That’s it from the UK blog team. You can follow our global coronavirus coverage here -
A summary of today's developments
- The health and social secretary, Matt Hancock, announces he has formally asked the regulator – the MHRA – to assess the Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus vaccine for use in the UK. He told a No 10 press conference the company had already begun submitting data to the regulator and would submit its full data in the coming days. If approved, the vaccine will be rolled out from next month, with the bulk of rollout in the new year.
- Hancock said there have been 511 further coronavirus deaths in the UK in the latest 24-hour period. More than 70,000 deaths involving Covid-19 have now occurred in the UK.
- The home secretary, Priti Patel, said she is “absolutely sorry” and that she “never intentionally set out to upset anyone” after an official investigation found she bullied staff. Bob Kerslake, a former head of the civil service, said Patel’s refusal to resign over bullying was “reprehensible”. Sir Philip Rutnam, who resigned as the Home Office’s permanent secretary after accusing Priti Patel of a “vicious and orchestrated briefing campaign” against him, said she was advised not to “swear and shout” at staff last year.
- The R number estimate of coronavirus transmission in the UK has fallen to 1.0-1.1, government scientists have said. According to the latest update from the Government Office for Science and the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage), that means that on average every 10 infected people will infect between 10 and 11 other people.
- Prof Jonathan Van-Tam, the deputy chief medical officer for England, is the latest senior figure to reveal he is in self-isolation.
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Sir Philip Rutnam, who resigned as the Home Office’s permanent secretary after accusing Priti Patel of a “vicious and orchestrated briefing campaign” against him, said she was advised not to “swear and shout” at staff last year.
The prime minister’s adviser on ministerial standards, Sir Alex Allan, said in his report into allegations of bullying against the home secretary that there was “no evidence that [Patel] was aware of the impact of her behaviour and no feedback was given to her at the time”.
But in a statement issued by the FDA union, Rutman said: “I have a high regard for Sir Alex Allan and regret his resignation, but I was at no stage asked to contribute evidence to the Cabinet Office investigation which gave rise to his advice to the prime minister.
The advice states that no feedback was given to the home secretary and that she was therefore unaware of issues that she might otherwise have addressed. This is not correct.
As early as August 2019, the month after her appointment, she was advised that she must not shout and swear at staff. I advised her on a number of further occasions between September 2019 and February 2020 about the need to treat staff with respect, and to make changes to protect health, safety and wellbeing.
Enormous efforts were made from top to bottom in the Home Office to support the new home secretary and respond to her direction, and significant achievements have resulted. The advice does not fairly reflect this.
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More from the health secretary, Matt Hancock, who said it would be a “boost” to the UK if all four of its nations could reach arrangement to allow families to meet over Christmas.
Asked during the Downing Street press conference what his festive plans were, he said: “My plans at the moment are to have a small family Christmas, maybe with my father-in-law who lives on his own and is in our family bubble.
“That would be allowed under the existing rules.”
He added: “I’m very respectful of the work going on which is being led by others to see if we can get a UK-wide approach, that’s why I’m reluctant to comment any more on what the Christmas arrangements might be.
I just think it would be such a boost to the whole of the UK if the four nations each responsible for healthcare in a devolved way can come together and agree a set of arrangements that’s both safe and careful and sensible but also allows families to see each other at Christmas.
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More than 70,000 deaths involving Covid-19 have now occurred in the UK, new figures show.
A total of 65,911 deaths have so far been registered in the UK where Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificate, according to the latest reports from the UK’s statistics agencies.
This includes 1,227 deaths in Northern Ireland up to November 13 (and registered up to November 18), which were confirmed by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency on Friday.
Since these figures were compiled, a further 3,957 deaths are known to have occurred in England, plus 58 in Scotland, 262 in Wales and 66 in Northern Ireland, according to additional data published on the government’s coronavirus dashboard.
These totals mean that so far there have been 70,254 deaths involving Covid-19 in the UK.
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On Hancock being questioned during the briefing about an official investigation finding that Priti Patel had bullied civil service staff, the Guardian’s John Crace noted:
Matt Hancock implying that Boris hasn't read the PP report by saying PM doesn't think she has broken ministerial code
— John Crace (@JohnJCrace) November 20, 2020
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Hancock said he has grown “more and more confident” that life will be closer to normal by spring.
He said: “Chris Whitty [the chief medical officer for England] has said he hopes that we will be able to get back more towards normal by the spring.
And with this news we’ve had over the last few weeks and with the expansion of mass testing I’m more and more confident that he’s right.
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The Downing Street briefing has now concluded. The main takeaway is the MHRA has been asked to assess whether to approve the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine.
If approved, the vaccine will begin to be rolled out in the UK in December.
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Hancock said it is a question for the MHRA on how long they will take to decide whether to approve the Pfizer vaccine, but said the FDA approving it in the US gave the UK government the confidence to take the next step.
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Prof Jonathan Van-Tam, the deputy chief medical officer for England, is the latest senior figure to reveal he is in self-isolation.
Joining the Friday afternoon press briefing via a video link, he said: “I am sorry I can’t be with you personally, I am actually self-isolating at the moment, due to a household contact.”
He has signed off each answer with “over”, perhaps setting a new standard for virtual communications during the pandemic.
NHS England’s medical director, Stephen Powis, also joined the press briefing remotely because he is self-isolating.
Other senior figures confined to their home include Boris Johnson, who is currently isolating after one of the MPs who joined a meeting at Downing Street this week tested positive for coronavirus, and Dido Harding, the head of the test-and-trace service, who is self-isolating after the NHS app revealed she had been in contact with a positive case.
