZhbWlsaWVzLXdpbGwtYmUtYWJsZS10by1tZWV0LW92ZXItY2hyaXN0bWFzLWFzLXVrLW5hdGlvbnMtYmFjay1wbGFuLTEyMTM5Njk4

East Sussex search for two missing fishermen called off - Sky News

The search for two fisherman missing since their boat sank off the coast of East Sussex has been called off.

Two RNLI lifeboats and a helicopter were sent out on Saturday after the Joanna C sent out a distress signal at around 6am.

A man was found clinging to a lifebuoy and was pulled from the water. Authorities continued looking for the other two crew members until 11pm.

Image: Boats continue their search for crew members of the Joanna C on Sunday morning

HM Coastguard confirmed that the search, which resumed at 7.30am Sunday morning, was called off at 2.30pm.

"Sadly nothing further has been found today," a statement said.

Advertisement

Units that helped with the search included Newhaven and Eastbourne RNLI lifeboats, Eastbourne and Birling Gap Coastguard Rescue Teams and several local fishing vessels.

The Joanna C is a 45ft scalloping vessel registered in Brixham. Its last known location was three nautical miles off the coast of Seaford, near Newhaven.

More from East Sussex

Image: The last known location of the Joanna C was three nautical miles off the coast of Seaford

A GoFundMe page set up to support the families of the two missing men has so far raised more than £3,500.

Donations will be passed to the Fishermen's Mission, a charity providing practical, emotional and financial support to fishermen and their families, which will distribute it to those affected.

Organiser Tony Rowe said on the page: "Our prayers are with those directly involved and the wider community who all have been affected in some way."

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiW2h0dHBzOi8vbmV3cy5za3kuY29tL3N0b3J5L2Vhc3Qtc3Vzc2V4LXNlYXJjaC1mb3ItdHdvLW1pc3NpbmctZmlzaGVybWVuLWNhbGxlZC1vZmYtMTIxMzg5NzjSAV9odHRwczovL25ld3Muc2t5LmNvbS9zdG9yeS9hbXAvZWFzdC1zdXNzZXgtc2VhcmNoLWZvci10d28tbWlzc2luZy1maXNoZXJtZW4tY2FsbGVkLW9mZi0xMjEzODk3OA?oc=5

2020-11-22 18:22:30Z
52781200404025