Evening summary
- Thousands of protesters rallied in solidarity with Black Lives Matter across the UK. Defying calls from government officials to avoid mass gatherings amid the coronavirus pandemic, crowds wore face masks and gloves creating powerful scenes as they demonstrated for an end to systemic racism and demanded racial justice.
- NHS chiefs complained of being left ‘completely in the dark’ about new face mask policy. Chris Hopson, the chief executive of NHS Providers, said trusts were not consulted or given notice on government plans for all hospital visitors and outpatients in England to be required to wear face coverings from 15 June and all hospital staff to need to wear surgical masks.
- Schools in parts of the north-west of England are being ‘strongly advised’ not to reopen amid fears the R value is above 1 in the region. Both Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester, and the Liverpool city region metro mayor, Steve Rotheram, have questioned whether lockdown relaxation was being lifted too soon, driven from London, with the regions and the north not being listened to.
- Sunday trading laws could be suspended for a year in a bid to stimulate the economy post-lockdown. Unions said the move was “grossly unfair” and “misguided” as it would disrupt the lives of retail workers by increasing workloads and pressure from working longer hours. The plans could also see cafes and pubs given fast-tracked approval to serve food and drink outside.
- The UK death toll rose by 204 to 40,465.
That’s it from us on the UK side. If you would like to continue following the Guardian’s coverage of the pandemic, head over to the global live blog for the worldwide picture.
Updated
Thousands of people have joined rallies across the country in solidarity with protests in the US demanding justice for George Floyd and an end to systemic racism. From London to Sheffield, Glasgow to Cardiff, Leicester to Manchester, protesters have donned face coverings and gloves and ignored the home and health secretaries’ warnings not to attend large gatherings over virus fears.
Here are some more images from the movement.
Updated
“This is not an American issue. It’s a worldwide issue,” said a protester at the Black Lives Matter demonstration in London.
Updated
UK death toll rises by 204 to 40,465
Another 204 people have died after testing positive for coronavirus as of 5pm on Friday, the Department of Health and Social Care said.
This takes the DHSC death toll to 40,465 but does not include all deaths involving Covid-19 across the UK, which is thought to have passed 50,000.
The DHSC said that as of 9am on Saturday there had been 5,438,712 tests, including 218,187 tests on 5 June, of which 1,557 were positive.
The department said a total of 284,868 people had tested positive.
The figure for the number of people tested has been “temporarily paused to ensure consistent reporting” across all methods of testing.
As of 9am 6 June, there have been 5,438,712 tests, with 218,187 tests on 5 June.
— Department of Health and Social Care (@DHSCgovuk) June 6, 2020
284,868 people have tested positive.
As of 5pm on 5 June, of those tested positive for coronavirus, across all settings, 40,465 have sadly died.
More info:
▶️ https://t.co/xXnL3FU15k pic.twitter.com/nlgNheKeZ7
Updated
NHS England has confirmed a further 75 people who tested positive for Covid-19 have died, bringing the total number of confirmed reported deaths in hospitals in England to 27,359.
The number of deaths of patients with Covid-19 by region are as follows:
East of England 6
London 5
Midlands 15
North East & Yorkshire 19
North West 17
South East 12
South West 1
Total: 75
Any effort to relax Sunday trading laws have been condemned as “misguided” and “grossly unfair” to key workers by union leaders.
Any change would ignore the childcare challenges that many shop workers face while also stopping them from having a much-needed break on Sundays during the highly-pressurised coronavirus crisis, they said.
In contrast, the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) argues that “businesses need to be given every possible opportunity to start to generate sales again”.
Paddy Lillis, general secretary of Usdaw (Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers), said:
The last thing the retail industry needs is longer trading hours, there is no economic case for this and it will put extra pressure on the retail workers who have worked so hard throughout this crisis.
His comments come after reports of government plans to suspend Sunday trading laws for a year to try and stimulate the economy amid the coronavirus crisis.
