Up to 750,000 coronavirus testing kits have been recalled due to safety concerns.
The UK’s medicine regulator asked Randox to recall the kits from the NHS Test and Trace Programme over concerns they may not meet safety standards, adding that the risk to safety was low and that the test results were not affected.
Meanwhile, thousands of NHS workers are marching in towns and cities across the UK on Saturday to demand a pay rise.
More than 500 health workers have died so far following exposure to coronavirus.
Follow the latest updates
Mixing in pubs and houses blamed for rise in coronavirus cases
Households mixing in pubs and houses has been blamed for a rise in coronavirus cases in Preston as the city became the latest area to have local lockdown restrictions imposed.
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) announced on Friday that households in the city will be banned from mixing indoors or in gardens.
It comes a week after the same measures were brought in for residents in Greater Manchester, parts of east Lancashire and West Yorkshire, as well as Leicester.
The DHSC said Preston would be added to a watch list as an "area of intervention" at the request of the local authority.
Local leaders in the city said that people mixing with other households in pubs, as well as in their homes, led to a need for increased coronavirus restrictions.
Speaking at a media briefing, director of Public Health for Lancashire, Sakthi Karunanithi, said almost half of the cases reported were among people aged 30 and younger.
Mr Karunanithi said the "two main reasons" for the rise in infections were people meeting others in their houses and households coming together in venues such as pubs.
He added: "These two are key behaviours we're trying to protect people from. Don't meet with members of other households in pubs and clubs."
New guidance will make clear the people should not be gathering with other households indoors, government says
The government said guidance will make clear that people should not be gathering with other households anywhere indoors.
The restrictions on gatherings will be reviewed again next week, with any changes to be announced by 14 August.
The health secretary, Matt Hancock, said: "The past week has been difficult for many people in Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire and east Lancashire, and I thank everyone in these areas for their patience and willingness to follow the rules.
"Yesterday I chaired a meeting of the Local Action Gold Committee, and unfortunately the data does not yet show a decrease in the transmission of this terrible virus.
"It means we must keep the current restrictions in place to allow more time for the impact of this ban on indoor gatherings to be felt, and make sure local residents and their loved ones are protected.
"At the request of the local area, we are also extending these restrictions to Preston.
"We are constantly examining the data on the prevalence of the virus in these areas, and we will review the measures again next week."
But Liberal Democrat health spokeswoman Munira Wilson said the failure to set up a comprehensive test and trace programme was leaving local councils "blindfolded" while trying to stop the spread of the virus.
She added: "The government must act now to reassure people in the Preston area that they are managing this serious outbreak.
"This is difficult when the prime minister has yet again brought in a regional lockdown without a press conference or any parliamentary scrutiny."
Thousands of NHS workers to march demanding pay rise
Thousands of NHS workers are expected to take to the streets in towns and cities across the UK on Saturday demanding a pay rise.
Health service staff were excluded from the wage increase for around 900,000 public sector workers announced a couple of weeks ago because they are in the final year of a three-year pay deal.
Instead they are due a pay rise next April, but unions want the government to show its appreciation for NHS staff by bringing it forward to this year.
More than 500 health workers have died so far following exposure to coronavirus.
New lockdown measures must be 'crystal clear', CBI says
The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) said that new lockdown measures must be "crystal clear" on what people can and cannot do.
Matthew Fell, CBI chief UK policy director, said: "There will likely be more local restrictions in parts of the country in the months ahead so it's imperative to improve implementation.
"That means ensuring any new measures get to the right people at the right time, and that the message is crystal clear on what people can and cannot do.
"More broadly, any new measures may impact on businesses directly and indirectly, so we must get the building blocks in place to protect jobs, as well as lives.
"We need to see improved support for businesses and people where staff absence is due to self-isolating and ensure any additional support is made easily accessible to local firms."
Preston council deploys 'don't kill granny' message
The chief executive of Preston City Council has deployed a "don't kill granny" message to young people to slow the spread of coronavirus after the area had lockdown restrictions reimposed.
Adrian Phillips told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "I know our director of public health has said 'don't kill granny' to young people to try and focus the message.
"Young people are inevitably among the brave and the bold, they want to be adventurous and out and about but we know that they have the virus, are more likely to at the moment, they often have less symptoms but they do take it back to their household and the community spread we are seeing we believe in many cases are young people taking it home and catching the virus.
"We're going to have to repeat it and whether Radio 4 is the correct channel for that I'm not quite sure but we're using multiple channels and we're working with community groups who are doing peer to peer comms around.
