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Updated
Summary
Here are the key developments from the last few hours:
- British PM says England “tantalisingly close” to lifting Covid restrictions. Boris Johnson has said England is “tantalisingly close” to lifting final coronavirus restrictions as he prepared to address the country tomorrow.
- Thousands take to streets of Cuba in protest. Thousands of people joined protests across Cuba today amid frustrations over the country’s crisis, pandemic restrictions and the government.
- South Africa’s president says Covid restrictions to remain but with some changes. South Africa’s president Cyril Ramaphosa has said that the country will remain at alert level 4 but with some adjustments.Restaurants and some other venues will be allowed to reopen in the country under strict coronavirus protocols.
- New Covid restrictions introduced in Libya after cases hit record high. Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah said in a decree that cafes must close, weddings and organised funerals with mourners are banned and public transport use is barred for the next two weeks.
- Leading scientists warn UK government patent protections ‘threatening the security’ of vaccinations. In the UK, leading scientists have warned the government that patent protections on coronavirus vaccines are “threatening the security” of the vaccination programme and could result in further lockdowns.
- England’s health secretary Sajid Javid has warned that NHS waiting lists in England could more than double in the coming months to 13 million patients.
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Vaccines minister Nadim Zahawi said that despite the expected lifting of all restrictions on July 19 he public would be “expected to wear masks indoors in enclosed spaces.”
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Nadhim Zahawi dismissed suggestions that the gap between vaccine doses in UK is set to be halved.
- Israel is to start offering a Pfizer booster shot this week to adults with weak immune systems but it was still weighing whether a third round of shots should be given to the general public.
- Thailand’s health ministry has said that more than 600 medical workers who received two doses of China’s Sinovac vaccine have been infected with Covid-19
- Libya has recorded a record number of coronavirus cases. The National Center for Disease Control announced the registration of 2,854 new cases of the “emerging corona virus”, in addition to 376 cases of recovery, and 8 deaths.
- Bangladesh has recorded its highest daily coronavirus death toll as well as highest number of single-day cases with health authorities “fearing the situation to deteriorate further in the coming weeks”.
- Vietnam reported 1,953 COVID-19 infections on Sunday, a record for daily case numbers.
Mexico’s Covid-19 death toll has risen to 234,969, its health ministry said.
The country reported 3,779 new cases and 62 more deaths.
Updated
Brazil records 595 Covid deaths and nearly 21,000 new cases
Brazil recorded 595 coronavirus deaths and 20,937 new cases today.
The country’s total death toll is now 533,488 and 19,089,940 confirmed cases.
Brazil has the second-highest Covid death toll in the world.
British PM says England "tantalisingly close" to lifting Covid restrictions
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said England is “tantalisingly close” to lifting final coronavirus restrictions as he prepared to address the country tomorrow.
Here’s more from PA:
Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected to say that the country can move to Step 4 of the road map to lift measures but also warn that Covid-19 cases will rise as rules designed to suppress the virus are removed.
Mr Johnson will host a press conference on Monday afternoon, while Health Secretary Sajid Javid will announce the plans in Parliament.
Downing Street said the unlocking would be based on four tests - the success of the vaccine rollout, evidence that the vaccine is causing a reduction in hospitalisations and deaths, that infection rates do not risk a surge in hospital admissions, and that no new variants of concern throw progress off track.
The PM said: “We are tantalisingly close to the final milestone in our road map out of lockdown, but the plan to restore our freedoms must come with a warning.
“While the phenomenal vaccine rollout has offered every adult some protection against the virus, and the crucial link between cases, hospitalisations and deaths is weakened, the global pandemic is not over yet.
“Cases will rise as we unlock, so as we confirm our plans today, our message will be clear. Caution is absolutely vital, and we must all take responsibility so we don’t undo our progress, ensuring we continue to protect our NHS.”
Thousands take to streets of Cuba in protest
Thousands of people joined protests across Cuba today amid frustrations over the country’s crisis, pandemic restrictions and the government, reports Reuters.
Protesters reportedly chanted “we are not afraid” as they took to the streets of Havana.
President and head of the Communist Party, Miguel Diaz-Canel, addressed the nation, blaming the US for the unrest.
🚨 #HAPPENINGNOW
— María Elvira Salazar 🇺🇸 (@MaElviraSalazar) July 11, 2021
Tens of thousands of people in #Cuba are protesting at this very moment.
The regime is shutting off the internet on the island. The Castro dictatorship doesn’t want the world to see what’s happening.
Please SHARE & stand with these freedom fighters! #SOSCuba pic.twitter.com/qdKupC9r1N
Pfizer said it plans to meet with top US health officials tomorrow to discuss its request for federal authorisation of a third vaccine dose, AP reports.