Larger supermarkets could open for more than six hours on Sundays while cafes and pubs would be given fast-track approval to serve food and drink outside, doing away with the need for the 28-day minimum statutory consultation period, according to the Times.
Lillis said:
Opening for longer will increase overheads but not necessarily take any more cash through the tills. The fact is that customers will not have more to spend just because the shops are open for longer.
Our members in retail are working long hours, in difficult circumstances and under a great deal of pressure, they need a break. It isn’t too much to ask for a shorter day on Sundays.
Deregulating trading hours will put more pressure on shop workers to work longer and cause further problems with finding childcare.
Unite national officer Bev Clarkson said that retail workers, who have played a key frontline role in keeping the UK fed and supplied during lockdown, are “exhausted and deserve to spend time with their families”.
The government must understand that many retail workers have to work around childcare and by extending Sunday opening hours it will create additional stress and make it impossible for many workers to juggle work and their caring duties.
The Sunday Trading Act of 1994 allows large stores to open for no more than six consecutive hours between 10am and 6pm.
The former prime minister David Cameron was forced to drop plans to extend Sunday trading hours in 2016 after suffering a humiliating Commons defeat which saw 27 Tories joining forces with opposition parties.
The BCC director general, Adam Marshall, said:
If there are rules that can be relaxed to give more companies a fighting chance to trade their way through this crisis without compromising safety, ministers should do everything in their power to make it happen.
Updated
This is from the Guardian’s Mattha Busby
Thousands of anti-racism protesters already braving the drizzle on Parliament Square to defy calls from ministers and police chiefs to avoid mass gatherings #BlackLivesMatter #BLMLDN pic.twitter.com/eAr0GO8Pq5
— Mattha Busby (@matthabusby) June 6, 2020
Hundreds of protesters have gathered in Parliament Square in Westminster for an anti-racism rally, which began at 1pm.
A group of drummers is playing for the crowds, many of whom are carrying placards and dancing in time with the beat.
Streams of demonstrators continue to cross Westminster Bridge to join the protest despite the rainy conditions.
The majority of the demonstrators are wearing masks and face coverings, with some also opting for gloves.
Placards carried by demonstrators reference the coronavirus crisis, with one that says:
There is a virus greater than Covid-19 and it’s called racism.
Protesters were reminded to try and keep a 2-metre distance from others where possible and to be mindful of the pandemic.
Last night the home secretary, Priti Patel, appealed to people:
Of course, I completely understand people’s desire to express their views and to have that right to protest. But the fact of the matter is we are in a health pandemic across the United Kingdom and coronavirus is a deadly virus.
I’d say to those that want to protest: please don’t. The regulations are very clear in terms of gatherings and mass gatherings in particular. We must put public health first at this particular time.
Updated
While lockdown is eased for shops and beaches from 15 June, zoos are struggling to stay afloat after being told they must remain closed “indefinitely”, Helen Pidd reports.
This was despite the fact that zoo chiefs across the UK insist they are able to make their attractions, which are huge outdoor spaces, far more “Covid-secure” than non-essential shops.
With revenue from visitors making up 97% of the Chester Zoo’s income and running costs of £1.6m a month, its chief operating officer says the long period of closure is having a “devastating impact” and the zoo may never reopen its doors again.
The Welsh Mountain zoo, Wales’ national zoo, has also been “haemorrhaging” funds. It would have made at least £500,000 in the past two months, and that even with closed doors and staff furloughed, a zoo is a very expensive endeavour. It’s director of operations and administration said:
While we have cut expenditure, we cannot furlough our dedicated keepers. You cannot, basically, ‘switch off’ a zoo.
Updated
More schools have shelved plans to reopen on Monday, after new data suggested coronavirus could still be spreading in the north-west of England.
Health officials at Blackburn and Darwen council, which runs 85 schools in Lancashire, reportedly emailed local schools on Friday evening advising them not to reopen to more pupils on Monday morning.