"It's just trying so many different ways to get the message to all communities, to all areas of our city that the virus is still something to be really wary of."
16,000 people may have died as direct result of lockdown, figures show
Some 16,000 people may have died as a direct result of the coronavirus lockdown, new government figures show, Colin Drury reports.
The shock number includes an estimated 6,000 people who did not go to A&E because they feared catching the deadly bug, and another 10,000 who passed away in care homes after early hospital discharges designed to free up capacity.
In the same period, 23 May to 1 May, some 25,000 people died after testing positive for Covid-19.
The estimates – which were presented to the government’s Sage group in July but only published on Friday – also suggest another 26,000 people could perish by next March because of ongoing restrictions on health care.
Another 81,500 lives could be lost over the next half century because of a combination of the recession caused by the lockdown and increased waiting times for hospital care.
'The problem is in the pubs', Preston resident says
In Preston this morning, many people on shopping street Fishergate were wearing masks.
One man with a stand selling face masks, who did not want to be named, said the city was less busy than the previous weekend.
But he said he did not think people were taking restrictions seriously.
He said: "You see the older people wearing masks but the younger ones don't.
"The problem is in the pubs and they don't wear masks there."
Do face masks stop the spread of coronavirus?
From Saturday 8 August, it is compulsory to wear a face mask in museums, galleries, cinemas and places of worship in England, Sophie Gallagher writes.
It was already compulsory to wear a face covering when visiting a supermarket, indoor shopping centre, coffee shop, or bank in England, with those who fail to comply at risk of being fined up to £100.
On 31 July, Boris Johnson explained that from 8 August, it would become obligatory to wear face coverings in “other indoor settings where you’re likely to come into contact with people you do not normally meet”.
Earlier this month, scientists said that mask-wearing should be adhered to in all public places where it is hard to social distance, particularly in crowds.
So just how effective is mask wearing? Does it protect the wearer from contracting the virus or just prevent the wearer from spreading anything they might not know they have?
Czech Republic records biggest daily rise in new cases since early April
The Czech Republic recorded its biggest daily rise in new coronavirus cases since 3 April due to local outbreaks in a number of regions, the health ministry reported..
The central European country of 10.7 million recorded 323 new cases on Friday, Health Ministry data showed, bringing the total number of cases detected to 18,060. Of those, 12,749 have recovered and 389 have died of Covid-19.
Health officials have said the recent uptick in cases is due to local clusters and they say hospitalisations, at 116, are well below peaks of over 400 as the government seek to avoid a national lockdown again.
However, officials have cautioned that some measures taken to curb the illness are likely to return after the summer holidays when cities become more crowded again and the flu season arrives.
The rising number of cases in the Czech Republic prompted Norway this week to re-impose a 10-day quarantine for travellers from the country.
What are the rules on wearing a face mask in England?
New rules on wearing a face covering have come into effect in England, a regulation that Boris Johnson warned "will become enforceable in law", Sarah Young and Sabrina Barr report.
In rules previously outlined by the government, people in England were required to wear a face covering in shops and supermarkets, as well as on public transport.
From Saturday 8 August, this is being extended "to other indoor settings where you're likely to come into contact with people you do not normally meet such as museums, galleries, cinemas and places of worship", the prime minister announced on Friday 31 July.
"We now recommend face coverings are worn in these settings and this will become enforceable in law from the 8 August," he said.
There has been widespread criticism of the government’s messaging over face coverings and confusion as to exactly where people should be wearing them.
Hong Kong reports 69 new coronavirus cases
Hong Kong reported 69 new coronavirus cases on Saturday, of which 67 were locally transmitted, as authorities continued efforts to contain a resurgence of infections in the global financial hub over the past month.
More than 4,000 people have now been infected in Hong Kong since late January.
On Friday, 89 new cases were reported, as the government announced that it would offer free voluntary coronavirus testing to Hong Kong residents.
NHS staff march on London demanding planned pay rise be brought forward
Thousands of nurses and NHS staff are protesting across the UK demanding a planned pay rise be brought forward from next April, in the wake of the coronavirus crisis, health correspondent Shaun Lintern reports.
Almost 900,000 public sector workers, including doctors, will be given an above inflation pay rise backdated to April it was announced last month, but this did not include more one million NHS staff such as nurses, cleaners and care assistants who are on a different contract.
Their unions agreed a three-year pay deal in 2018 worth more than £4bn, which sees staff receive between 6.5 per cent up to 29 per cent for the lowest paid.
Unions say April’s planned pay rise should be brought forward to recognise the role frontline staff have played in the Covid-19 pandemic.