The drug company said it has a scheduled meeting with the Food and Drug Administration and other officials. Pfizer recently said that booster shots would be required within a year.
It comes after President Joe Biden’s chief medical adviser Dr Anthony Fauci today said “it is entirely conceivable, maybe likely” that Americans will require a booster shot of the Covid-19 vaccine (see 18:30).
Here’s a Reuters report with the latest from South Africa:
South Africa extended tight Covid-19 rules on Sunday for another 14 days, maintaining restrictions that include a ban on gatherings, a curfew from 9pm to 4am and a prohibition on the sale of alcohol.
The country, the worst-hit on the African continent in terms of recorded cases and deaths, is in the grip of a third wave of infections driven by the more infectious Delta coronavirus variant.
“Our health system countrywide remains under pressure,” President Cyril Ramaphosa said in a televised address to the nation.
Early this month South Africa recorded a new record of more than 26,000 daily cases, stretching hospitals to breaking point.
Ramaphosa moved the country to the fourth level of a five-tier restriction scale in late June as infections climbed, promising to review the restrictions after two weeks.
On Sunday he said the cabinet had decided to maintain “adjusted alert level 4” for another 14 days, but restaurants would be able to operate again subject to strict health protocols. Gyms would also be allowed to reopen under certain conditions.
Ramaphosa added that a government advisory committee was working on how soon the country could bring Sinovac’s CoronaVac vaccine into the Covid-19 immunisation programme.
Updated
Ramaphosa also said an advisory committee is working on how soon South Africa can introduce Chinese vaccine Sinovac into its inoculation programme, reports Reuters.
Updated
South Africa's president says Covid restrictions to remain but with some changes
South Africa’s president Cyril Ramaphosa has said that the country will remain at alert level 4 but with some adjustments.
Restaurants and some other venues will be allowed to reopen in the country under strict coronavirus protocols:
President #Ramaphosa: Restaurants and eateries will be able to operate while observing strict health protocols. Such establishments may not accommodate more than 50 people at a time or, for smaller venues, more than 50 per cent of their normal capacity.
— Presidency | South Africa 🇿🇦 (@PresidencyZA) July 11, 2021
President #Ramaphosa: Certain other venues, such as gyms and fitness centres, may also open and activities such as agricultural livestock and game auctions will be allowed, subject to the conditions outlined in regulations.
— Presidency | South Africa 🇿🇦 (@PresidencyZA) July 11, 2021
President #Ramaphosa: It remains mandatory to wear a mask that covers your nose and mouth whenever you are in public. pic.twitter.com/UQZAtpObHJ
— Presidency | South Africa 🇿🇦 (@PresidencyZA) July 11, 2021
Updated
France has reported 4,256 new Covid cases and four deaths over the past 24 hours.
New Covid restrictions introduced in Libya after cases hit record high
Libya has introduced new coronavirus restrictions after cases hit a record high (see 11.59).
Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah said in a decree that cafes must close, weddings and organised funerals with mourners are banned and public transport use is barred for the next two weeks, AFP reports.
Badreddine al-Najjar, the head of the National Centre for Disease Control, warned of a “critical” situation after a rapid rise in infections.
US president Joe Biden’s chief medical adviser Dr Anthony Fauci has said “it is entirely conceivable, maybe likely” that Americans will require a booster shot of the Covid-19 vaccine. But he said it is still too soon for the government to issue a recommendation, AP reports.
“Right now, given the data and the information we have, we do not need to give people a third shot,” he said. “That doesn’t mean we stop there...There are studies being done now ongoing as we speak about looking at the feasibility about if and when we should be boosting people.”
“Certainly it is entirely conceivable, maybe likely at some time, we will need a boost,’’ he added.
So far around 48% of the US population is fully vaccinated.
Leading scientists warn UK government patent protections 'threatening the security' of vaccinations
In the UK, leading scientists have warned the government that patent protections on coronavirus vaccines are “threatening the security” of the vaccination programme and could result in further lockdowns.
They said the government is running the risk of “producing variants instead of vaccines” by allowing the virus to spread in poorer countries which could lead to new variants.
Professor Stephen Reicher, professor of social psychology at the University of St Andrew’s and member of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) subcommittee on behavioural science, said:
We need urgent action to allow poorer countries to produce their own safe, effective vaccines for their populations by waiving patents. That would be a truly remarkable gift to the world. It would help increase our standing in the world at a time when we so badly need trading partners. And ultimately it is the only means of consigning Covid to history and so ending the threat of further lockdowns for good.
Christina Pagel, Professor of operational research at University College London and a member of the Independent SAGE group of scientists, said:
The government is banking on the UK’s relatively advanced vaccine rollout to provide protection against Covid-19 after July 19. But vaccines can only protect us for so long, while the pandemic rages on in low and middle-income countries, spreading among the billions of unvaccinated people.