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When asked if there will be enough supply to vaccinate everyone by April, Hancock says there are “uncertainties” but the task for the NHS is to make sure it can deploy the vaccine as quickly as it can be manufactured.
Hancock added he cannot give a figure on the take-up percentage required yet.
A question is asked about concerns of low take-up of the vaccine.
Hancock said no vaccine will be rolled out without being signed off by the independent regulator.
There is huge amount of work going on ensuring objective, factual information is made available rather than things that aren’t true and scare stories that are put about.
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Slight hitch to Hancock's "next month" comments - Jonathan Van Tam warned there were no guarantees about when a vaccine will start being rolled out. He also warned it was “pointless” to speculate about how many doses will be available and when.
— Dan Bloom (@danbloom1) November 20, 2020
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Prof Van-Tam also discloses he is self-isolating due to a “household contact”.
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Prof Van-Tam says we are on the “glide path” towards a vaccine but there is a risk of “side winds”.
He would not be drawn on a percentage of a vaccine being rolled out next month.
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A question is asked about support for key workers and single parents who will not be paid by their employer when they isolate with their children.
Hancock said there is a £500 support payment for people on Universal Credit who are in the situation so they can “do the right thing”.
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A question is asked about Sage saying any day of easing of restrictions will lead to five days of tougher rules, and the risk of relaxing rules over Christmas.
Hancock said it depends on what you get the R number down to.
“We have the much-expanded mass testing” and an approach which aims to keep people safe and seeing loved ones over Christmas, he said.
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On the rise in cases in the south and east of England, Hancock said: “We watch each day’s data vigilantly. We are just at the point where we are starting to see it flattening.”
Van-Tam said the data was a few days behind, from 8-14 November, and it may have turned since then.
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NHS England’s national medical director, Prof Stephen Powis, said that “in the last few days” it “looks as if there’s a levelling off” in hospital patients with coronavirus.
But he cautioned: “That is just a few days’ data and it’s important not to read too much into it yet. We need to see data over a few more days and into next week.
We are starting to see evidence that, as a result of restrictions, infection rates are falling.
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A question is asked about restrictions in England after 2 December and over Christmas.
Hancock admits “it is still too early to tell” and cites the ONS study published today showing that the peak is flattening.
He said the government is trying to have a “consistent set of rules” across the UK so people can visit loved ones.
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A question is asked about whether the disproportionate number of deaths among people of colour will mean these communities are given vaccine priority.
Hancock said the government’s committee said the most important determining factor is a person’s age and those looking after you.
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Vaccine could be unveiled next month
Hancock said the approval process was “another important step forward in tackling this pandemic”.
He said the speed of the rollout of a vaccine would depend on the speed it could be manufactured.
“If the regulator approves a vaccine we will be ready to start the vaccination next month, with the bulk of rollout in the new year,” he said.
“We are heading in the right direction but there is still a long way to go.”
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The health secretary also confirmed free flu jabs in England for the over-50s from 1 December.
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Hancock says he has asked regulator to assess Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine for use in the UK
Hancock says that he has formally asked the regulator – the MHRA – to assess the Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus vaccine for use in the UK.
He told a No 10 press conference the company had already begun submitting data to the regulator and would submit its full data in the coming days.
Updated
Hancock said there has been 511 further coronavirus deaths in the UK in the latest 24-hour period.
Updated
Matt Hancock’s Downing Street briefing is under way. He said there have been 22,287 cases this week, down on around 24,000 last week.
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Bob Kerslake, a former head of the civil service, has said Priti Patel’s refusal to resign over bullying was “reprehensible”.
He told the BBC:
It is absolutely a clear-cut breach of the code on a very serious issue of bullying. In those circumstances in any other time the minister would have gone.
We expect higher standards from our government. We expect them to follow the highest possible standard of behaviour. She hasn’t met it, she should go and the fact that she isn’t going is in my view just reprehensible.
He added: “I think it will worry people that when we are under pressure, [when] push comes to shove, political expediency will trump proper standards of conduct and behaviour.
“I have to say – and I don’t like saying this – that the standards have fallen since Boris Johnson became prime minister.”
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Priti Patel says after bullying inquiry she is 'absolutely sorry' to anyone she has upset
The home secretary, Priti Patel, has said she is “absolutely sorry” and that she “never intentionally set out to upset anyone” after an official investigation found she bullied staff.
In a broadcast interview, she said: “I’m sorry that my behaviour has upset people and I’ve never intentionally set out to upset anyone.
“I work with thousands of brilliant civil servants every single day and we work together day in day out to deliver on the agenda of this government and I’m absolutely sorry for anyone that I have upset.”
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Prison staff and prisoners should be regarded as high priority to receive an approved coronavirus vaccine in order to prevent outbreaks in the institutions and spillover into the community, researchers say.
Dense populations coupled with poor ventilation and sanitation make prisons risky environments for infectious disease outbreaks, but prisoners are often reluctant to concede they are ill or seek medical care for fear of being subjected to stricter isolation.
The factors combine to make prisons potential reservoirs for disease, according to Oxford University researchers, driving up levels of illness inside and spreading the infection into the community as prisoners are released and staff, visitors and those on remand come and go.
Seena Fazel, professor of forensic psychiatry at Oxford, said people in prison tended to have higher rates of physical and mental health problems than those of the same age in the community, placing them at increased risk from coronavirus. But the movement of people in and out of institutions posed extra risks to the surrounding community.
“Our research suggests that people in prison should be among the first groups to receive any Covid-19 vaccine to protect against infection and to prevent further spread of the disease,” he said.
