Early evening summary
Here is a quick recap of the main Covid-related events from the UK:
- The government has confirmed that a further 1,239 people died within 28 days of testing positive for Covid-19 as of Thursday, bringing the UK total to 103,126. (See 4.13pm)
- Downing Street has refused to rule out the possibility of the UK sending vaccine supplies to the EU once the most vulnerable people in the UK have been vaccinated. (See Peter Walker’s take at 2.37pm).
- Coronavirus case rates are continuing to fall in all regions of England, the latest weekly surveillance report from Public Health England shows. (See 2.23pm). The rate of new cases in London is the highest rate of any region, followed by the West Midlands.
- Labour (41%) has gained a four-point lead over the Conservatives (37%) in YouGov’s latest poll of voting intentions. (See 11.12am)
- Asda has hosted the first dose of vaccine to be administered at a supermarket in England, with Harbans Kaur, 78, among the first patients to receive a jab at the new seven-day vaccine hub. (See 09.56am)
- Cabinet minister Michael Gove has said there “will be no interruption” to UK vaccine supplies from AstraZeneca after the European Union demanded doses from British plants during a row over supply shortages. (See 09.28am)
That’s all from me for tonight. But our coverage continues on our global coronavirus live blog here:
Updated
Scots will pay less income tax next year while local authorities will be funded to freeze council tax, amidst warnings that Scotland’s economic growth will not return to pre-pandemic levels until 2024.
As Scotland’s finance secretary Kate Forbes set out her draft budget to MSPs on Wednesday afternoon, she was accused by campaigners of failing to drive a green recovery, ahead of the COP26 climate conference hosted in Glasgow this autumn.
Forbes told MSPs that the “wrecking ball of a dismal Brexit deal” had compounded the toll taken on Scotland’s economy by the pandemic and that, while she hoped her budget would provide “support and stability”, and highlighted the difficulties in planning her spending in the absence of a UK Budget, which has been delayed until March, estimating a further £500m more from the Treasury to top up her plans.
Forbes announced over £16 billion for Scotland’s health services, with a further £869 million to directly support the fight against coronavirus. The budget also includes £1.1bn of spending on jobs and employment support and £3.1bn for education.
Updated
Government data up to 27 January shows of the 7,923,497 jabs given in the UK so far, 7,447,199 were first doses – a rise of 282,812 on the previous day’s figures.
Some 476,298 were second doses, an increase of 2,142 on figures released the previous day, PA media reports.
Updated
The Conservative party is under growing pressure to discipline the backbench MP Sir Desmond Swayne after he refused to back down from baseless claims that NHS capacity figures had been manipulated to exaggerate the scale of the pandemic.
My colleagues Archie Bland, Ben Quinn and Kevin Rawlinson report that Swayne, a former minister, refused to apologise on Thursday after the emergence of a November interview in which he urged a fringe coronavirus deniers’ group that has suggested the pandemic could be a hoax to “persist” in protesting against lockdown.
The Save Our Rights UK group has also published videos promoting the theories of David Icke and Piers Corbyn, as well as an interview in which it is claimed that coronavirus is linked to the QAnon conspiracy and that Madonna revealed her awareness of the pandemic at the 2019 Eurovision song contest.
Read the latest here:
Updated
The anticipated Covid baby boom might yet turn out to be a baby bust – according to new figures on the number of baby scans carried out in England.
According to figures from 80 NHS trusts in England, obtained by Sky News, there has been a 4% fall in 12-week scans carried out in 2020 compared with 2019 and a 5% fall compared with 2018, despite maternity services continuing throughout the pandemic.
Earlier this month, the accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers released research which said many people may have put off trying for a baby last year, meaning the annual birth rate could fall to the lowest level since records began.
“We expect the health, social and economic effects of the pandemic to result in a ‘baby bust’, where the postponement of pregnancies translates into a dramatic decline in birth rates in 2021,” the report noted.
But others say the jury is still out on whether the stork will be having a busy year.
Dr Jo Mountfield, consultant obstetrician and vice-president of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, said that while birth rates had been falling in recent years, scan numbers were not a reliable indicator of conception rates.