Each new infection risks developing new variants of Covid-19 that are more virulent or resistant to our current vaccines. If that happens, our entire vaccination programme could be derailed making further coronavirus restrictions and lockdowns all but inevitable.
Just 1% of people in low-income countries have received at least one dose of the vaccine, according to Oxford University. Over 130 countries support the waiver, including the US and France, but Germany and the UK have blocked the proposal.
Updated
Face masks are to remain compulsory on public transport and in health and social care settings in Wales, the government has said.
In contrast to England, where the obligation to wear face coverings is expected to end on July 19, First Minister Mark Drakeford said:
We know many people are still worried and anxious about going out. We will maintain the requirement to wear face coverings in certain places - on public transport and health and social care settings, and others where necessary - to help keep us all safe.
Updated
In the US, the New York governor has announced that two-thirds of adult New Yorkers are now fully vaccinated.
Andrew Cuomo said 31,484 doses administered over the last 24 hours and that there was one Covid death in the state yesterday. 399 patients across the state were hospitalised. Last spring the state was the epicentre of the pandemic in the US.
He said:
Our metrics continue to show steady progress toward slaying this Covid beast, and we have our health care heroes and everyday New Yorker who made sacrifices throughout the course of the pandemic to thank for it.
Also in the UK, the latest vaccination figures show that there have been 80,646,232 Covid jabs administered so far - 45,881,721 of which were first doses and 34,764,511 were second doses.
Meanwhile, figures from the Office for National Statistics show that there have been 153,000 deaths registered in the UK where Covid-19 was cited on the death certificate.
Italy has reported 7 Covid deaths today and 1,391 cases. It’s a slight decrease from yesterday when the respective figures were 12 and 1,400.
Updated
UK reports 26 deaths and 31,772 cases
The UK today reported 26 new coronavirus deaths and 31,772 new cases. It’s a slight drop on yesterday’s figures which were 34 and 32,367 respectively.
I’m taking over the liveblog now. Please get in touch with any tips or suggestions: miranda.bryant@guardian.co.uk
Summary
- England’s health secretary Sajid Javid has warned that NHS waiting lists in England could more than double in the coming months to 13 million patients.
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Vaccines minister Nadim Zahawi said that despite the expected lifting of all restrictions on July 19 he public would be “expected to wear masks indoors in enclosed spaces.”
-
Nadhim Zahawi dismissed suggestions that the gap between vaccine doses in UK is set to be halved
Javid’s said people in crowded enclosed spaces should continue to wear masks, “and if someone is not doing that, frankly, they’re just being irresponsible, they’re not playing their role as a responsible citizen”
- Responding, Jonathan Ashworth MP, Labour’s Shadow Health Secretary said it could be “equally irresponsible for his government to carry on with the plan to lift mask requirements while infections are heading to 100,000 a day”.
- Israel is to start offering Pfizer booster shot this week to adults with weak immune systems but it was still weighing whether a third round of shots should be given to the general public.
- Thailand’s health ministry has said that more than 600 medical workers who received two doses of China’s Sinovac vaccine have been infected with COVID-19
- Libya has recorded a record number of coronavirus cases. The National Center for Disease Control announced the registration of 2,854 new cases of the “emerging corona virus”, in addition to 376 cases of recovery, and 8 deaths.
- Bangladesh has recorded its highest daily coronavirus death toll as well as highest number of single-day cases with health authorities “fearing the situation to deteriorate further in the coming weeks”.
-
Vietnam reported 1,953 COVID-19 infections on Sunday, a record for daily case numbers.
Senegal reports record new coronavirus infections
Senegal reported 529 coronavirus cases on Sunday, a record in new daily cases there since the start of the pandemic, and a sign that a third wave of infections was gaining speed, reports Reuters.
The growing infection rate has alarmed authorities, but they have stopped short of imposing stringent measures to curb the spread after previous restrictions led to economic hardship that helped to fuel violent protests in March.
Senegal has reported 46,179 coronavirus cases since the start of the pandemic, and 1,194 deaths. So far it has vaccinated close to 600,000 from a total population of around 16 million.
Reuters data shows that the seven-day average for new daily coronavirus infections in Senegal has risen to 194, a third below what the rate was during the peak of the second wave in February.
Vietnam reports record 1,953 new coronavirus infections on Sunday
Vietnam reported 1,953 COVID-19 infections on Sunday, a record for daily case numbers.
Most of the cases were recorded in Ho Chi Minh City, the epicentre of the country’s outbreak, which on Friday began 15 days of broad movement restrictions.
Vietnam will impose movement restrictions in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho for 14 days starting on Monday due to coronavirus, the government said on Sunday.