Fazel and his colleagues reached the conclusion after reviewing 28 investigations into outbreaks of infectious diseases in prisons, ranging from tuberculosis and flu to measles and Covid-19. In some outbreaks, the diseases spread fast because infected prisoners had so many contacts.
“Prisons can act as reservoirs of disease,” said Fazel. Without vaccination to protect staff and prisoners, “we are looking at the potential for community spread, particularly in areas which are already quite disadvantaged and where people are already at risk”, he said. The research is published in BMJ Global Health.
Outbreaks of coronavirus in at least three prisons in Colombia, Peru and Venezuela have led to riots over poor sanitation and hygiene, resulting in dozens of deaths among inmates.
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The Downing Street coronavirus press briefing with Matt Hancock is due to take place at 5pm.
The national medical director for NHS England, Steve Powis, and the deputy chief medical officer for England Jonathan Van-Tam will join the health secretary.
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Boris Johnson’s dismissal of an official inquiry finding evidence that Priti Patel bullied civil servants could further jeopardise public trust in the government just when it is needed to tackle the pandemic, a leading scientist has said.
Speaking at a meeting of the Independent Sage group of experts, Prof Stephen Reicher, a behavioural scientist at the University of St Andrews who sits on the government’s Scientific Pandemic Influenza Group on Behaviours, said that in some countries, such as Norway and Finland, it had been possible to tackle the coronavirus without necessarily making measures compulsory because such countries had high levels of trust in government.
However he said that was not the case when it came to the UK government. “One of the great problems we have got in this country has been a crisis of social trust,” said Reicher. “The difference between the first lockdown and the second lockdown isn’t that people have become weaker and less able to put up with restrictions – they have lost trust.”
According to YouGov polls, the percentage of people thinking the UK government is handling the coronavirus crisis well or very well had fallen from just over 70% at the end of March to 32% by mid-October.
“We have got a real crisis of the social contract, a real crisis of the bond between government and public, and one reason for that of course is the government doing things which suggest there is one law for them and one law for us,” said Reicher.
“We saw that again today – Boris Johnson tells us we mustn’t bully, but if it is one of your ministers you are allowed to bully. What does that say about ‘them’ and ‘us’?”
Reicher added that restoring social trust was critical to tackling the pandemic.
“I think that reset of trust is every bit as important as all the resets around, for instance, the testing system and in terms of support for people,” he said.
Updated
The government has sourced PPE from factories in China where hundreds of North Korean women have been secretly working in conditions of modern slavery, according to evidence uncovered by the Guardian.
The Guardian’s findings indicate that hundreds of thousands of protective coveralls ordered for the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) have come from factories using North Korean labour in the Chinese city of Dandong.
The three-month investigation has also found evidence of North Korean labour being used in factories exporting PPE to the US, Italy, Germany, South Africa, Japan, South Korea, the Philippines and Myanmar.
It is claimed that the North Korean workers in Dandong, who are mostly women, work for up to 18 hours a day with little or no time off. They are under constant surveillance and are unable to freely leave the factories.
Sources indicate that the North Korean workers in PPE factories in Dandong have about 70% of their wages seized by the North Korean state.
You can read the exclusive report from Pete Pattisson, Ifang Bremer and Annie Kelly here:
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The head of England’s biggest NHS hospital trust has said in a “best-case scenario” it could take until April to vaccinate enough people to make a difference against Covid.
Dr David Rosser, University Hospitals Birmingham NHS trust chief executive, said: “It’s pretty clear vaccination is not going to appear en masse until probably the beginning of February at the earliest.
“It is encouraging there are signs we might have some vaccine to vaccinate care home residents and the most vulnerable before then.
“But the big truckloads of stuff is not going to come in before February – that seems pretty clear.”
Updated
My colleague, Jamie Grierson, has analysed how Boris Johnson found grounds to ignore the verdict of his independent adviser on ministerial standards.
Sir Alex Allan, a public servant with a 47-year career in the civil service, was clear in his central finding that Priti Patel’s behaviour breached the ministerial code, and he has resigned in the face of Johnson’s contrary ruling.
You can read about how his statement on his findings could have left Johnson with some room for manoeuvre here:
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There have been a further 1,020 cases of coronavirus in Wales, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 70,517, the PA Media news agency reports.
Public Health Wales reported another 31 deaths, taking the total in Wales since the start of the pandemic to 2,338.
Updated
R number falls again
The R number estimate of coronavirus transmission in the UK has fallen to 1.0-1.1, government scientists have said.
According to the latest update from the Government Office for Science and the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage), that means that on average every 10 infected people will infect between 10 and 11 other people.
Last week it was between 1.0 and 1.2.
The number of new cases is growing by 0-2% every day, scientists said.
The estimates reflect the situation over the preceding couple of weeks, given time lags in the range of data used.
A statement on the gov.uk website says:
The UK estimates of R and growth rate are averages over very different epidemiological situations and should be regarded as a guide to the general trend rather than a description of the epidemic state. Given the increasingly localised approach to managing the epidemic, particularly between nations, UK level estimates are less meaningful than previously.
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General secretary of FDA accuses Boris Johnson of failure of 'political leadership and moral authority'
The head of the civil servants’ union has accused Boris Johnson of a failure of “political leadership and moral authority” over the bullying scandal enveloping Priti Patel.
Dave Penman, general secretary of the FDA, which represents professionals and managers in the civil service, called for a new independent process for handling allegations of bullying and harassment by ministers.
In comments circulated by the PA Media news agency, Penman said:
We’ve seen two resignations on principle at either side of this sorry affair, and in the middle a complete absence of political leadership and moral authority from the prime minister.
I cannot believe he does not understand how civil servants will view his decision to ignore the evidence that the home secretary bullied her staff and, as such, breached the ministerial code. The only conclusion that can be reached is he simply doesn’t care.
