Top story: Fears over loosening of restrictions
Greetings, Warren Murray with news about now and the not too socially distant future.
Boris Johnson is to announce that the lifting of most remaining Covid-19 restrictions in England will go ahead on 19 July, though government scientific advisers have warned it would be like building new “variant factories”. The school bubbles system, which has forced hundreds of thousands of pupils to quarantine at home if someone tests positive, is expected to be dropped, while pub and restaurant customers may no longer have to scan an NHS QR code.
Despite cases having risen to their highest level since January 2021, in a Downing Street press conference this afternoon the PM is expected to announce that, with 86% of adults in the UK having had at least a first jab, the government will move from relying on legal curbs to control people’s behaviour to letting individuals make their own decisions. Changes to be announced include allowing fully vaccinated adults to travel to amber list countries without having to self-isolate when they return; making the wearing of face masks voluntary, apart from in hospitals and other healthcare settings; and no longer requiring fully vaccinated adults to self-isolate if they have come into contact with an infected person.
Travellers entering the UK from red list countries who suffer financial hardship will be able to apply for waivers or discounts on the cost of mandatory hotel quarantine, lawyers fighting the policy have revealed. It costs £1,750 for an adult to stay in a room for the required 10 days of quarantine, with additional adults costing £650 and children aged five to 11 £325.
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Rest of condo demolished – Workers have set off explosives to demolish the remaining portion of a partly collapsed apartment building in Miami. Concern had mounted that the damaged Champlain Towers condo building was at risk of falling on its own, endangering rescues crews below and preventing their work.
The approach of Tropical Storm Elsa added urgency to the demolition. So far, rescuers have recovered the remains of 24 people, with 121 still missing. Rescuers were due to resume searching after the all-clear this morning.
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‘Power grab’ – Boris Johnson is to announce plans to seize greater control of the NHS despite warnings the “power grab” will see ministers blamed for delays in treatment and closure of local hospital units. New powers would enable the health secretary to abolish NHS arm’s length bodies and intervene much earlier in deciding if an A&E or maternity unit deemed unsafe had to shut. Labour has called for the bill to be scrapped – meanwhile the party has revealed the number of beds in NHS mental health hospitals has fallen by a quarter since 2010, forcing more patients to go far away from home for treatment. All this comes as the Queen awards the NHS the George Cross for heroism to mark its public service over seven decades – only the third time the award has been given to a collective body, country or organisation.
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Given go-ahead – The owners and insurers of the Ever Given container ship that blocked the Suez Canal in March have announced a formal settlement in a compensation dispute, and the canal authority said the vessel would be allowed to sail on 7 July. The Suez Canal Authority (SCA) has held the ship and its crew in a lake between two stretches of the waterway since it was dislodged on 29 March, amid a dispute over a demand for compensation by the SCA. The Japanese-owned Ever Given had become stuck in high winds and remained wedged across the canal for six days, disrupting global trade.
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‘Fills me with dread’ – With the lifting of coronavirus restrictions in England probably two weeks away, business leaders are working to cajole workers back to the office. Despite the introduction of flexible tickets for commuters, the government is not anticipating a full-blown return to workplaces. We asked readers to tell us how they feel about heading back to the office.
Fatma Mehmet commuted from Hertfordshire to London for work for more than 15 years: “I used to spend just under £5,000 a year, and have never got a seat … the thought of commuting again fills me with fear and dread.” But Owen Fraser, 23, from Aberdeen, is looking forward to it: “Remote working was bad for my mental health … the commute gave me the opportunity to catch up with the day’s events on, say, Radio 4. On my way home, I used to stop off on my local high street, to meet some friends or visit my favourite shops.”
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Op on pope – The pope “reacted well” to planned intestinal surgery on Sunday evening at a Rome hospital, the Vatican has announced. A Holy See spokesman said Francis, 84, had general anaesthesia during the surgery necessitated by a stenosis, or narrowing, of the sigmoid portion of the large intestine. Hours earlier the pope had cheerfully greeted the public in St Peter’s Square and told them he would visit Hungary and Slovakia in September. The surgery, at the Gemelli Polyclinic, a Catholic teaching hospital, is the pope’s first known treatment in hospital since he was elected to the papacy in 2013.
Today in Focus podcast: Affairs of powerful men
After Matt Hancock was forced to resign when a secret relationship was exposed, the couples therapist Orna explores the cocktail of ego and vulnerability that leads some senior figures to risk it all.
Lunchtime read: Humans, ignoring the climate for generations
The effects of “weird weather” were already being felt in the 1960s, but scientists linking fossil fuels with climate change were dismissed as prophets of doom, Alice Bell explains.
Sport
Gareth Southgate has said that returning to Wembley to feed off a pulsating atmosphere will help England in their Euro 2020 semi-final against Denmark on Wednesday. Emma Raducanu, the 18-year-old debutant, takes on Ajla Tomljanovic on Monday at Wimbledon, where her emergence has been aided by the public glare being less harsh. The defending Tour de France champion, Tadej Pogacar, broke the resistance of his most likely rivals and took a near-invincible lead in the three-week race, after only nine of the Tour’s 21 stages.
St Helens inflicted a fifth successive Super League defeat on Wigan for the first time in 15 years in a rain-sodden derby to keep the pressure on the league leaders, Catalans. England beat the USA 43-29, with seven tries including two for Joe Cokanasiga and one for debutant Marcus Smith, but the visitors to Twickenham scored four tries. Israel Folau, the sacked former Australia international, has signed with Japanese Top League side NTT Communications in a shock return to rugby union. And a Danish supporter has spoken about the moment he had a rainbow flag confiscated before the Euro 2020 quarter-final against the Czech Republic at the Olympic Stadium in Baku.
Business
Most Asian stocks have gained, extending the rally that took global equities to a record high after a US jobs report signalled the economic recovery remained intact but didn’t yet warrant any immediate withdrawal of Federal Reserve stimulus. Japanese markets have bucked the trend, with the Nikkei falling 0.5% following a surge in Covid-19 infections in Tokyo just weeks before it hosts the Olympics. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.3%, led by a 1% gain in Taiwan. Chinese blue chips added 0.1%. The FTSE should open higher, while the pound is worth $1.382 and €1.166 at time of writing.
The papers
Johnson’s decision to lift all Covid restrictions on 19 July – despite cases rising to their highest level since January this year – receives a mixed reception across this morning’s front pages, with the Guardian’s top story about scientific advisers’ warnings that lifting the restrictions will be like building new “variant factories”.
The Daily Mirror’s splash is “Facing the Future” with its opening paragraph declaring, “Boris Johnson will today confirm Covid curbs are to end on July 19, despite cases still soaring.” The Daily Mail, the Times and the Daily Telegraph focus on the PM’s call for people to “use common sense” when it comes to wearing masks and practising social distancing. Under the new guidance, face coverings will no longer be legally required.
The Sun is jubilant, with a front page comparing England’s upcoming Euro 2020 semi-final match against Denmark with Johnson allowing pubs to end the requirement for table service. The Daily Express leads on the Queen awarding the George Cross to the NHS – you can read our report on that here.
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