The city of 1.23 million people has reported seven infections over the past week.
Vaccinations at a site in Brighton have been postponed following anti-lockdown demonstrations in the city.
The Press Association reports:
Protestors surrounded a vaccination bus on the seafront on Saturday, pictures on social media suggest.
NHS Brighton and Hove CCG announced that vaccinations on Hove Lawns were postponed on Sunday “to ensure that everyone is able to receive their vaccine safely and without any pressure put upon them”.
The healthcare provider said its staff “experienced disruption during the anti-lockdown measures protest in the city”.
Vaccinations are still available elsewhere in the city.
Brighton and Hove council leader Phelim Mac Cafferty, said:
As we have rising cases, it is incredibly disappointing to see the irresponsible actions of a few putting in danger the many.
We reaffirm our city’s need to keep our population safe and we won’t be deterred from our important vaccination programme by the acts of cowards spreading misinformation.
We encourage everyone to take up both vaccinations at the earliest point they can. Our proud tradition as a city is that we work against adversity and we won’t be deterred from fighting the pandemic together.
Brighton and Hove has experienced a sharp rise in coronavirus infections in recent weeks, with the area recording 423.5 cases per 100,000 people for the seven days to July 5, according to data analysis by the PA news agency.
A walk-in vaccination service will continue to be available at Brighton Racecourse from 2.30pm to 6.30pm and will be open to all on Monday.
There will also be walk-in services every day next week, including at the Brighton Centre from 8.30am on Monday.
Bangladesh records highest daily coronavirus death toll
Bangladesh has recorded its highest daily coronavirus death toll as well as highest number of single-day cases with health authorities “fearing the situation to deteriorate further in the coming weeks”, reports the Dhaka Tribune.
The Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) reported 230 new deaths and 11,874 cases in 24 hours to 8am on Sunday.
The record was previously broken on Friday, when Bangladesh recorded 212 deaths.
The number of single-day infection surpassed the previous high of 11,651 cases on Thursday.
The total number of deaths in Bangladesh has reached 15,419 while the number of total infections rose to 1,021,189 in the country.
Everyday #Bangladesh is breaking Daily death and infection rate as #DeltaVariant of #coronavirus hit the country ever severe.
— Rashad Ahamad (@RashadAhamad_BD) July 11, 2021
Today, highest 230 deaths, 11,874 infections recorded. Total death 16,419, infection 10,21, 189. #Corona #IndianVariant #COVID19
Stephen Reicher, also a member of the Sage subcommittee advising on behavioural science, is even more clear that he thinks the government is making a major mistake lifting all coronavirus restrictions:
Johnson's 'make it easier for the virus as cases are surging' policy is wrong
— Stephen Reicher (@ReicherStephen) July 11, 2021
He knows it is wrong.
People know it is wrong
He knows that people know it is wrong
The only question is whether and how soon he acknowledges all this
And whether it is too late... pic.twitter.com/PEYVQjQBiR
Susan Mitchie, a professor of health psychology at University College London and part of the Covid-19 behavioural science team, isn’t overly impressed with Zahawi’s statement this morning that people will be “expected to” wear masks on public transport and in enclosed spaces.
What does 'expected to' mean? The question is whether the current legal requirement continues or not ... https://t.co/PNcvUK6fNg
— Susan Michie (@SusanMichie) July 11, 2021
Green said she understood Labour mayors Andy Burnham and Sadiq Khan would make masks mandatory on trams in Manchester and the Tube in London.
She said:
I hope they will and I believe, I think I’m right in saying, that Andy has already indicated that here in Manchester, that’s what he will do.
I certainly think that having travelled regularly on both the Tube and the tram all through the pandemic when I was allowed to, that wearing masks and seeing others wearing masks is a source of great reassurance and people want to do it.
Shadow education secretary in England Kate Green has said Labour supported coronavirus restrictions lifting on July 19 if the data supported it, but that some measures should stay in place.
The shadow education secretary told Trevor Phillips On Sunday on Sky News:
What we don’t want is to lift the restrictions without keeping mitigations in place that would enable that to happen more safely.
So for example, that’s why we’ve said that the mandatory mask-wearing should continue in public places.
That’s why we’ve said that there should be more support and requirement on public spaces to have proper ventilation systems.
That’s why we said that the financial support for people on low incomes who have to isolate needs to be adequate so that they can afford to do that.
So yes, we do want to see the restrictions lifted if the data confirmed that that’s the right thing to do, and I hope, and the indications seem to be that it will do. But we want that with the mitigations kept in place.
The Press Association have written up warnings expressed by Sir David Spiegelhalter on the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show today that life is likely to be “massively disrupted” by people being told to self-isolate as the number of coronavirus cases rises over the summer.