No civil servant will now have confidence that any complaint raised about ministerial behaviour will be dealt with fairly or impartially.
As Lord Evans, the chair of the committee on standards in public life, has said, this episode raises serious questions about the effectiveness of the current arrangements for investigating and responding to breaches of the ministerial code.
It’s clear we now need an independent and transparent process where bullying and harassment allegations against ministers can be dealt with effectively, free from political interference.
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Eleven council areas, including Glasgow, in west and central Scotland will go into level 4 lockdown – the toughest level of coronavirus restrictions – from 6pm on Friday.
The first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, said she understood people’s frustrations, but the prospect of a vaccine would mean returning to normal from spring. Non-essential shops are to close, along with pubs, restaurants, hairdressers and visitor attractions, but schools will remain open.
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Fifty days after the SNP MP Margaret Ferrier broke Covid rules and failed to self-isolate while awaiting the results of a coronavirus test, Libby Brooks, the Guardian’s Scotland correspondent, has visited Rutherglen, South Lanarkshire, to find out what Ferrier’s constituents think about the affair.
Kelly Livingstone was half-watching the 10 o’clock news on Thursday 1 October when she noticed an image of the MP Margaret Ferrier flash up on the screen.
The co-owner of Vanilla beauty salon in Rutherglen, South Lanarkshire, immediately turned up the volume: “I thought, ‘Oh my God, she was in the salon on Saturday!’”
Livingstone watched, aghast, as the report detailed how the Scottish National party member for Rutherglen and Hamilton West had travelled to London and spoken in the Commons while awaiting the results of a coronavirus test, then returned by train from London to Scotland after receiving a positive result. What was not included in the initial report was the fact that Ferrier had visited several local businesses on the day she took the test.
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Hi this is Damien Gayle keeping a hand on the tiller while Amy goes for lunch. You can reach me at damien.gayle@theguardian.com or @damiengayle, in case you have any hot tips for stories.
The prime minister’s press secretary, Allegra Stratton, has insisted that he takes issues of bullying “extremely seriously”.
“I think it is clear to the home secretary and to her team, and I hope it is clear to the country, that he does take this issue incredibly seriously,” she said.
“He recognises that it is extremely difficult for individuals to come forward and raise these concerns with their bosses. He does understand that. He is grateful to those civil servants who have done so.”
Stratton said that Sir Alex Allan, who has resigned as the prime minister’s adviser on ministerial standards, had made the point that Patel’s conduct needed to be seen in context and that Johnson was pleased that there was now a “more positive” relationship with civil servants.
“It is Sir Alex Allan who is saying to the prime minister that there are mitigating factors and the home secretary’s behaviour needs to be seen in context,” she said.
“The prime minister has to look at this case in the round and for these reasons - as the ultimate arbiter of the ministerial code - he has made these decisions today.”
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The temporary closure of youth courts due to Covid-19 has almost doubled the backlog of cases in some areas of England and Wales, increasing anguish for traumatised victims and creating more uncertainty for accused children, inspectors have found.
The closures have meant that some children have spent longer on remand than usual, with the proportion held in youth custody pre-conviction increasing from about a quarter to 38%, according to a report by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Probation (HMIP).
“As we face new local and regional restrictions, the ability to have remand cases heard and bail packages offered to courts will need to be carefully managed to avoid children spending time in custody unnecessarily,” the report warns.
This week the chair of the Criminal Bar Association in England and Wales told the Guardian the criminal justice system was “on its knees” as Covid exacerbated delays caused by a decade of cuts.
You can read the full report from our North of England editor, Helen Pidd, here:
An incident management team (IMT) has been set up to investigate 15 deaths at a care home in Llangollen, north Wales. Over the past three weeks there have been 56 cases and 33 staff members have tested positive at the Llangollen Fechan Care Home.
Co-chair of the IMT, Nicola Stubbins, said: “We would like to assure all concerned that control measures have been put in place working jointly with the care home, including limiting the movement of staff and residents to reduce transmission.”
Asked about the outbreak at the Welsh government’s press conference, first minister Mark Drakeford raised the possibility of lateral flow tests being used in care homes.
Registered home carers can access weekly Covid tests from Monday
Registered carers looking after people at home will be able to access weekly coronavirus tests from Monday, the Government has announced.
Carers working for providers registered with the Care Quality Commission will receive weekly tests to administer at home, the Department of Health and Social Care said.
Providers will be able to book PCR tests for their staff through an online portal from Monday.
It is hoped this roll-out will help protect vulnerable people receiving care at home and give workers “peace of mind” by picking up on any asymptomatic transmission.
Minister for care, Helen Whately, said: “Homecare workers have been doing an incredible job throughout the pandemic, caring day in and day out and going the extra mile to keep people they care for safe from Covid.
“As our testing capacity continues to expand, I’m glad we’re able to take this next step and make regular testing available to homecare workers. Now, as well as having Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), homecare workers will be able to take a weekly test to check they don’t have coronavirus.
“We now have the largest testing capacity in Europe, so we’re using this to protect those who are at greater risk if they catch Covid.”
Police reacted with fury to reports of a squeeze in public sector pay and said a wage freeze would be a “betrayal” for their sacrifices during the pandemic, and “morally bankrupt”.
The chair of the Police Federation of England and Wales, John Apter, said any new freeze would come on top of a 18% cut in pay over the last decade.
Apter said:“During the pandemic, government ministers have thanked and celebrated key workers in the public sector, even clapping on doorsteps to show their support. To freeze their pay and penalise these same workers would be complete hypocrisy.