Protesters were due to gather at St James’s Park in central London on Saturday morning before marching down Whitehall to Downing Street before a planned rally in Parliament Square.
Another 30 demonstrations have been organised in towns and cities across the country – including, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Liverpool, Newcastle and Sheffield.
Hundreds gather to march for fair pay for NHS staff in London
Hundreds of people have converged on central London to march for fair pay for NHS staff and recognition of their work during the coronavirus pandemic.
Crowds gathered on Horse Guards Parade ahead of the protest as a samba band led people in chants of "one two three four five, keep our NHS alive".
At least 17 test positive for coronavirus at major Afghan peace process assembly
At least 17 participants of a major Afghan grand assembly tested positive for the new coronavirus, officials said, a day after the high-profile gathering began in Kabul to deliberate over the fate of Taliban prisoners and the beginning of the peace process in the war-torn country.
After being called by the Afghan government, the gathering, known as the Loya Jirga, began on Friday with over 3,600 participants amid tight security and the COVID-19 pandemic to debate whether hard-core Taliban prisoners should be freed, removing a major obstacle in the peace talks.
"Samples from all 3,620 participants were taken by our health team, and among them result of 17 were positive" for the virus that causes the disease, said Saeed Jami, a spokesman for Afghanistan's ministry of public health. Some participants were tested twice, he said.
The 17 who tested positive have been sent to the hospital quarantine and treatment, he said.
Plague rocks Chinese village; while rabies hits US presidential race
For anyone bored of coronavirus news, there’s also bubonic plague and rabies making headlines this morning.
A village in China has been sealed off after a resident there died of the flea-spread illness.
Daily disinfection of homes has been ordered and 35 people quarantined in Suji Xincun, a tiny settlement in the Inner Mongolia region, as we report here.
Meanwhile, in the US, the Libertarian Party’s presidential candidate has had to pull out of a Saturday rally in Louisiana because she needs to go for a rabies jab after being bitten by a bat.
Jo Jorgensen doesn’t appear to be letting the hiccup get her down. She posted a clip of Batgirl shortly after announcing the hiccup.
Ukraine closes checkpoints at Crimea border
Ukraine's government says it has temporarily closed its border with Crimea, the peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014, to prevent further spread of coronavirus.
All three crossing points between the mainland and Crimea, which is defined by Ukraine as an occupied territory, will be closed from 9 to 30 August, a government statement said.
Only Crimean residents with Ukrainian citizenship will be allowed to enter Crimea.
Ukrainians who permanently live on the mainland will be able to return home during the three week closure.
Ukraine has registered a steady daily increase in new coronavirus infections since the end of July. The number of confirmed cases rose by 1,489 in the last 24 hours.
The total number of cases is at 79,750, including 1,879 deaths.
One man attending church service with coronavirus infected 91 others
The governor of Ohio has asked churchgoers to wear face masks, after one person attending church with coronavirus led to the infection of 91 other people across five different counties in the state, Clea Skopeliti reports.
Posting a graphic showing the infection’s reach to his Facebook page, Ohio governor Mike DeWine explained how the virus spread from the church service on 14 June to 4 July.
“All it takes is one person to cause tremendous #Covid19 spread,” the governor wrote.
Mr DeWine underlined that while the case study stems from a church, it can take place anywhere.
“I continue to encourage everyone to wear masks and social distance whenever you gather – including at worship services,” he added.
Up to 750,000 coronavirus test kits recalled over safety concerns
Hundreds of thousands of unused coronavirus testing kits are being recalled by the government due to safety concerns, Colin Drury reports.
The packs have been sent out by healthcare giant Randox to care homes and individuals throughout the pandemic.
But on Saturday morning the UK’s Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency asked the company to recall up to 750,000 of the kits after safety issues emerged.
Exactly what those issues are has not been revealed but it is understood the Department for Health and Social Care has asked for the sterility of some swabs to be independently verified.
A spokesperson said the risk was low and the recall was a “precautionary measure”.
Some 15 more die after testing positive for coronavirus in English hospitals
A further 15 people who tested positive for coronavirus have died in hospital in England, bringing the total number of confirmed reported deaths in hospitals to 29,401, NHS England announced.
The patients were aged between 67 and 100 years old and all had known underlying health conditions apart from one 91-year-old.
Twelve deaths were reported with no positive Covid-19 test result.
The region with the highest number of deaths was the North East & Yorkshire with eight.
There were no deaths reported in the North West, where local lockdown measures in place in Greater Manchester and parts of east Lancashire were extended on Friday to include Preston.