The statistician said it would make sense to get the rules “in proportion” today as vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi confirmed the Government was looking at ways to tweak the NHS Covid app.
As PA reports, there have been concerns that people are deleting or disabling the app amid a huge rise in exposure alerts sent to users in England telling them to isolate.
It reports:
Representative body NHS Providers said a growing number of trusts had told them of their concerns in recent days about how self-isolation of staff is now “significantly impacting their ability to deliver care”.
Downing Street said on Friday that ahead of Step 4 of restrictions being lifted, expected on July 19, officials were examining whether NHS staff could be freed of the obligation to self-isolate if “pinged” by the Covid app.
Under current plans, people who are fully vaccinated will be able to forgo self-isolation even if the app detects they have been in contact with someone who has tested positive after August 16.
Hospitality chiefs have warned that the delay between restrictions being lifted and self-isolation rules being eased risks “the summer being cancelled and vast swathes of the population unnecessarily confined to their homes”.
Spiegelhalter, a statistician from the University of Cambridge, said if people are vaccinated and then pinged by the app, it is a “very low percentage” who have “actually got the virus”.
He said:
Few people told to self-isolate actually have an infection, and especially if they’re vaxxed, and so I do think it makes sense to get this in proportion to actually ‘what are the benefits of this massive disruption
Zahawi said the app “was developed and operationalised at a time when we didn’t have vaccines”.
Speaking on Trevor Phillips On Sunday on Sky News, he said:
The team are looking at how we use that app in terms of alerting people to those around them who test positive.
It’s important to look at that in a new context of this massive vaccination programme and make sure that it is fit for purpose for this new world including, for example, being able to take maybe five days, as we have piloted, of lateral flow tests and upload them to the system rather than having to self-isolate.
Libya records record number of cases
In Libya, Al-Wasat news is reporting that the country has recorded a record number of coronavirus cases.
The National Center for Disease Control announced the registration of 2,854 new cases of the “emerging corona virus”, in addition to 376 cases of recovery, and 8 deaths, in the highest number of infections since March 2020.
(thanks to reader Francisco Javier Torres Tobar for the heads up)
Indonesia reports 1007 deaths in 24 hour period
Indonesian national newspaper Kompas is reporting a “high number of new cases and deaths” in the country.
It states that figures released on Sunday show cases in Indonesia rose by 36,197 in one day to 2,527,203.
A further 1,007 deaths were reported bringing the death toll to 66,464, the health ministry said on Sunday.
According to the ministry, 32,615 more people were discharged from hospitals, bringing the total number of recovered patients to 2,084,724.
The number of patients infected with Covid-19 now stands at 2,527,203 people as of March 2020.
Really sad story from the BBC:
Experts are warning that it is possible to catch two Covid variants at the same time, after seeing a double infection in a 90-year-old woman who became sick with the Alpha and Beta types first identified in the UK and South Africa.
The woman, who died in March 2021 in Belgium, had not been vaccinated.
Her doctors suspect she contracted the infections from two different people and believe it is the first documented case of its kind.
Although rare, similar dual infections are happening, according to scientists.
Her case is being discussed at this year’s European Congress on Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases.
In January 2021, scientists in Brazil reported that two people had been simultaneously infected with two types of coronavirus, one of them a variant of concern called Gamma.
Researchers from Portugal, meanwhile, recently treated a 17-year-old who appeared to have caught a second type of Covid while still recovering from a different, pre-existing Covid infection.
The 90-year-old, who was infected with the two “variants of concern” - the most worrying new versions of coronavirus that experts are tracking - had been admitted to hospital after experiencing some falls, but later developed worsening respiratory symptoms.
Hundreds of Thai health workers infected despite Sinovac injections
Thailand’s health ministry has said that more than 600 medical workers who received two doses of China’s Sinovac vaccine have been infected with COVID-19, as authorities weigh giving booster doses to raise immunity.
Reuters reports:
Of the 677,348 medical personnel who received two doses of Sinovac, 618 became infected, health ministry data from April to July showed. A nurse has died and another medical worker is in critical condition.
An expert panel has recommended a third dose to trigger immunity for medical workers who are at risk, senior health official Sopon Iamsirithawon, told a news briefing on Sunday.
“This will be a different vaccine, either viral vector AstraZeneca or an mRNA vaccine, which Thailand will be receiving in the near term,” he said, adding that the recommendation will be considered on Monday.
The announcement comes as the Southeast Asian country reported a record high of 9,418 community infections on Sunday. On Saturday authorities reported a record of 91 new daily coronavirus fatalities.
Thailand has reported a total of 336,371 confirmed infections and 2,711 fatalities since the pandemic began last year.