“In real terms over the past decade, police officers have suffered an 18% cut in pay – so speculation that there are more real-term cuts to come will not be well received by rank-and-file police officers, who bravely stepped up and helped to keep the country moving.
“I am not naïve – I know the country is facing a difficult financial future. But cutting the pay of key workers is not the solution.
“I appreciate this is just speculation at this stage, but also know how these stories often come out to test public reaction. Well, let me be clear: a pay freeze is not acceptable, and would be seen as a complete betrayal by this government.
“Next week, I want to see the chancellor show his support and thank public sector workers by making clear the speculative reports this week were just that – speculation and not reality.”
The Conservative government fell out with police over years of cuts after 2010, which saw police numbers fall and crime rise. Boris Johnson’s administration has been keen to have the police on side and the vehemence of Apter’s response shows a pay freeze could substantially damage relations between the government and rank-and-file officers.
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The civil servants’ union Prospect has said the prime minister’s decision not to take action against Priti Patel for breaching the ministerial code was “frankly unbelievable”.
Its general secretary, Mike Clancy, said: “This decision by the prime minister is a kick in the teeth for those civil servants who have been bullied by the home secretary, and indeed for anyone who has experienced unacceptable behaviour from their boss. For the person in charge of law and order in this country to be found to have bullied people, and get away with a slap on the wrist, is frankly unbelievable and she should consider her position.
“What this really illustrates is that we have a prime minister who is either too weak, or lacks the appropriate moral fibre to do the right thing. In no other organisation would the person in charge be the ultimate arbiter of whether a breach such as this has taken place. A truly independent process is essential now.”
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An upbeat Welsh first minister has said there is “good evidence” the country’s firebreak has had its “intended impact.”
Ten days after the firebreak ended, Mark Drakeford said there had been a “consistent” reduction in the rate of coronavirus.
Drakeford said according to the seven-day incidence rate there were 160 cases per 100,000 people in Wales. In Anglesey, north Wales, the rate is at around 20 while in Blaenau Gwent in the south – the highest rate – it is at more than 350. The first minister said there had been a “huge drop” in cases in Merthyr Tydfil in south Wales – down from 770 to 250 per 100,000.
Drakeford said the number of people being admitted to hospital had stabilised but there was still the equivalent of 50 wards full of people seriously ill with Covid.
However, he said there was a “selfish minority” who were breaking the rules. He told a press conference in Cardiff the police had responded to more than 1,000 Covid-related incidents since the end of the firebreak.
He warned that if people stopped following the rules Covid would “flood back” but if people did act responsibly, there would be a “path through” to Christmas.
Drakeford said: “We have created a platform. We can build on it or fritter it away.”
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Speaking at the coronavirus briefing in Edinburgh, Nicola Sturgeon said that any plans to allow household mixing over the festive period would still carry risks, but she hopes that strict measures in the coming weeks can drive down the virus.
She said:
The fact is, the fewer people who are in the population who have Covid by the time we get to Christmas, the lower the risk of people being infected with it during that period.
It’s very important for me to be clear that the risks would not be zero - which is why we must be very careful about any relaxation over Christmas, and people will have to think carefully themselves even with any relaxation, about what they want to do or not.
The first minister was speaking in the hours before 11 council areas in west and central Scotland were put into Level 4 – the toughest level of restrictions.
Scotland records 32 further coronavirus deaths
Scotland has recorded 32 deaths from coronavirus and 1,018 positive tests in the past 24 hours, Nicola Sturgeon has said.
Speaking during the Scottish Government’s daily briefing, the First Minister said the death toll under this measure - of people who first tested positive for the virus within the previous 28 days - has risen to 3,459.
Ms Sturgeon said the daily test positivity rate is 4.8%, up from 4.6% on the previous day.
A total of 86,630 people have now tested positive in Scotland, up from 85,612.
Of the new cases, 391 are in Greater Glasgow and Clyde, 162 in Lanarkshire, and 123 in Lothian.
There are 1,234 people in hospital confirmed to have the virus, up by 22 in 24 hours.
Of these patients, 88 are in intensive care, up by three.
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The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has just released the findings of its weekly coronavirus infection survey.
It estimated that there were an average of 38,900 new cases per day of Covid-19 in private households in England between November 8 to 14.
This is down from an estimated 47,700 new cases per day for the period October 31 to November 6.
The ONS said the rate of new infections “appears to have levelled off in the most recent week”.
The figures do not include people staying in hospitals, care homes or other institutional settings.
Between 8 and 14 November, it estimated that around 1 in 80 people in the community population in England had coronavirus.
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Labour MP Jess Phillips has branded the handling of the findings on Priti Patel “an utter disgrace”.
“While the government asks the entire country to stick to the rules it also cannot in good faith say that rules don’t apply to them.”
“Any Tory seeking to defend this is utterly without reason or comprehension,” she added.
While the Government asks the entire country to stick to the rules it also cannot in good faith say that rules don't apply to them. Any tory seeking to defend this is utterly without reason or comprehension.
— Jess Phillips MP (@jessphillips) November 20, 2020
The shadow justice secretary, David Lammy, said Boris Johnson was “condoning bullying” by keeping Patel in her post.
Boris Johnson condoning bullying by keeping @pritipatel in post despite his advisor’s resignation is another spineless, hypocritical and pathetic failure of leadership.
— David Lammy (@DavidLammy) November 20, 2020
Once again it’s one rule for the @Conservatives and another for everyone else.
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More now on the findings of the inquiry into allegations that home secretary Priti Patel had bullied and harassed Home Office staff.
The prime minister’s independent adviser Sir Alex Allan, who has resigned, said Patel’s frustrations had seen her shout and swear in some instances.