“We do know in the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, our data showed that 86% of maternity units reported a reduction in emergency antenatal presentations – suggesting that women may have delayed seeking care during the pandemic. This may have been due to confusion around whether these appointments are essential, fear of attending a hospital or not wanting to burden the NHS,” she said.
“We know this has been a very anxious time for many pregnant women but we want to stress that antenatal care is essential and encourage all women to attend their scheduled appointments throughout pregnancy. If a woman has concerns or worries about their or their baby’s health – including the baby’s movements – they should seek medical advice from their midwife or hospital immediately.”
Updated
UK records 1,239 deaths within 28 days of a positive coronavirus test
A further 1,239 people in the UK have died within 28 days of a positive coronavirus test, according to data from the UK government. That is a 0.2% decline on the past seven days.
That takes the total number of deaths in the UK to 103,126.
A total of 28,680 people have tested positive for Covid in the past 24 hours, a 29.4% decline on the past seven days.
There were 3,088 patients admitted reported on 24 January, an 11% decline on the seven days previous.
UK coronavirus figures for today pic.twitter.com/F3ovJ7XJes
— Alexandra Topping (@LexyTopping) January 28, 2021
Updated
Police officers were overseeing the “largest level of enforcement” against breaches of Covid-19 regulations since April, a senior police chief said, as the number of fines issued continued to rise, writes the Guardian’s home affairs correspondent Jamie Grierson.
In the week to 14 January, there were 2,564 tickets issued, compared with 2,225 in the week to 7 January, and 1,780 and 1,533 in the last two weeks of December. The highest number of fixed penalty notices (FPNs) issued was in the week of the Easter bank holiday in April last year when 3,294 were handed out.
A total of 42,675 fixed penalty notices (FPNs) were issued by forces in England and Wales between 27 March last year and 17 January.
Martin Hewitt, chair of the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC), told reporters it was the “largest level of enforcement” since April, and there had been a rising trend in enforcement since the Christmas week.
The NPCC said 80% of all coronavirus notices were given to those aged between 18-39.
Some 250 £10,000 fines have been handed to organisers of mass gatherings of more than 30 people, including illegal raves, parties and protests, in England, with two in Wales.
For face coverings, the NPCC figures showed a total of 1,319 fines were issued between 15 June and 17 January in England, including 251 on public transport and 1,068 in relevant places such as shops.
The data also shows 407 FPNs have been handed to businesses across 29 forces in England for breaches of regulations that came into force in September.
And 332 fines have been issued by forces in England and three in Wales, to people failing to self-isolate after arriving from a country on the government quarantine list.
Updated
Boris Johnson has said he is not concerned about Germany ruling that the AstraZeneca vaccine should only be given to the under-65s, arguing it “provides a good immune response across all age groups”.
Asked if he is concerned about the verdict in Germany during a visit to Scotland, the prime minister told reporters:
No, because I think the MHRA, our own authorities, have made it very clear that they think the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine is very good and efficacious, gives a high degree of protection after just one dose and even more after two doses. And the evidence they’ve supplied is they think it’s effective across all age groups and provides a good immune response across all age groups.
Updated
Scotland’s finance secretary, Kate Forbes, is delivering her budget as the prime minister continues his visit.
She has announced funding of over £16bn for Scotland’s health services, with a further £869m to directly support the fight against coronavirus.
Meanwhile, £90m will be made available to local authorities to freeze council tax levels for the coming year and prevent household bills rising, while there will be no changes to income tax rates and bands.
On public sector pay, Forbes said: “The UK government’s ill-judged pay freeze has a material impact on our block grant, within which we must balance reward and affordability of public sector pay.” She announced a 3% uplift for those earning up to £25,000.
Forbes told MSPs this was a time for “stability, certainty and targeted support”.
Updated
Downing Street has disowned an official poster promoting coronavirus restrictions, following complaints it was sexist, with the image also being withdrawn.
The poster, with the headline: “Stay home. Save lives,” showed four images inside homes – one has a woman leaning against a man on a sofa, while the others all show women doing housework or childcare tasks.
