COVID-19: Boris Johnson says 'we'll have to get used to idea' of autumn booster jabs

The prime minister has raised the prospect of people getting a coronavirus vaccine "booster" jab in the autumn.

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    Children who receive false positives when tested at school will still be told to self-isolate and will be banned from the classroom for 10 days, the Government has said. Ministers have been accused of pursuing a “ridiculous” policy on lateral flow tests that has “no scientific basis” and will result in youngsters missing out on school “unnecessarily”. It comes as millions of children returned to lessons on Monday for the first time in months. Parents and teachers spoke of their joy of children returning to school, with one headteacher saying his school “feels alive again” as he welcomed 500 pupils back on Monday. David McPartlin at Flakefleet Primary School in Fleetwood, Lancashire, said: "There's been a real buzz about the place and a sense of excitement this morning. Today feels like the start of the end of Covid, like we are coming out the end of a very long dark tunnel.” Meanwhile, parents at Ide primary school near Exeter, Devon, described how happy their children were to be back at school. "My youngest has not seen any of his friends or spoken to them for months,” one mother said. “He has really missed seeing them every day." Pupils at secondary schools have been asked to have three rapid antigen tests at school during the first fortnight of term, followed by another at home. After that they will be given two tests per week to take at home, all of which are voluntary.

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  • Tourism leaders blast 'exit permits' as politically motivated

    Staycation prices a third higher in holiday hotspots this year When can I go on holiday? What Med destinations will look like this summer The countries already rolling out vaccine passports Sign up to the Telegraph Travel newsletter Travel industry leaders have lashed out at new ‘exit permits’ required for leaving the country, claiming they are complex and lack clear messaging. The Declaration to Travel form, which comes into effect today, must be completed by anyone in England who enters “a port of departure to travel internationally”, with fines of up to £6,400 for those who flout the rules. But critics have highlighted a number of issues with the form, arguing that it appears ‘rushed’ and that several valid reasons for international travel are not covered. Paola Fiocchi Van den Brande, founder of Passepartout Homes, said: “I understand the move and what the Government is trying to achieve. It is a bit too little too late and such policies would have been accepted and tolerated a year ago. A year later, with a successful vaccination program under way and the promise of releasing restrictions, I question the move to introduce a Declaration to Travel, if not for political reasons before elections. “The document has been rushed through with not so much attention to detail or clear messaging. There is no box to justify you are leaving the country because you have residency elsewhere or are leaving the country for good. There is no box to state kids are visiting a parent working overseas (only those with divorced parents and a court order are allowed). There is no box to state you are reuniting with a spouse or legal partner working overseas.” Others, such as Abby Penston, CEO of Focus Travel Partnership, called the form a "half-cocked rushed out process", adding: "Today’s imposition of the Declaration for International Travel form has been deliberately designed to dampen demand in international travel." Scroll down for the latest travel updates.

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  • Text messages to tell you it’s time for your jab

    The NHS is to send text messages to 400,000 people, asking them to book a coronavirus jab, with reminders for those who do not come forward. As part of efforts to boost uptake, text invitations will be sent to those aged 55 and over, with a link to reserve an appointment at a mass vaccination centre or pharmacist. Health officials stressed that invitation letters would continue to be sent, and that those who preferred not to travel to the sites could wait to be invited by their GP. But they said the move could allow the programme to move more quickly through the age groups, reacting to changing vaccine supplies and filling empty slots. At first, texts will be sent to almost 400,000 people aged 55 and over and 40,000 unpaid carers, inviting them to book a slot at one of more than 300 mass centres or pharmacies across England. Reminders will then be sent every two to three weeks. If the move proved successful, younger people could expect to receive texts ahead of official NHS letters landing on doormats, health officials said. Some GP-led and hospital vaccination services are already using text messages to issue their invitations. But the new automated texts will mean that hundreds of thousands of people can be sent invitations at once. Across the UK, more than 22 million people have received a first dose of either the Pfizer/BioNTech or Oxford/AstraZeneca jab. Professor Stephen Powis, the NHS national medical director, said: “The NHS vaccination programme, the biggest in health service history, continues to go from strength to strength and we are now building on that momentum by trialling a quick and easy service that will hopefully make it more convenient for people to book their life-saving jab.” The text messages will be sent using the Government's secure Notify service and will show as being sent from “NHSvaccine”. Dr Nikki Kanani, GP and NHS medical director for primary care, said: “We know that some people are rightly worried about scams going around, but if the message comes from ‘NHSvaccine’ and links to the NHS.uk website, you can be sure that it's the right invite. “For any messages you might get about the vaccine, always remember that the NHS will never ask you for your bank account or card details, your PIN or banking password.” Vaccinations are being administered at more than 1,600 sites across the country, including mosques, museums and rugby grounds.

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