In his published advice, he said:
She is action orientated and can be direct. The Home Secretary has also become – justifiably in many instances – frustrated by the Home Office leadership’s lack of responsiveness and the lack of support she felt in DfID three years ago.
The evidence is that this has manifested itself in forceful expression, including some occasions of shouting and swearing. This may not be done intentionally to cause upset, but that has been the effect on some individuals.
Sir Alex announced his resignation as Boris Johnson released a statement on the report’s findings.
He said: “I recognise that it is for the prime minister to make a judgement on whether actions by a minister amount to a breach of the ministerial code.
“But I feel that it is right that I should now resign from my position as the prime minister’s independent adviser on the code.”
An expected public sector pay freeze will be the “final straw” for many teachers and it could lead to an “exodus” from the profession, education unions have warned.
One head teachers’ union leader described the reports of a possible pay cap as a “huge kick in the teeth” for school staff, adding that it was “an insult” in light of the profession’s efforts during the coronavirus crisis.
Chancellor Rishi Sunak is reportedly preparing to announce a wage freeze for millions of teachers, police, council staff, civil servants and other public servants when he unveils his spending review next week.
Education unions have said it would be a “slap in the face” for the profession if the Government imposes a cap on the pay of public sector workers.
Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), said: “For many experienced teachers and leaders the prospect of a pay freeze will be the final straw and we are extremely concerned that it will lead to an exodus from the profession.”
He added: “There is only so much that people can take. If the Government goes down the road of imposing a pay freeze on top of everything else, it is in danger of precipitating a crisis in which many teachers and leaders decide enough is enough.”
Paul Whiteman, general secretary of school leaders’ union NAHT, said the reports “will be seen as a huge kick in the teeth for millions of school staff.”
He added: “The civic response to Covid has been characterised by the willingness of public sector workers, school staff included, to go the extra mile. Public sector workers have been critical to the national effort. They have also endured personal losses and tragedies.”
PM's ministerial standards adviser quits over Priti Patel decision
Sir Alex Allan, the prime minister’s adviser on ministerial standards, has quit following Johnson’s refusal to sack Priti Patel.
A Cabinet Office inquiry into allegations of bullying and harassment by the home secretary found that she had broken the ministerial code.
But Boris Johnson has judged that Patel did not breach the code.
In the report, Allan advised that Patel had not consistently met “the high standards required by the ministerial code of treating her civil servants with consideration and respect”.
It added that her approach on occasions had amounted to behaviour “that can be described as bullying in terms of the impact felt by individuals”.
“To that extent her behaviour has been in breach of the ministerial code, even if unintentionally.”
Patel has apologised for upset caused by her behaviour in a statement. She said:
I am sorry that my behaviour in the past has upset people. It has never been my intention to cause upset to anyone.
I am very grateful for the hard work of thousands of civil servants who help to deliver the government’s agenda.
I care deeply about delivering on the commitments we have made to the people of this country and I acknowledge that I am direct and have at times got frustrated.
I would like to thank the prime minister for his support.
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Mass asymptomatic testing for Covid-19 should be carried out in schools, the Welsh government’s expert advisory panel has recommended.
Such a programme should take into account background infection rates and the “full spectrum” of available testing technologies, according to the the Technical Advisory Group (TAG)
The group’s recommendation – following a review of Covid-19 and children under the age of 18 echoes what at least one major teachers union across the UK has been calling on the Westminster government to implement for some time.
Education and childcare are “key testing priorities,” according to the government in Wales, where the nation’s first mass testing pilot for the virus will launch in the South Wales town on Saturday with more sites due to open through Merthyr Tydfil County Borough throughout November.
Wales’ 17-day firebreak lockdown has brought coronavirus rates down across the nation, the Welsh First Minister, Mark Drakeford, said this morning.
The decision to impose the lockdown, which started on October 23 and ended on November 9, was criticised by UK Government ministers before Boris Johnson announced England’s own month-long lockdown, which is due to end on December 2.
In case you missed it this morning, the NHS is preparing to open dozens of mass vaccination centres across England to vaccinate people against Covid-19.
There will be at least 42 centres, based in places such as conference centres, and the NHS is planning to hire tens of thousands of staff to run them, the Health Service Journal reported.
The fresh details of how people will get the vaccine come as NHS England prepares to publish its “deployment plan” for how it will store, distribute and administer the vaccine.
Sir Simon Stevens, its chief executive, and Boris Johnson are expected to promote the plan during a press conference on Friday. The prime minister is currently self-isolating after close contact with a Conservative MP who tested positive for coronavirus.
There will be at least one mass vaccination centre in each of the NHS’s 42 sustainability and partnership areas and the centres will be sited in cities and larger towns.
The Guardian reported last week that each mass vaccination centre will vaccinate between 2,000 and 5,000 people a day.
You can read the full report from our health policy editor, Denis Campbell, here:
People who previously had Covid-19 are “highly unlikely” to become ill with the disease for at least six months, early findings suggest.
Researchers at the University of Oxford and Oxford University Hospitals (OUH) NHS Foundation Trust have found that healthcare workers who tested positive for antibodies to Sars-Cov-2, the virus that causes Covid-19, did not develop symptoms of the disease again.
The research, which is yet to be peer-reviewed, is based on a large-scale study involving 12,180 health care workers employed at OUH.
Professor David Eyre of the University of Oxford’s Nuffield Department of Population Health, said:
“This ongoing study involving a large cohort of healthcare workers has shown that being infected with Covid-19 does offer protection against re-infection for most people for at least six months – we found no new symptomatic infections in any of the participants who had tested positive for antibodies, while 89 of those who had tested negative did contract the virus.