Boris Johnson’s spokesperson said:
It has been withdrawn and removed from the campaign. I will make clear that it does not reflect the government’s view on women, which is why we have withdrawn it.
He was unable to say who produced or checked the image.
Updated
Workers fear they may be put at increased risk of catching coronavirus because of the government’s plans to introduce quarantine hotels, unless comprehensive protections are put in place, a union has warned.
PA Media reports:
Unite is launching a campaign to ensure all hotels used to house travellers arriving in the UK are Covid-secure and that there is an awareness that staff are equally at risk of contracting the virus.
The union is encouraging its members to report and challenge breaches of health and safety.
Unite said official figures showed hospitality workers including chefs and pub managers were at greater than average risk of dying from Covid-19.
The high toll was a result of a “toxic combination” of insufficient sick pay, unscrupulous employment practices, a failure to maintain social distancing and a lack of PPE, claimed Unite.
Updated
The prime minister’s decision to visit a youth centre in Castlemilk, Glasgow, has been attacked by Stewart McDonald, the Scottish National party MP for the area, who said the best way to recognise the work of the armed forces was to improve their pay and conditions rather than fly up from London to say hello.
In a tweet, the MP for Glasgow South said:
The prime minister’s visit to Castlemilk - a community his party has hit hard - was wrong. It’s right to thank the armed forces who have helped in the fight against Covid, but the best way to do it is to pay them properly, improve their conditions & better support their families.
McDonald published an open letter to the prime minister at around the same time as Police Scotland rejected a handful of complaints that Johnson’s visit was in breach of lockdown regulations, which prohibit non-essential journeys.
The force has been providing Johnson with armed security support and motorbike outriders, so clearly believed the journey was lawful, as does Keir Starmer, the UK Labour leader.
A force spokesperson said:
We have received a small number of complaints regarding prime minister Boris Johnson’s visit to Scotland. This is a working visit in his official capacity as prime minister and we are policing the event appropriately.
Sharing UK Covid vaccines with countries in Europe and beyond is in the UK’s best interests, scientists have said, as the row over supplies intensifies.
Here is the full story from Nicola Davis, the Guardian’s science correspondent:
Downing Street refuses to rule out sending vaccines to the EU in certain circumstances
Downing Street has refused to rule out the possibility of the UK sending vaccine supplies to the EU once the most vulnerable people in the UK have been vaccinated, assuming the timetable to vaccinate other adults by September stays on track.
In somewhat confusing exchanges during the daily No 10 media briefing – which is currently held by conference call – Boris Johnson’s spokesperson repeatedly refused to rule out the idea, but also did not say it was being considered.
The questions came amid an escalating row over provision of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine after AstraZeneca guaranteed supplies to the UK but said provision for the EU, which signed a contract later, would be initially delayed due to production problems.
Asked if the UK could hand some of its stocks to the EU, the spokesman pointed to government plans to rush through the “phase one” vaccinations, to the top nine categories in the UK programme, going down as far as people aged 50 and above.
“Phase one includes those who are most vulnerable to the virus - that remains our priority to make sure we get vaccines to all those as quickly as possible,” he said.
Asked if this meant the UK could release some vaccine stocks once this was done, and if the timetable for vaccinating other adults by September stayed on track, the spokesman did not engage with the question.
He said: “All I can point to is what we have said previously about our intention to offer vaccinations to everybody by September and the other targets I have mentioned.”
Updated
This has just been posted by Layla Moran, the Liberal Democrat MP for Oxford West and Abingdon:
The Government's new border measures will only work if compliance with isolation improves drastically. Evidence from @AppgCoronavirus shows we need carrots as well as sticks. We should be ensuring no one suffers from loss of earnings because they have to self-isolate. Watch 👇 pic.twitter.com/rRrZKgHzTK
— Layla Moran 🔶 (@LaylaMoran) January 28, 2021
Updated
Covid case rates continue to fall in all regions of England, PHE data shows
Covid case rates are continuing to fall in all regions of England, the latest weekly surveillance report from Public Health England indicates.
The rate of new cases in London – which continues to have the highest rate of any region – stood at 435 per 100,000 people in the week to 24 January, down from 658.7 in the previous week.