The same advice has been given by officials in Tameside, Greater Manchester (see 10.46am.).
It comes after new data showed the reproductive rate, known as the R value, is higher than the crucial threshold of 1, in the north-west region.
The R value refers to the average number of people that will contract coronavirus from an infected person. If it is 1 or higher, the virus will spread exponentially through the population, while a value less than 1 indicates the virus is in decline.
Updated
A street market which has been operating for more than 600 years has reopened more than two months after closing in the wake of the coronavirus crisis.
Traders at the Saturday market in Lymington, Hampshire, last sold their wares on 21 March.
Lymington and Pennington town council, which runs the market, gave them the go-ahead to set up stalls again on Saturday.
Fewer stalls than usual were open, while customers were urged to stay apart when queuing and to sanitise their hands.
Updated
The Duke of Cambridge has revealed that he secretly worked on a crisis helpline.
The duke said he had been working as a volunteer supporting people contacting a crisis helpline developed by his Royal Foundation.
William’s work with Shout 85258 – a round-the-clock text messaging helpline – was announced to mark Volunteers Week.
Last month, the duke and duchess marked the service’s first anniversary by speaking to some of its volunteers via video call, and William said: “I’m going to share a little secret with you guys, but I’m actually on the platform volunteering.”
His wife, the Duchess of Cambridge, has also taken part in “check in and chat” calls with those self-isolating or vulnerable as part of the Royal Voluntary Service’s NHS Volunteer Responders scheme.
Updated
Updated
The government is understood to be on track to meet its 6 June care home coronavirus test target, despite a survey finding some had not received testing kits.
More than a tenth of homes surveyed by the National Care Forum (NCF), which represents 120 not-for-profit care organisations, reported they had not received testing kits at the start of the week, according to PA Media.
However, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) believes it is on track to have offered testing to all care homes with residents over 65 in England by Saturday, it is understood.
The DHSC is expected to announce whether it has hit its target in the coming days.
A letter from the DHSC sent to care providers on Friday revealed plans to expand testing to all remaining adult care homes for those under the age of 65 from 7 June.
Tests will be available to all residents and asymptomatic staff, the letter said, adding that 919,321 testing kits had so far been provided to care homes in England and that it is able to send out 50,000 test kits a day.
“We expect these to be adult care homes catering for adults with learning disabilities or mental health issues, physical disabilities, acquired brain injuries and other categories for younger adults under 65 years,” the letter said.
Responding to the announcement of expanded care home testing, the Voluntary Organisations Disability Group (VODG) said it was concerned the government was “continuing to overlook” other parts of the sector, including those in supported living.
Rhidian Hughes, VODG chief executive, said:
We have serious concerns about the lack of parity in government’s approach to testing. Government must protect all citizens and we are concerned that its current programme continues to overlook some types of support for disabled people and the staff and carers. Testing needs to be made available immediately for disabled people using care services whether living in their own home or supported living and whether symptomatic or not.
The health secretary, Matt Hancock, announced his pledge for universal care home testing on 15 May, saying “every resident and every member of staff in our elderly care homes in England” would be tested “between now and early June”.
Updated
Hello, I’m taking over briefly from my colleague Lucy Campbell.
Please feel free to flag updates either via Twitter or via email.
Cressida Dick, the Metropolitan police commissioner, has told officers not to take the knee as an act of solidarity during Black Lives Matter protests in the UK, for safety reasons, and advised people to protest without gathering in large groups because of the pandemic.
“We encourage our officers to talk to people,” Dick said during an interview on LBC, adding that a main function of the police was “to engage in a positive manner with people”. Dick said that although she understands the sentiment, “we won’t be kneeling during protests” in the UK.
“However heartfelt something like that might be, I don’t think it is likely to be safe,” she said.
Dick said that she would ask people to share solidarity with Black Lives Matter “in any other way than gathering on the streets”.