“This is really good news, because we can be confident that, at least in the short term, most people who get Covid-19 won’t get it again.
“We know from a previous study that antibody levels fall over time, but this latest study shows that there is some immunity in those who have been infected.
The study covered a 30-week period - between April and November 2020 - where OUH staff were tested regularly for Covid-19 as well as antibodies to coronavirus.
During the study, 89 of 11,052 staff who did not have antibodies developed a new Covid-19 infection with symptoms.
The team also found that no-one among 1,246 healthcare workers with antibodies developed a symptomatic infection.
MPs say they want to hear about “every meeting, every call and every email” between the Premier League and the EFL over the coronavirus rescue package, stating they are “losing patience” with the leagues over the time being taken to reach an agreement.
The government announced a package of funding on Thursday to support sports affected by the loss of matchday revenue over the winter, but the men’s professional game did not feature.
The sports minister, Nigel Huddleston, insists it is the Premier League’s responsibility to help out the EFL, and the Conservative MP Julian Knight, who chairs the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport committee, has called the failure of the leagues to reach an agreement so far as “a fiasco”.
He warned at the end of last week’s DCMS session that the committee would demand updates from the leagues on the progress they were making, and reiterated that call on Friday.
You can read the full report here:
Matt Hancock has appeared to rule out hugging relatives and friends at Christmas, as he said there were “promising signs” the current lockdown in England was working.
The health secretary said rules would still need to be in place over the festive period, with people observing social distancing as families come together.
But he said it was the government’s plan to allow people to meet up after what had been a “terrible year”.
Speaking on Times Radio, Hancock said discussions with the devolved nations were continuing with the aim of reaching agreement on how people could celebrate the festive period.
He said there was a need to “respect the fact that we mustn’t spread the virus further but also respect the fact that Christmas is a special time where people get together, especially with their families”.
Hancock added: “It’s about getting the balance right and allowing people to have a Christmas that undoubtedly will be different this year but still try to have that cherished Christmas with your family as much as possible.
“What we want to have is a set of rules that is, if at all possible, consistent across the four nations of the UK, not least because so many people travel to see their family at Christmas time, but also respects the fact that we must follow social distancing to keep the virus under control.”
He said he had “no doubt” that people would continue to follow the rules in order to keep coronavirus case numbers down.
“I’ve got no doubt that people will continue to respect social distancing throughout because we know that that is so important for full control of the virus,” he said.
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Christmas household mixing could lead to tens of thousands more Covid cases, expert warns
Relaxing restrictions on household restrictions could lead to “tens of thousands” more cases, according to Prof Sir David Spiegelhalter.
The statistician and chairman of the Winton Centre for risk and evidence communication at the University of Cambridge said the advice from the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) that each day of relaxation of coronavirus rules at Christmas could need five days of tighter restrictions “doesn’t sound implausible”.
He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme:
It is quite plausible that a few days of relaxing would lead to tens of thousands of more cases and that means extra deaths and measures needed to bring those under control.
There is a big difference though because when [we’re told] we need to save lives, we don’t know whose lives we’re saving.
If somebody though dies or is hospitalised after getting Covid at Christmas, you are going to know who they are and I think the potential regret in anticipation of that might make people really quite careful.
He also predicted that the number of people in hospital with coronavirus – 16,000 people at present – would this winter exceed the 17,000 peak reached in spring, adding: “This will be a real slog.”
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Police won't interrupt Christmas dinners to catch rule breakers, says Met chief
Britain’s most senior police officer has said she has “no interest in interrupting family Christmas dinners” to catch Covid-19 rule breakers.
Speaking during an LBC radio phone-in on Friday, the Metropolitan police commissioner, Dame Cressida Dick, said the force would “work with whatever the government say are the current restrictions”.
But when asked by the host, Nick Ferrari, whether her officers would “bang on the door and count the number of people eating the turkey” during the festive period, Dick said police did not have the authority to enter people’s homes to enforce coronavirus legislation.
“We have no powers of entry,” she said. Adding:
I have no intention in any way of encouraging my people to be barging through people’s doors or knocking on people’s doors unless you’ve got, as we sometimes do – and then they can’t barge, they may knock – a huge party going on, which is clearly very, very dangerous and causing lots of concern with the neighbours.
Well then we might be knocking on the door saying: “You need to stop this.”
Reports suggest households might be allowed to mix indoors for a five-day period from Christmas Eve, and that ministers are considering plans to allow three or four households to form bubbles.
This morning, the health secretary, Matt Hancock, said there would need to be some rules in place at Christmas but told broadcasters he was keen for people to have “some joy” after a tough year.
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Wales firebreak lockdown succeeded in bringing cases down, says first minister
Mark Drakeford, Wales’s first minister, has said its 17-day firebreak lockdown had succeeded in bringing coronavirus rates down in the country.
Drakeford told BBC Breakfast that the evidence was “now good enough to say that the firebreak period did succeed”.
“We’ve had 10 consecutive days of numbers coming down in Wales, positivity rates coming down in Wales, we’re beginning to see that feed into a slowdown in the number of people being admitted to hospital with coronavirus,” he said.
He added that the question remained as to whether “it has succeeded enough” and that people in Wales would need to continue to behave in ways “that allow us to capitalise on the ground we’ve gained, rather than seeing it frittered away”.
Asked about the reproduction number, or R value, for Covid-19 in Wales, Drakeford said: “Sage estimate that a week ago, the rate was somewhere between 0.9 and 1.2, so possibly already below one and since then we’ve had seven further consecutive days of numbers falling here in Wales,” Drakeford said.