The West Midlands recorded the second highest rate: 415.8, down from 565.6.
In contrast, Yorkshire and the Humber continues to have the lowest rate: 230.2, down from 256.4.
Updated
A cross-party group of MPs and peers is calling for the government to more than double financial support for university students in England whose education has been disrupted by the pandemic, potentially amounting to £700m.
The Guardian’s universities editor, Rachel Hall, has the latest here:
Updated
Police have detained a man after a suspicious package was sent to a Covid vaccine production plant in north Wales.
PA Media reports:
The suspicious package is reported to have been received at the facility, in Wrexham, on Wednesday morning, Kent Police said. A 53-year-old man from Chatham has been arrested on suspicion of sending the package and remains in custody as inquiries continue.There is no evidence to suggest there is an ongoing threat, police said.
We have arrested a #Chatham man following a report that a suspicious package was sent to a Covid-19 vaccine factory in #Wrexham.
— Kent Police (UK) (@kent_police) January 28, 2021
There is no evidence to suggest there is an ongoing threat and you can read more here: https://t.co/pWih9V8rW1
Updated
Boris Johnson met Army troops setting up a vaccination centre on his visit to Scotland, bumping elbows to greet soldiers at the site in Castlemilk, Glasgow.
Updated
This is from Harry Yorke, the Telegraph’s Whitehall editor:
The PM's spokesman has repeatedly refused to rule out giving the EU some of the UK's vaccines after JCVI groups 1-9 have received their jabs
— Harry Yorke (@HarryYorke1) January 28, 2021
At today's lobby he was asked more than half a dozen times, stating only that the UK was confident of its supply/hitting targets
Updated
Downing Street has defended Boris Johnson’s decision to visit Scotland after Nicola Sturgeon questioned whether it was an essential journey.
The prime minister’s official spokesman said:
It is a fundamental part of the Prime Minister’s job to go out and see businesses and communities and people. These are Covid-related visits. You’ve seen the Prime Minister do a number of them over the past few weeks. It is obviously important that he is continuing to meet and see those who are on the front line in terms of those who are providing tests, in terms of those who are working so hard to deliver the vaccination plan.
If curious to find out more about the different routes to another referendum on Scottish independence, you can read this Guardian analysis here:
Updated
Samantha Cameron has said her clothing business is being hampered by post-Brexit trading difficulties with European countries.
'If you're a small business, Brexit is a challenge.'
— BBC Woman's Hour (@BBCWomansHour) January 28, 2021
In her first solo BBC interview, Samantha Cameron talks to @Emmabarnett about the difficulties of being a small business owner now that the UK has left the EU. Listen to the interview on @BBCSounds 🎧 https://t.co/tb2G7OYJ4p pic.twitter.com/iN38bky5Od
Read the full story by my colleague Matthew Weaver here:
Updated
This is an update on vaccinations from Wales’ health minister, Vaughan Gething:
Another significant step forward by Team Wales with daily vaccine figures increasing by over 23 700. More than 336k have now had a #covid vaccine dose. Thank you to everyone who is making this happen. #BrechuCymru https://t.co/5EFmz0QLKt
— Vaughan Gething MS (@vaughangething) January 28, 2021
Updated
London’s deputy mayor for housing has asked the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) for clarification on whether the capital’s rough sleepers can be prioritised to receive a jab.
Tom Copley has written to JCVI chairman Prof Wei Shen Lim, saying there is a “window of opportunity” to vaccinate at-risk rough sleepers currently housed in hotels, PA media reports.
Updated
Keir Starmer, the UK Labour leader, has rejected Nicola Sturgeon’s criticisms of the prime minister’s decision to visit Scotland to see vaccination programmes at the Lighthouse laboratory in Glasgow and a vaccines production facility near Edinburgh.
Starmer told LBC this morning he believed Boris Johnson needed to tour facilities all over the UK; it came with the territory, Starmer said.
I’m with the prime minister on this one. He is the prime minister of the United Kingdom. It is important that he travels to see what’s going on, on the ground. I understand he is going to see a vaccine centre, going to talk to the NHS. I would expect the prime minister to do that, frankly.