“We are fighting a deadly virus, it can get spread in gatherings,” she added.
Updated
The government should halve the 2-metre social distancing rule if businesses in the hospitality industry are to survive when they finally reopen, trade organisations have warned.
The British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) and UK Hospitality fear that many venues such as pubs and restaurants will not be able to make enough money if the rule, which restricts customer numbers, stays in place.
The BBPA chief executive, Emma McClarkin, said:
It must be recognised that no two pubs are the same and for many, ensuring a distance of two metres will be impossible, keeping them closed for much longer.
Actioning advice from the WHO for example to use one metre for social distancing from July would enable many more pubs to viably reopen and serve their communities again.
The UK Hospitality chief executive, Kate Nicholls, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme:
At 2 metres you are receiving 30% of your normal revenues, at 1 metre it gets up to 70% - so it is the difference between success and failure for many of those businesses. They will need support if two-metre social distancing is in place.
If that is what the science says and if that is what our public health needs, that is what we will maintain. We just need to have the additional government support to make that workable.
Added support through grants, loans or VAT cuts may be needed, it has been suggested.
Reopening of venues is expected to begin from 4 July in England and the government is soon expected to publish its guidelines on how pubs, restaurants and hotels can begin to welcome customers again.
Shrinking the 2-metre social distance to a 1-metre limit would boost the number of the UK’s 47,000 pubs that could safely reopen from one third to three quarters, according to the BBPA.
This would enable more pub staff to return to work as the government’s furlough scheme tapers off, reducing the risk of job losses.
The sector has also had to dispose of the equivalent of 70 million pints of beer that had gone stale.
The lockdown and good weather have seen the industry count its losses with the BBPA, which tracks sales of beer in pubs and shops, estimating that a total of 745 million pints could have been sold throughout April.
The hot late May bank holiday weekend, when Brits may have typically flocked to their local pub beer garden to soak up the sun, could have boosted sales by up to 10 million pints. The FA Cup final alone, which was due to take place that weekend, would have contributed two million pints to the overall 10 million boost.
The calls from the hospitality sector come amid reports that Sunday trading laws could be suspended for a year under government plans to stimulate the economy amid the coronavirus crisis.
Downing Street is said to be drawing up legislation to enable larger supermarkets to open for more than six hours on Sundays, according to the Times (paywall).
The paper also said cafes and pubs would be given fast-track approval to serve food and drink outside, doing away with the need for the 28-day minimum statutory consultation period.
Updated
This is from the Times’ Steven Swinford.
He reports that the summer recess*, and possibly conference recess, could be cut back to make up for lost time in getting Brexit and coronavirus legislation through parliament before the end of the transition period (31 December).
*It’s worth noting that parliamentary recess is not a “holiday” for MPs; they continue working for most of it back in their constituencies, particularly on casework.
Exclusive:
— Steven Swinford (@Steven_Swinford) June 6, 2020
MPs 7 week Summer holidays will be severely curtailed under Govt plans to get Brexit & coronavirus legislation through Parliament
It could be cut by 3 weeks, with Parliament going into recess in early Aug rather than on July 21 and returning a week early on Sept 4
Ministers are also looking at cancelling conference recess entirely in a bid to make up for lost time
— Steven Swinford (@Steven_Swinford) June 6, 2020
Conservative conference could still go ahead but Govt business would continue in Parliament in race to get legislation through before end of transition period
Schools 'strongly advised' to delay reopening with R value above 1 in north-west England
Schools are being “strongly advised” not to admit more pupils after new data suggested coronavirus could still be spreading in the north-west of England.
Headteachers in Tameside, east of Manchester, have been told to delay the wider reopening of schools beyond the children of key workers and vulnerablepupils, planned for Monday, “until there is further assurance”, the council’s director of public health, Dr Jeanelle de Gruchy, said in a letter to schools.