The majority of Thailand’s medical and frontline workers were given Sinovac’s shots after February with the viral vector vaccine from AstraZeneca arriving in June.
Thailand is expecting a donation of 1.5 million Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines from the United States later this month and has ordered 20 million doses that will be delivered after October.
Neighbouring Indonesia, which has also heavily relied on Sinovac, said on Friday it would give the Moderna vaccine as boosters to medical workers.
Updated
Marr getting stuck in to Nadim Zahawi after his first interview on Sky News this morning. He compares Boris Johnson’s claim in PMQs this link that the link between infections, hospitalisations and deaths had been “severed” was at odds with the information given by Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty.
When Zahawi suggests the question is “dancing on the head of a pin”, Marr shows why he is one of the best political interviewers in the game, saying:
This is really important because people are going to have to make choices themselves, and we are seeing the number of cases shooting out, and we see the number of hospitalisations rising quite fast as well.
So if people think that the link has been severed, they will behave in one way, and if they don’t think it’s been severed they’ll behave in another way, This is not [an] irrelevant, heads of pin question it is quite important, I say again, the Prime Minister was wrong to say the link has been severed?
Zahawi said:
Ultimately the Prime Minister agrees with his chief scientific adviser that we have severely weakened that link, and you see it in the numbers.
We have to be cautious on Monday he will stand up another press conference, and will say we have severely weakened the link, okay, and he will advise that people should take responsibly, but will be expected to, for example, wear masks indoors in crowded train carriages.
Marr points out that Zahawi’s messsaging is “interestingly more cautious than some other ministers we’ve been hearing from recently”.
Zahawi replies:
We have to be cautious, this thing is not over, you look at what’s happening in France and Italy and elsewhere,[...] this is very concerning.
Marr asked Spiegelhalter if people were doubly vaccinated, how safe were they:
You’re not completely safe, but probably at least 20 times safer than if you were not vaccinated.
He said compared to a 67-year-old like himself, an unvaccinated 30-year-old still had less chance of dying.
And that’s reflected in the current statistics, you know, very few people are dying, but those that are, are predominantly older people who have been vaccinated. There’s far more vaccinated over 50s dying than unvaccinated under 50s.
What it does mean is that if you’re in this current wave if you’re unvaxxed and older, you’re a very high risk, and that means that some communities are going to be hard hit.
Asked how worried young people should be about long Covid, he said:
There’s a lot of uncertainty about long covid, but it is a reasonable concern. The Office for National Statistics recently estimated that one in six 25 -year -olds were reporting symptoms three months after they got infected.
I mean I don’t like telling anyone what to do, but I should say for young people vaccines not only reduce the chance of getting the virus, but they also seem to reduce the chance of getting long Covid if you do get the virus, and also of course, you help everyone else around you.
Updated
Professor Sir David Spiegelhalter is on the BBC’s Andrew Marr show this morning.
Talking about the relaxing of restriction on July 19 he said:
Frankly, you know, unless tomorrow, there is an immediate lockdown, which I think is pretty unlikely. there’s bound to be a big wave of cases coming up it is absolutely inevitable. It was predictable right from the start of the roadmap announcement back in February.
It’s been made by worse by the Delta Variant, and I would guess that, you know 100,000 a day is quite possible, and relaxing everything at once on July, the 19th will only make that more likely.
These will be mainly young cases, the average case was 25. And they’ve got a quarter as many over 65 getting infected as there were when we were last at this level which [was in] mid December.
Asked about hospitalisations, which Marr said were running at 460 a day “which is higher than the government originally expected”, Spiegelhalter said:
The cases are so much younger, but that would mean that 100,000 cases, if we got there, would be maybe 2500 admissions a day.
You know that’s very high, [but] considerably lower than the peak in the second wave. And they would be younger and less severe, with shorter stays.
So the actual numbers in the hospital would still be well below the secondary peak, even if we did it that 100,000 a day. But, of course, is very disruptive and there would be a lot of bad outcomes, but I guess the judgment is that it’s better we do it now than in the winter.
In Savid Javid’s Sunday Telegraph interview he said people in crowded enclosed spaces should continue to wear masks, “and if someone is not doing that, frankly, they’re just being irresponsible, they’re not playing their role as a responsible citizen”
Responding, Jonathan Ashworth MP, Labour’s Shadow Health Secretary said:
Given Sajid Javid now considers it irresponsible to not wear masks then it would be equally irresponsible for his government to carry on with the plan to lift mask requirements while infections are heading to 100,000 a day.
Reopening the economy must be done in a safe and sustainable way.
That means continued mask wearing, support for increased ventilation standards in premises, decent sick pay, allowing people to continue working from home and ensuring all can access testing rather than introducing charges for lateral flow tests as Sajid Javid now proposes.