Obviously, I’m his opposite number, but I’m going to defend him on this. He is the prime minister of the United Kingdom. He needs to know what’s going on, on the ground. I think that’s a perfectly legitimate thing for him to do. And I’m sure that is what he’s doing today. So you know, he needs to know what’s happening with the vaccine rollout.
I’ve seen it on the ground, that’s my job as well. It helps us understand the logistics, how well it’s going. What the problems are if there are any, so they can be solved. So a straight one with the prime minister, I’m afraid on this, I think he is right to do it.
Updated
Belgian authorities carried out an inspection at an AstraZeneca Covid vaccine plant in Seneffe, near Brussels, on Wednesday.
A statement from the country’s health ministry was reported to say the spot check was carried out “to make sure that the delivery delay is indeed due to a production problem”, according to PA media.
Pascal Soriot, the chief executive of AstraZeneca, has argued supply chain “teething issues” were fixed in the UK ahead of the bloc because Britain signed a contract three months earlier.
If interested, you can read more about the row over shortages within the EU.
Here is the latest from my colleague Daniel Boffey in Brussels:
Updated
This is from Tommy Sheppard, SNP MP for Edinburgh East:
Usually I welcome Boris Johnson visiting Scotland as it boosts support for independence, but his visit today is not essential and it undermines the public health message. You can see the full exchange here https://t.co/AEbiOogSAk pic.twitter.com/3zAF4VKEVC
— Tommy Sheppard MP (@TommySheppard) January 28, 2021
Speaking after the first jab to be given at a supermarket pharmacy was administered on Thursday (see earlier post), Prof Stephen Powis, national medical director for the NHS in England, said:
The NHS vaccination programme, the biggest in health service history, has got off to a strong start. NHS staff have worked hard with businesses, community and faith groups to set up an extensive network of vaccination sites that offer a range of options for people in all areas to receive their injection.
We want to protect as many people as swiftly as possible and this latest milestone, with more than 1,400 sites up and running, means that we can continue to expand delivery as more vaccine supplies come on stream.
Labour will bring forward a vote on Monday that will call for leaseholders to be protected from the costs of remediating their blocks with dangerous cladding and other fire safety issues.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has told LBC exclusively during Call Keir he will force a vote next week to help those impacted by the cladding crisis.https://t.co/bugqY3vYoD
— LBC (@LBC) January 28, 2021
Updated
Here are some pictures of the prime minister during his visit to Scotland today:
Updated
Jacob Rees-Mogg, the leader of the House of Commons, has branded Scotland’s first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, “Moanalot” after her criticism of the prime minister’s visit to Scotland today.
He suggested that Sturgeon should instead be “proud” of Johnson’s trip to a vaccine facility in Livingstone.
Rees-Mogg told MPs:
Well, I used to think that Moanalot was a fictional character, but it turns out it’s actually the first minister of Scotland. All Ms Sturgeon can ever do is moan a lot. She moans when distinguished royal personages visit Scotland, she moans when the prime minister visits Scotland, people doing their duty, doing their job...
The prime minister is doing his job, and Moanalot will have something to moan about in early February when (Alex) Salmond gives evidence to a committee of inquiry in the Scottish Parliament and we find out all that is going on up north to the disadvantage of the Scottish people led by a hopeless administration.
Updated
A total of 274,898 people tested positive for Covid in England at least once in the week to 20 January, the latest test-and-trace figures indicate.
This is down 17% on the previous week and is the lowest number since the week to 23 December last year.
Updated
Labour gains four-point lead over Tories in poll
Labour has gained a four-point lead over the Conservatives in YouGov’s latest poll of voting intentions.
Latest Westminster voting intention (26-27 Jan)
— YouGov (@YouGov) January 28, 2021
Lab - 41%
Con - 37%
Lib Dem - 6%
Green - 4%
Reform UK - 3%
SNP - 5%https://t.co/zagoLiHC6g pic.twitter.com/PpZtph1Xyz
But Labour insiders fear the party could lose a slew of council seats in May’s local elections, with polls suggesting only 4% of Tory voters are switching to the party almost a year into Keir Starmer’s leadership.