The north-west has the highest rate of Covid-19 infections in England according to Public Health England (PHE), and data has suggested the reproductive rate, known as the R value, is higher than 1 in the region, a crucial marker for public health.
The R value refers to the average number of people that will contract coronavirus from an infected person. If it is 1 or higher, the virus will spread exponentially through the population, while a value less than 1 indicates the virus is in decline.
Data from PHE released on Friday gave an R value of 1.01 for the north-west and 1.0 for the south-west, with all other regions below 1.
Other local councils in the region are understood to be monitoring the situation with Tameside postponing the reopening of schools until 22 June.
The government has suggested a strategy of “local lockdown” measures being introduced to fight any flare-up of the virus in particular areas.
But Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester, has questioned whether such measures are workable, calling them a “recipe for chaos”.
Both he and the Liverpool city region metro mayor, Steve Rotheram, have questioned whether lockdown relaxation was being lifted too soon, driven from London, with the regions and the north not being listened to.
Council bosses in Liverpool and Gateshead led a northern backlash against the government announcement last month advising schools to reopen for Years 1 and 6 from 1 June.
Many councils have instead only partially reopened to pupils other than vulnerable children or those of key workers.
The health secretary Matt Hancock, speaking at the Downing Street briefing on Friday, said experts on Sage believe the UK’s overall R number is below 1, but added that local lockdowns would be used when outbreaks are spotted.
He said the PHE data needed to be looked at “in the round” with other data.
Hancock added:
The discussion of the higher R in the north-west and the south-west that’s estimated compared to the rest of the country is an important part of moving towards a more localised approach rather than a national approach to the lockdown.
Updated
The home secretary, Priti Patel, tweeted last night that people should not attend protests this weekend as coronavirus remains “a real threat” as lockdown measures as eased.
Her words echo those of Matt Hancock when he used the Downing Street news briefing to implore people to avoid large gatherings “for the safety of your loved ones”.
Please for the safety of all of us, do not attend large gatherings - including protests - of more than six people this weekend.
— Priti Patel (@pritipatel) June 5, 2020
As @MattHancock said, coronavirus remains a real threat and people must protect themselves and their families from this horrific disease. https://t.co/AijZRYuQ30
Protests have been organised across the UK for Saturday and Sunday, following a week of huge, impassioned demonstrations over the death of George Floyd in police custody in the US.
Police have been on alert all week and so far have largely handled the protests with a light touch, knowing any missteps could trigger a stronger reaction, making no effort to police physical distancing rules as crowds crammed together in solidarity with Black Lives Matter.
On Friday, Laurence Taylor, the deputy assistant commissioner at the Met, warned that this weekend’s demonstrations would be unlawful unless protesters respected physical distancing, but it remains unclear what this will mean in practice.
Updated
Public urged to be 'very careful' and wear face masks during anti-racism protests
People attending anti-racism protests planned across the UK this weekend should be “very careful”, wear face masks and observe social distancing rules, an infectious diseases expert has said.
Prof John Edmunds, who attends meetings of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) supporting the government, told Today:
I can understand why people would want to protest but on the other hand I think people need to be careful - very careful.
If you think about it, overall the infection rate in the community is about 1 in 600, 1 in 700 maybe, so in large groups of individuals you would expect there to be some individuals in a large group who would be infectious.
He said people can transmit coronavirus before displaying symptoms, and added:
Mask wearing would reduce the risk to some extent from individuals who may be infectious.
It’s a different tone to that of the health secretary, who urged the public on Friday to avoid large gatherings of more than six people, including protests, over the weekend “for the safety of your loved ones”.
Matt Hancock said he understood why people are appalled at the death of George Floyd but warned that coronavirus remains a “real threat” in the UK as lockdown easing measures come into effect.
Updated
This is a really useful thread from Nick Stripe, the head of health analysis at the Office for National Statistics, on “non-Covid excess deaths”.
One tweet reads:
The balance of evidence so far points to undiagnosed Covid-19 in the elderly being the most likely explanation for a majority of excess deaths that did not mention coronavirus on certificates.