“Our aim was to get it down to about 0.8, we’ll know in another week whether we succeeded in that but on the whole it’s looking promising.”
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The assistant general secretary of the trade union Unite has said the pay cap for public sector workers, due to be announced by Rishi Sunak next week, is “insulting”.
Speaking on Times Radio, Gail Cartmail said large amounts of money had been wasted through “irresponsible procurements” and that low paid workers were being “pickpocketed” by the government.
She added:
As we’re talking, there are carers helping the elderly get ready for the day ahead, in schools we’ve got teachers getting ready to settle down children ... and they’re entitled to ask what have they done wrong.
It’s just awfully unfair. This is a predominantly female workforce, many are breadwinners in their families and they can’t afford to continue to shoulder the burden of one crisis after another.
If you earn more working in retail than you do caring for the population then that speaks volumes, doesn’t it?’
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Conservative MPs are rallying in support of Priti Patel amid reports that an inquiry into allegations of bullying found she had broken ministerial rules.
Boris Johnson is expected to reject calls to sack the home secretary when he delivers his long-awaited verdict on her conduct later today.
According to sources, she was found by a Cabinet Office inquiry to have failed to meet the requirement to treat civil servants with respect and consideration.
Although ministers are usually expected to resign if they breach the code, the prime minister is expected to point to a finding that her conduct was “unintentional”.
Earlier, the health secretary, Matt Hancock, told the BBC he felt “very proud” to serve in a cabinet with Patel.
The leader of the Commons, Jacob Rees-Mogg, said she was a “formidable home secretary” and an “asset to government”.
.@pritipatel is a formidable Home Secretary. Under her stewardship the HO has recruited thousands of police officers and introduced an Immigration Bill to safeguard our borders. Priti is an asset to government and a great Great Officer of State.
— Jacob Rees-Mogg (@Jacob_Rees_Mogg) November 19, 2020
Meanwhile, the Foreign Office minister James Cleverly said he was “proud that my friend and neighbour @pritipatel is leading the Home Office and delivering increased police numbers and secure borders”.
“She is delivering the first duty of government: protection of the British people,” he tweeted.
And the senior Tory MP Tom Tugendhat, who chairs the foreign affairs select committee, said Patel had support across the party because she was “hard-working, determined and has been very kind to many”.
He wrote on Twitter: “She knows her own mind was a great asset to @CommonsForeign and is doing a tough job in @ukhomeoffice.”
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Hancock: vaccine rollout 'one of the biggest civilian projects in history'
Matt Hancock has confirmed volunteers are currently being trained to help roll out the vaccine programme, which he described as “one of the biggest civilian projects in history”.
The health secretary told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that the law had been changed to increase the number of clinically qualified people who can administer vaccines.
He added:
It will be led by the NHS, who have of course the annual experience of a mass vaccination programme in flu, and it will involve GPs, it will involve the broader NHS as well, and hospitals.
We have got this enormous flu vaccination programme and then the likely big numbers, if it comes off, and I stress the ‘if’, will be next year for a Covid vaccine but we still hold out the hope that we might get some going in December this year.
He said “deep freezers” were already “stabilising over the last few weeks” in order to be ready for the Pfizer vaccine, which needs to be stored at -70C, and confirmed the NHS would have “access to any resources of the state they might need” to assist with the mass administering of vaccines.
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Chancellor puts squeeze on public sector pay
Good morning. The chancellor, Rishi Sunak, is expected to announce a renewed squeeze on public sector pay in next week’s government spending review in response to the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.
Government sources said an announcement would be in the mini-budget on Wednesday, as part of plans for a Whitehall savings drive to tackle record levels of government borrowing incurred during the crisis.
Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show public sector debt reached a record high of £2.08tn at the end of October after government borrowing hit £22.3bn.
But the fresh round of pay restraints for public servants – many of whom have been at the forefront of the government’s response to the pandemic – is likely to contrast sharply with Boris Johnson’s £16.5bn boost for defence spending.
The prime minister is also expected to announce his decision later on the findings of a Cabinet Office inquiry into the conduct of Priti Patel. It comes after informed sources told the Guardian the inquiry had found evidence she broke the ministerial code.
Pressure on Johnson to sack the home secretary is growing as a result of claims of bullying and harassment from civil servants in three separate government departments. Patel has denied the allegations.
Speaking to BBC Breakfast this morning, the health secretary, Matt Hancock, said he felt “very proud” to serve in a cabinet with Patel. He added:
I think she’s doing an excellent job and is an excellent home secretary and really delivering on things that matter to people.
In all the dealings I’ve ever had with her she’s been nothing but courteous.
"I feel very proud to serve in a cabinet with Priti Patel"
— BBC Breakfast (@BBCBreakfast) November 20, 2020
Health Secretary, Matt Hancock talks to #BBCBreakfast about a report, which BBC sources say, claims the Home Secretary broke rules on ministers' behaviour. https://t.co/Z2JYZiR2IL pic.twitter.com/tYoMest1zs
But shadow home secretary Nick Thomas-Symonds said suggestions the prime minister would not sack Patel showed “all the hallmarks of a prime ministerial cover-up”. He also urged the government to publish the findings.
Here is the agenda for the day:
9.30am ONS publishes its weekly survey of the social impacts of Covid-19.
12pm ONS publishes weekly Covid-19 infection survey.
The latest R-rate is expected in the early afternoon.
12.15pm Nicola Sturgeon leads Scotland’s coronavirus briefing.
A Downing Street press conference is expected in the afternoon.
6pm Level 4 restrictions come into force in 11 council areas in Scotland.
Please feel free to get in touch throughout the day on Twitter (@amyrwalker).
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