Updated
Black MPs from both major parties have joined together in a video encouraging people to get the coronavirus jab.
The rate of Covid infections and deaths among minorities has been disproportionately high compared with the white British population but polls have suggested they are less likely to take the vaccine.
Covid #vaccines 💉 are safe and will save thousands of lives. MPs from both sides of the @HouseofCommons are united on this.
— Nadhim Zahawi (@nadhimzahawi) January 27, 2021
Please watch and share this important video from black MPs from both the @Conservatives and @UKLabour. pic.twitter.com/mEqlGLws6F
Read the full statement here.
Insp Aled George @GPTorfaen 💬 Businesses who flout the regulations are behaving irresponsibly and putting the lives of their customers, staff + the community at risk.
— Gwent Police (@gwentpolice) January 28, 2021
💬 As this incident shows, we – together with @torfaencouncil – will take action to keep the public safe. 💬 https://t.co/2EuEcZfsiN
Updated
From the prime minister’s account earlier this morning:
It’s brilliant that @ValnevaSE is starting the large-scale manufacture of its potential vaccine, creating 100 high-skilled jobs at their Livingston facility.
— Boris Johnson (@BorisJohnson) January 28, 2021
We’ve secured 60m doses due to be delivered by the end of the year if it is approved for use.https://t.co/4pDUbczlVl
Updated
The Liberal Democrat leader, Sir Ed Davey, on Wednesday asked the prime minister to “at least tell the country that he will launch this inquiry some time this year, so we can find out why our country has seen the worst deaths rates from Covid in the world, learn the lessons and give bereaved families the answers and the justice he owes them”.
His piece today is titled: “Boris Johnson is running scared of a public inquiry.”
We must learn the lessons from this Government's response to coronavirus to prevent further loss of life - and, frankly, the sooner the better.https://t.co/m9UqByju76
— Ed Davey MP 🔶🇪🇺 (@EdwardJDavey) January 28, 2021
Updated
Boris Johnson, before a short day trip north, has asserted that Scotland’s fight against the Covid pandemic has benefited from the strengths of the UK.
The prime minister, facing intense pressure after a surge in support for Scottish independence, said the UK’s vaccines programme backed by the British army, additional Treasury funding for Scotland and the furlough scheme were proof the UK worked.
Read the full report by the Guardian’s Scotland editor Severin Carrell here:
Updated
This fresh analysis is from John Burn-Murdoch, of the Financial Times:
NEW: white people in England aged 80+ are being vaccinated at twice the rate of black people, and rates in deprived neighbourhoods are lagging behind less deprived areas https://t.co/MpIaF8DJJ1
— John Burn-Murdoch (@jburnmurdoch) January 27, 2021
The gaps are widening, suggesting fundamental challenges in ensuring equal protection pic.twitter.com/WAtAkvFzcR
Updated
The number of patients waiting longer than an hour to be handed over from ambulance teams to A&E staff at hospitals in England fell last week to its lowest level since the start of the year.
A total of 3,283 delays of over 60 minutes were recorded across all acute trusts in the seven days to 24 January, figures published by NHS England show.
This compares with 3,333 in the previous week, and 5,513 in the seven days to 10 January, which was the highest weekly figure so far this winter, PA media reports.
However, NHS England figures also show that around one in eight major hospital trusts in England had no spare adult critical care beds last week.
Updated
Here is the full report on the Swayne controversy from my colleagues Archie Bland and Kevin Rawlinson:
Labour leader Keir Starmer said the UK’s supply of vaccines should not be interrupted to divert doses to the European Union, adding that increasing global production was the way to resolve the row.
Starmer told LBC radio:
I don’t want to interrupt the supply of vaccines into the United Kingdom... But we do need to resolve this, it is a war of words, it has got to be resolved and there is no interest in other countries not getting the vaccine because unless this is dealt with globally we will simply reintroduce variants across the world.
I want to resolve this by ramping up manufacture across the world, I don’t want to interrupt the way we are doing it in this country, I don’t want to push that 12-week gap (between doses) back any further.
Updated
The SNP has said Boris Johnson’s trip to Scotland today is evidence of a “prime minister in panic”, after 20 consecutive polls have shown a majority support for independence.
