Top story: Problems, problems, problems for returning PM
Morning everyone. This is Martin Farrer bringing you the top stories to start the week.
Boris Johnson will resume control of Britain’s faltering response to the coronavirus crisis today as pressure mounts on his government to spell out how it will begin to ease the lockdown and reopen schools and businesses. The prime minister last night returned to Downing Street where the question of how to lift restrictions is the most pressing matter in an overflowing in-tray, which also includes fixing the government’s decision-making structure and dealing with the Brexit talks impasse. How to reach the target of 100,000 tests per day is also a key issue and ministers are considering ordering millions of antibody testing kits in the hope of establishing immunity levels across the country.
As countries across Europe plan to ease some lockdown restrictions this week, pressure on Johnson to do the same is especially strong from business leaders who have appealed for more clarity about Britain’s exit strategy. The tourism sector faces the worst of the job losses, a new report says today, with areas such as the Yorkshire Dales, Cornwall and Wales worst hit. The latest EY Item Club forecast says the economy could take three years to recover from the impact of Covid-19. But businesses themselves could face scrutiny thanks to a thinktank report that says FTSE100 companies using the taxpayer-funded furlough scheme paid their bosses an average of £3.6m last year.
Hospital coronavirus deaths in Britain were 413 yesterday, taking the total to 20,732 out of 154,037 cases. There are almost three million cases around the world and more than 200,000 deaths, although Wuhan now officially has no coronavirus cases. You can catch up on all the key developments overnight at a glance and read more details on our live blog.
There’s more in our Coronavirus Extra section further down … and here’s where you can find all our coverage of the outbreak – from breaking news to factchecks and advice.
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Back to Brexit – Part of Boris Johnson’s busy week will be focused on persuading European leaders to break off from tackling coronavirus to help untangle the Brexit imbroglio. The prime minister’s advisers have warned him that the negotiations that started last week are on track to fail. Europe’s chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, has accused the UK of not engaging with key issues such as fishing rights, and the so-called level playing field conditions to ensure neither side can undercut environmental, labour and social standards.
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Kim ‘is alive’ – Kim Jong-un is alive and well despite widespread rumours that he was seriously ill with heart trouble, according to a security adviser to the South Korean president. Moon Chung-in said overnight: “Our government position is firm. Kim Jong-un is alive and well”, adding that the North Korean leader had been staying in Wonsan – a resort town on the country’s east coast – since 13 April.
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Children stabbed – A one-year-old girl and a three-year-old boy have been stabbed to death at a home in Ilford in east London. The girl was pronounced dead at the scene on Sunday evening, while the boy died in hospital, police said. A 40-year-old man was taken to hospital for treatment. A murder investigation has been launched although no one else is being sought for the crime. All three were known to each other.
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Poet’s corner – A host of actors and celebrities will publish online readings of William Wordsworth to mark the 250th anniversary of the romantic poet’s birth. They include Stephen Fry, Brian Cox, Caroline Quentin, Ruth Wilson and Hugh Bonneville. The Hollywood star William H Macy will read She Dwelt Among the Untrodden Ways. It comes after the poet’s descendants were forced by the Covid-19 outbreak to scrap plans for a series of celebrations in the Lake District.
Coronavirus Extra
New Zealand claims it has eliminated the virus after recording only one confirmed case in the past 24 hours and will now ease its lockdown restrictions. One million Australians have downloaded an app to help health officials with contact tracing as some state governments start to ease the lockdown.
Donald Trump’s coronavirus coronavirus response coordinator, Dr Deborah Birx, has warned that Americans should expect social distancing measures to remain in place throughout the summer. The US needed better testing before it could reopen more fully, she said, as the president failed to deliver a media briefing for the second day running. For light relief, read our review of Saturday Night Live, in which Brad Pitt appears as another of Trump’s advisers, Dr Anthony Fauci, to explain the president’s claims about treating the virus.
The scientist leading Germany’s much-praised response has given us a fascinating question and answer session in which he thinks Britain was too late to start testing and suspects China’s raccoon dog-breeding industry could be linked to the outbreak.
Today in Focus podcast
From his temporary home in Rio de Janerio, the Guardian’s Latin America correspondent, Tom Phillips, can hear the nightly protests against Brazilian president Jair Bolsorano’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, where cases are steadily rising. He discusses how Brazil and other South American countries are trying to deal with the pandemic.
Lunchtime read: why Laurie Nunn has Sex Education on the brain
Laurie Nunn, the Anglo-Australian creator of Sex Education, talks to Rebecca Nicholson about how she nearly gave up writing before the series was picked up by Netflix and turned into a worldwide success story. “I just live in the brains of those characters. Not very healthy.”
Sport
The election campaign to be World Rugby’s top dog has ended and voting has begun, though we will not know for sure whether Bill Beaumont or Agustín Pichot has prevailed for more than two weeks. Dominic Thiem has firmly rejected the idea that the world’s top tennis players should chip in to help lower-ranked competitors who are struggling financially. Sports stars were among the fundraisers for the 2.6 Challenge, which in the absence of the London Marathon has so far raised more than £5m for charities during the coronavirus lockdown. Serie A has edged closer to resuming behind closed doors after Italy’s prime minister, Giuseppe Conte, gave the go-ahead for professional sports teams to resume training in May. UK politicians spoke up in support of racing’s ruling body and its chief executive, Nick Rust, after leaked emails showed high-profile trainers had called on Rust to quit and criticised him for a lack of leadership during the coronavirus crisis. And the New England head coach, Bill Belichick, has said not taking a quarterback in the Patriots’ first post-Tom Brady draft “was not by design”.
Business
Virgin Atlantic is seeking emergency backers as it teeters on the brink of collapse. The UK government has rejected Richard Branson’s suggestion that it could receive state funds to help prevent bankruptcy while its fleet is grounded. Asian stocks rose overnight and the FTSE100 is on course for a healthy 1% lift at the opening bell. The pound is worth $1.233 and €1.145.
The papers
The PM’s return to work is the lead in most papers. “PM returns to face critics and talk of a ‘new normal’”, says the Guardian, while the Telegraph has a blunt promise: “Johnson to ease the lockdown this week”. The Express says “Boris: I’ll get Britain moving but won’t risk lives” and the Mail has a similar “Boris bounces back to get UK moving”. The Times says “Ministers plan how to get Britain back in business” while in Scotland the Herald says “Lockdown could end later in Scotland than England”.
The Sun leads with a “salute to unsung heroes” with a headline reading “The homes front” while the Mirror is on similar territory with “Honour NHS heroes”. The FT says “BoE warns banks on loan reserves that risk choking business funding” and the Scotsman also has a businessy lead with “Post-Covid Britain ‘will face twenty years of pain’”.
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