Israel to start offering Pfizer booster shot this week
Israel has said it will begin offering a booster shot of Pfizer Inc’s vaccine to adults with weak immune systems but it was still weighing whether a third round of shots should be given to the general public, Reuters reports:
The rapid spread of the Delta variant has sent vaccination rates in Israel back up as new infections have risen over the past month from single digits to around 450 a day.
Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz said that effective immediately, adults with impaired immune systems who had received two doses of the Pfizer vaccine could get a booster shot, with a decision pending on wider distribution.
Pfizer and partner BioNTech SE, the main suppliers in a swift Israeli vaccination rollout that began in December, said on Thursday they will ask U.S. and European regulators within weeks to authorize booster shots.
The two companies cited an increased risk of infection after six months in seeking permission for a third shot.
Drawing criticism from some scientists and officials, the companies did not share the data showing that risk, but said it would soon be made public.
Speaking on Kan public radio Horowitz said:
We are examining this issue and we still do not have a final answer [...]
In any case we are administering as of now a third shot to people suffering from immunodeficiency . These are for instance people who have undergone organ transplants or suffer from a medical condition which causes a drop in immunity.
About half of the 46 patients presently hospitalised in Israel in severe condition are vaccinated, according to health ministry data. Israel’s coronavirus pandemic response coordinator, Nachman Ash, said on Wednesday the overwhelming majority of them are from risk groups, over the age of 60 and have prior health problems.
Horowitz said that separately, the health ministry would plug a Pfizer supply gap for ongoing two-dose inoculations of the general adult population by using Moderna Inc vaccines already in stock.
Israel has almost exclusively administered Pfizer shots to around 60% of its 9.3 million population. But a batch of 700,000 doses due to expire at the end of July was sent to South Korea, as a recent slowdown in the pace of vaccinations would likely have seen the doses go to waste.
Under the swap deal, Seoul will return the same number of shots, already on order from Pfizer, in September and October.
Horowitz said:
We have Moderna vaccines and adults who want to vaccinate can do so from this morning, or maybe tomorrow, with the Moderna vaccines. As for youths, we are vaccinating them with Pfizer and we are making efforts to bring forward Pfizer deliveries.
Israel hopes earlier deliveries will enable more youngsters to be vaccinated before the start of the school year in September.
Under health ministry regulations, Israeli youths can receive Pfizer shots but not yet those produced by Moderna.
Russia reported 25,033 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday, including 5,410 in Moscow, taking the official national tally since the pandemic began to 5,783,333.
The government coronavirus task force said 749 people had died of coronavirus-linked causes in the past 24 hours, pushing the national death toll to 143,002.
The federal statistics agency has kept a separate death toll. It said on Friday it had recorded around 290,000 deaths related to COVID-19 between April 2020 and May this year.
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UK National Statistician Ian Diamond said the data showed an increase in cases, with one in 160 in England testing positive and that the figure was going up “quite quickly” although case number remained “slightly less than a third of where we were on the second of January this year”.
The increase was driven largely by cases in the North East and North West, with the lowest number in the East of England and the South East.
So at the moment there is definitely an increase driven by the northeast and driven very much by people aged 18 to 24, [but ] we’re seeing very very little increase in people aged over 50, for example, and I think that’s encouraging.
Asked if he ruled out the possibility of there being 100,000 cases a day he said:
I think it would be wrong to completely rule it out, but I would have to say that at the moment we don’t have the data either really to put a firm number on things.
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Professor Sir Ian Diamond, the UK’s National Statistician has told Sky News that about nine in ten people in England and Wales have antibodies against coronavirus, up from two in ten in January.
The group with the lowest at around about 60%, is those age of 15 to 24, he said.
The vaccination program remained “incredibly important” but added:
Certainly we’re making an enormous amount of progress and absolutely admirable amount of progress.
Diamond said the link between infections and being admitted to hospital, having serious disease and even dying has been “severely weakened”:
We have a younger cohort of people being hospitalised at the moment and while hospitalisations are going up, they are now a long way from some of the levels we have seen before.
And so I’m very hopeful that we have really made a strong break, but at the same time, I would have to say at the moment all the evidence allows me to say severely weakened.
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Nadhim Zahawi dismisses suggestion gap between vaccine doses in UK set to be halved
Zahawi denied a story running in the Sunday Times this morning, which claimed that the gap between coronavirus vaccine doses is set to be halved to four weeks to accelerate the administration of second jabs.
The story states:
No 10 officials have asked the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) to provide urgent advice on reducing the dosing interval from eight weeks in the light of surging cases of the Delta variant and the imminent easing of lockdown restrictions.
If the JCVI approves the reduction in the vaccine interval, it will open up the prospect of quarantine-free foreign travel in time for the school holidays for millions of people who will otherwise have to wait a further month until they have been double-vaccinated.