Keith Brown, the SNP’s Depute Leader, has accused Johnson of mimicking Donald Trump’s attempts to block democracy.
Keith Brown MSP said:
Clearly, Boris Johnson is rattled. By branding this campaign trip as ‘essential’, this is clearly a Prime Minister in panic, who knows the Tories are losing the argument on independence. Twenty polls in a row have shown that a majority of voters believe Scotland’s future should be in Scotland’s hands – not Boris Johnson’s.
Scotland didn’t vote for this Tory government, we didn’t vote for Brexit and we certainly didn’t vote for Boris Johnson. Yet, in the middle of a global pandemic, we’ve been ripped out of the world’s biggest single market against our will causing havoc for businesses and piling even more pressure on our NHS. No wonder that more and more people in Scotland want the right to choose their own future. The longer Boris Johnson reads from the Trump playbook of democracy denial, the more support for Scottish independence will grow.
Updated
Some more on the Sir Desmond Swayne’s story (see earlier post). PA media have managed to get hold of the New Forest West MP for an interview.
They report that he is refusing to apologise for telling vaccine sceptics to “persist” with their campaign against lockdown restrictions, arguing he was unaware of their position on jabs. He has insisted, though, that any such sceptic campaigner should stick to the rules.
He said:
I have always had a great deal of respect for Michael but I’m not sure precisely what I’m being asked to apologise for. I’m evangelical in my support for the vaccination programme. As for my complaints for masking and the use of data, I’m on the record, I’ve said all of those things in the House of Commons. My remarks to them on those subjects mirror what I’ve said in the House of Commons. I was completely unaware that any of them had any traction on anti-vaxx and no anti-vaxx entered into the conversation I had with them.
Updated
Asda hosts first dose of Covid vaccine to be administered at an English supermarket
Asda has hosted the first dose of vaccine to be administered at a supermarket in England, as a 78-year-old woman was given the jab by in-store pharmacy staff.
Vaccinations with the Oxford and AstraZeneca injection were being rolled out from the superstore in Cape Hill, Smethwick, in the West Midlands, on Thursday, with up to 240 jabs a day set to be given, PA media reports.
First to receive the vaccine was local resident Harbans Kaur (pictured up top), Asda confirmed.
Roger Burnley, Asda CEO and President, has previously said:
We are incredibly proud to provide this service and are keen to do all we can to help the NHS and Government accelerate the rollout of the vaccination programme.
Updated
Senior Tory Sir Desmond Swayne has been condemned as “completely out of order” by cabinet minister Michael Gove after claiming that Covid statistics have been “manipulated”.
Sir Desmond, who represents New Forest West, was interviewed by a US anti-vaccine campaigner and urged an anti-lockdown group to persist with their efforts, suggesting official data should not be trusted, according to PA media.
Gove called for the former minister, who has described himself as a “most enthusiastic vaccinator”, to issue a full retraction and apologise for his “unacceptable” comments.
Sky News reported that in November Sir Desmond told the anti-lockdown group Save Our Rights UK that the figures were “bouncing round at the typical level of deaths for the time of year”.
He said:
It seems to be a manageable risk, particularly as figures have been manipulated... We’re told there is a deathly, deadly pandemic proceeding at the moment. That is difficult to reconcile with ICUs (intensive care units) actually operating at typical occupation levels for the time of year and us bouncing round at the typical level of deaths for the time of year.
"Just saying that he's wrong is nowhere near enough".
— Sky News (@SkyNews) January 28, 2021
Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner says Sir Desmond Swayne has "undermined the government's message" after he told anti-vaxxers to 'persist' against #COVID19 restrictions.
More on this #exclusive 👉 https://t.co/K2nIdR0l24 pic.twitter.com/lXpkAkFoje
Updated
Sir Jeremy Farrar, a Sage member, has warned that Covid vaccines must be made available around the world in an effort to keep cases down and prevent new mutations which could escape the effects of the jabs.
He says that “vaccine nationalism” is a reality that “we have to avoid”.