Stripe also highlights that the data shows very significant increases in deaths due to dementia and Alzheimer’s and for deaths due to old age and frailty. He writes:
Dementia increases are so sharp it’s implausible that they are unrelated to Covid.
THREAD – “Non-COVID” excess deaths
— Nick Stripe (@NickStripe_ONS) June 5, 2020
Between 7 Mar & 1 May there were 130k deaths registered across E&W
This was 46.4k deaths above 5-yr averages
According to death certs 12.9k (28%) of this “excess” did not mention COVID
98% are now fully coded enabling detailed analysis
1/n pic.twitter.com/grYsZM4BS0
I’m grateful to Andrew on Twitter for flagging this to me.
Updated
The government is under pressure to bring in tougher local lockdowns in some areas, as a new study showed the R value was rising across England and had tipped above 1 in the north-west for the first time since the peak of the pandemic.
The model, from scientists at Public Health England and the University of Cambridge, puts the R value at 1.01 for the north-west and 1 for the south-west. The north-west – including Liverpool and Manchester – is viewed as particularly concerning due to higher numbers of infections there, which would be projected to continue at the current rate.
Regional leaders said they feared the prospect of a second spike in deaths and that the decision to ease lockdown based on the national picture – ignoring regional hotspots – had been a mistake.
Care home residents paying extra £100 a week for coronavirus costs
Care home residents are being asked to pay a steep and unexpected “coronavirus bill” on top of existing fees to help social care providers stay afloat, Amelia Hill reports.
Some older people and their families who fund their own care home fees are being forced to pay more than £100 a week, on top of their usual care home fees, with homes saying the cost of PPE and staff absences could push their finances into the red, threatening their sustainability.
“Older people living in care homes and their families have been through the mill these last few months,” said Caroline Abrahams, charity director at Age UK.
It is adding insult to injury that after going through so much, some residents who pay for their own care are now facing a big extra bill – on top of already expensive fees.
Abrahams said that central government should meet care homes’ extra costs. “Otherwise there’s a risk that some homes could fold, leaving their residents homeless,” she warned.
NHS trust chiefs not consulted or warned about new face masks rule
Good morning. NHS trusts were not consulted or given notice on government plans for all hospital visitors and outpatients in England to be required to wear face coverings from 15 June and all hospital staff to need to wear surgical masks, the chief executive of NHS Providers has said.
Chris Hopson told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme they had been “left completely in the dark”. He said:
Two major changes on the use of personal protection equipment and on visiting policy were announced late yesterday afternoon at the end of what to be frank was a very busy, difficult and hard week for our trust leaders, with absolutely no notice or consultation.
I think it’s the latest in a long line of announcements that have had a major impact on the way the NHS operates in which those frontline organisations feel they have been left completely in the dark and they are then expected to make significant and complex operational changes either immediately or with very little notice.
Hopson said trust leaders were worried there was not enough strategy or planning and that it feels like “last-minute decisions are being made on the hoof that seem overly influenced by politics and also the need to fill the space at the Downing Street press conferences”.
He added:
We really need to get into a proper, sensible forward plan and forward strategy on what we’re trying to do where trusts are given the time and the space they need to do complex and difficult things.
Our political leaders need to understand that running these organisations is a complex and difficult task and what you can’t do is turn on a sixpence and do stuff like give every single member of staff a face mask without being prepared for it, and also without being sure that you’ve got the masks that you need to ensure that that requirement is met.
Elsewhere, Sunday trading laws could be suspended for a year under government plans to stimulate the economy as lockdown measures are eased. The Times (paywall) reports that cafes and pubs could also be given fast-tracked approval to serve food and drink outside.
Please do feel free to get in touch throughout the day as I bring you all the latest coronavirus-related developments from the UK.
Email: lucy.campbell@theguardian.com
Twitter: @lucy_campbell_
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