Responding, Zahawi said:
I’m slightly puzzled where that stories come from because obviously I engage almost on a daily basis with my colleagues at the JCVI. [...]
The clinical data suggests that actually the eight week interval offers that additional fortification in terms of protection, with the two doses at much better than having the interval shortened any further.
The Prime Minister announced that now we’ve brought down that interval from 12 to eight weeks for all adults. So anybody who gets their first dose now [...] they’ll get their second job within that eight week interval that is the clinical advice and that’s the advice we will follow.”
Zahawi said the Government was looking at ways to tweak the NHS app which was “developed and operationalised at a time when we didn’t have vaccines”:
The team are looking at how we use that app in terms of alerting people to those around them who test positive.
It’s important to look at that in a new context of this massive vaccination programme and make sure that it is fit for purpose for this new world including, for example, being able to take maybe five days, as we have piloted, of lateral flow tests and upload them to the system rather than having to self-isolate.
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UK vaccines minister indicates people will be expected to wear masks indoors after 19 July
Vaccines minister Nadim Zahawi is doing the rounds this morning.
Speaking on Sky News this morning said that despite the expected lifting of all restrictions on July 19 Zahawi said the public would be “expected to wear masks indoors in enclosed spaces.”
Zahawi said he is “confident” that the country will move to the next stage of lifting coronavirus restrictions next week.
He told Trevor Phillips On Sunday that Boris Johnson would make an announcement on Monday.
But he said:
We’re seeing a rise in infection rates in this country, but also in Europe and elsewhere. The difference for us is that the vaccination programme has been so successful.
He added:
I think it’s important that we remain cautious and careful and the guidelines that we’ll set out tomorrow will demonstrate that, including guidelines that people are expected to wear masks in indoor enclosed spaces.
And of course to remain vigilant with your hands and face and just remember that we all act responsibly as we did with the vaccination program. [...]
We can come together and deal with this pandemic in a way that is responsible, by thinking about our own actions and how they impact other people, including people who may be immunocompromised.
There is no perfect timing, we “just have to remain cautious”, he said.
Zahawi said these were “the hard yards”, when asked if vaccination rates were slowing down.
What we need to make sure is as the virus gets desperate and attempts to infect people, to mutate and be able to survive, we should continue to fortify the nation with a vaccination programme because that is the way we transition it from pandemic to endemic status.
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China administered around 9 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine on July 10, taking the total to 1.374 billion doses, data from the National Health Commission showed on Sunday.
A growing cross-party group of MPs and peers is demanding an urgent overhaul of the services offered to sufferers of long Covid amid warnings that thousands of new cases will emerge every day as coronavirus restrictions are lifted this summer, write my colleagues Michael Savage and James Tapper.
The group states that lifting restrictions when case numbers are rising and the impact of the vaccine on long covid is not known “risks placing a large and unsustainable burden on the health service”. In a letter to England’s health secretary Savid Javid they write:
We are concerned that the government’s decision to lift most remaining coronavirus public health measures from 19 July risks exposing many more people to long covid, including younger age groups who aren’t yet fully vaccinated,” writes the group. “This condition leaves many unable to work or carry out their regular daily activities, with severe consequences for our NHS and economy.
Just under one million people in the UK were living with long Covid in June. Around 700,000 were of working age and 33,000 were children. The number with the condition for a year or more has increased to 385,000, according to official statistics.
Read the full story here:
Javid: NHS backlog could reach 13m patients
England’s health secretary Sajid Javid has warned that NHS waiting lists in England could more than double in the coming months.
A backlog of around 5.3m people are waiting for routine operations in England is growing after delays to procedures during the pandemic.
Sajid Javid told the Sunday Telegraph he was “shocked” when officials warned him that the backlog could reach 13 million patients.
He said the crisis would be helped by the lifitng of most remaining curbs in England on 19 July.
Javid stepped into the role of health secretary two weeks ago after his predecessor Matt Hancock resigned. He was caught on CCTV breaking social-distancing rules.
Javid told the Sunday Telegraph:
What shocked me the most is when I was told that the waiting list is going to get a lot worse before it gets better.
It’s gone up from 3.5 million to 5.3 million as of today, and I said to the officials, so what do you mean ‘a lot worse’, thinking maybe it goes from 5.3 million to six million, seven million. They said no, it’s going to go up by millions... it could go as high as 13 million.
Hearing that figure of 13 million, it has absolutely focused my mind, and it’s going to be one of my top priorities to deal with because we can’t have that.
Javid said the NHS would pay more private healthcare providers to continue to treat NHS patients, and keep virtual doctors’ appointments as part off a range of measures to tackle the backlog.