Vaccine nationalism is a reality that we have to avoid, the Wellcome Trust's Sir Jeremy Farrar tells @MishalHusain
— BBC Radio 4 Today (@BBCr4today) January 28, 2021
He argues that getting vaccines to the world is the "moral and ethical" thing to do. #R4Today
https://t.co/Nh56mCA0YJ pic.twitter.com/57Y0b8S2uo
Gove says there 'will be no interruption' to UK vaccine supplies from AstraZeneca
Cabinet minister Michael Gove has said there “will be no interruption” to UK vaccine supplies from AstraZeneca after the European Union demanded doses from British plants during a row over supply shortages.
Gove said on Thursday the “first and most important thing” is that the supply schedule agreed with the UK-based pharmaceuticals giant is honoured so the domestic vaccine rollout can be delivered before neighbouring nations are aided, PA media reports.
Updated
Here is the latest on Keir Starmer’s reaction to the quarantine proposals from LBC’s political editor Theo Usherwood:
Who should pay for the £1,500 stay in a quarantine hotel?
— Theo Usherwood (@theousherwood) January 28, 2021
Sir Keir says "it's a lot of money but the cost of not doing it is massive".
Should it be means tested?
"I don't know to be honest with you... but I don't want to introduce bureaucracy that means it doesn't work."
Covid cases may be rising in the East Midlands despite the lockdown, and infections could be merely plateauing in some other regions, the director of the React study has warned.
PA media reports:
Prof Paul Elliott said there does “seem to be a little bit of a downturn in the prevalence but not the large reductions we’d like to see”, with a “sharper decline in the South, in the South West in particular, and also fortunately in London from very, very high rates and also the South East”.
“But things are pretty flat or even increasing in some of the other regions, so it’s a bit of a mixed picture,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.
“We are unfortunately seeing a rise in the East Midlands and a flattening off in the other regions, in the West Midlands and the North of the country.”
Scientists have said that Covid cases have started to fall in England but must drop faster to relieve pressure on the NHS, my colleague Ian Sample reports.
The cabinet office minister, Michael Gove, has said a list of nations from which travellers must quarantine in hotels on arrival in the UK is to be reviewed.
He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme:
We will be reviewing today how extensive that list of countries needs to be and we will be guided by advice from our scientific advisers and we will be reporting back later on where the line will be drawn.
Questioned on whether more stringent border controls should have been imposed in March, he said:
There has been a lively debate about what we should or should not have done then. I don’t intend to add my voice to that debate. I think there will be an appropriate moment to review all the decisions this Government and others have taken during the pandemic.
In the same interview, Gove said people should not travel abroad to attend a wedding.
Good morning everyone. I will be running the blog today, so feel free to send me a message on Twitter with any coverage suggestions or story tips.
Yesterday, Boris Johnson confirmed that UK travellers will be interrogated at the border on their reasons for going abroad, as he said that British citizens returning from high-risk countries must quarantine in hotels at their own expense.
Johnson, who has faced criticism for rejecting a more comprehensive hotel quarantine system, added that no one should be travelling except for a narrow range of reasons.
Nicola Sturgeon has stepped in to question whether the prime minister’s planned visit to Scotland today to argue the benefits of the Union amid growing calls for a second independence vote is “genuinely essential”.
Scotland’s first minister suggested his trip makes it harder to convince the public to stick to travel restrictions.
But cabinet member Michael Gove has defended the trip, telling BBC Radio Scotland this morning:
He’s the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, it’s absolutely essential that the Prime Minister is there to see how on the front line we are progressing in our vaccine delivery and rollout programme. It’s critically important that the Scottish Government and the UK Government are working together to do everything we can to support the rollout and see what we can do to improve it.
We will keep you updated with the developments of the trip as they come. Johnson is expected to argue the Union has been integral in administering the coronavirus vaccine, providing Covid testing and giving economic support north of the border during the pandemic.
Below is the rest of the agenda for the day:
09:30am: NHS England weekly data on hospital activity.
11:00am: Weekly Test & Trace figures for England.
14:00pm: Weekly Public Health England Covid-19 surveillance report and vaccination figures.
Here is our global coronavirus live blog for the latest developments from around the world:
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