COVID-19: UK records 55,892 cases - highest ever daily total - as top doctor issues plea

The UK has recorded 55,892 coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours - the highest figure on record.

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  • Michel Barnier warns there is still a risk of more Brexits in the future

    Michel Barnier has warned that there is “always a risk” that other European countries will follow Brexit Britain and leave the EU. The EU’s chief negotiator said there was still “anger” against Brussels in many regions of Europe. He said that Brexit had exposed the dangers and consequences of leaving the bloc but said it was up to the EU to prove that membership of the bloc was worthwhile. “We have to draw the lessons of Brexit. We have to understand why 52 percent of the British people voted against Europe [...] ” It is obviously too late for the UK but it is not too late for the other member states,” Mr Barnier said. He said, “Today, in many regions, there is this anger, the same feeling against Europe, the same problem to understand what we’re doing at the European level,” he said. “We have to be vigilant because it is always a risk for the future,” he added, “This risk can be combated by the proof that it is clearly a better situation to be inside the EU than outside.” “Brexit has exposed the consequences of leaving the EU for all to see,” he said, ““Even though we have a deal the UK’s choices mean that there will be inevitable short-term and long-term consequences.” He added, “Together, we can build a Europe that not only protects but also inspires. A Europe that Europeans would never dream of leaving. “Why should we leave the EU debate to anti EU parties? For all those who believe in the European project this is not the time to sit back and to be complacent.” Mr Barnier said he had noted British plans to diverge from EU rules such as the Working Time Directive after Brexit. “We are not surprised because we are not naive,” Mr Barnier said. The important thing for the EU was that Britain’s new found regulatory freedom did not become “a tool for dumping against us.” If Britain was to undercut EU standards to gain an unfair competitive advantage over European businesses, Mr Barnier said, the bloc would not hesitate to use remedial measures, which could include tariffs, in the trade deal. “In that case we will use the tools included in the treaty,” he said. Mr Barnier is soon to step down as the EU’s chief negotiator to become a special advisor to Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission. His focus will be on the implementation of the Withdrawal Agreement and ratification of the Brexit trade deal. From March, he plans to return to French politics. He was speaking after being named European of the Year by the European Movement Ireland.

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  • Barnier warns government to be ‘very careful’ amid row over EU’s diplomatic status in UK

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  • Schools could open before Easter, says Gavin Williamson

    Schools could open before Easter, Gavin Williamson has suggested, saying he will give a two-week warning to headteachers. The Education Secretary said he "would certainly hope" that children would be back in the classroom by early April, adding that he wants this to happen at the "earliest possible opportunity". It is the first time Mr Williamson has hinted at a possible timeline for the reopening of schools, and comes after Dr Jenny Harries, the deputy chief medical officer, suggested schools in some parts of the country will reopen sooner than those in others. Primary and secondary schools were ordered to close at the start of the month to all but the children of key workers and the most vulnerable youngsters. Announcing the latest national lockdown on January 4, Boris Johnson said schools would need to remain shut until the February half-term at the earliest. On Thursday, Mr Williamson said a key factor in determining when schools could reopen would be whether pressures on the NHS had eased sufficiently. He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that headteachers will be given "absolutely proper notice" about when they need to prepare to reopen, adding that a "clear two-week notice period" will be factored in so schools have time to prepare for pupils' return. "Schools were the last to close, schools will be the first to open," the Education Secretary said. "I want to see that as soon as the scientific and health advice is there to open at the earliest possible stage, and I would certainly hope that that would be before Easter. "Any decision to reopen schools to all children – as all decisions in terms of schools – will be based on the best health advice and the best scientific advice."

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  • Coronavirus vaccines saved after emergency operation launched at manufacturing site hit by floodwater

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  • World’s deadliest day as more than 17,000 people die from Covid

    The Covid-19 pandemic has again claimed a new record for its deadliest day, as the number of reported global deaths topped 17,500 on Wednesday. Covid-19 continues to rage around the world despite the start of vaccination campaigns according to data from Johns Hopkins University. The January 20 toll beat the previous record from 12 days earlier and came as both the UK and the US reported heavy daily tallies of deaths. The UK government reported 1,820 deaths on the same day, its most yet, and America reported another 4,229 virus-related fatalities, its second highest daily total. The early stages of vaccine campaigns have yet to tame the winter wave tearing through the northern hemisphere. Governments have warned of more heavy death tolls before anything gets better. A widely watched model from the University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) predicts global deaths staying at a similar level for the next week or so, before dropping in early February. America continues to record the worst outbreak in the world and a forecast from the Centers for Disease Control estimated that the US death toll could hit 508,000 by February 13. Mexico, another of the world's most badly hit countries, recorded a second consecutive day of Covid-19 deaths topping 1,500. The World Health Organization's most recent weekly analysis said some 4.7 million new cases were reported in the week to Sunday, January 17, a decline of six per cent from the previous week. Yet the number of new deaths had climbed to a record high at 93 000, up nine per cent from the previous week. Joe Biden's new administration meanwhile said it would join the WHO's international scheme to deliver vaccines to poorer countries, after Donald Trump quit the agency and shunned the Covax initiative. Dr Anthony Fauci, told the WHO on Thursday that the new White House would remain a member of the UN agency. “This is a good day for WHO and a good day for global health,” WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said. “WHO is a family of nations and we are all glad that the US is staying in the family,” he added. The first consignments of vaccines paid for under the Covax scheme are due to be shipped in February. “We welcome the decision by the United States to join the Covax facility, because vaccinating our own populations is not enough scientifically or morally,” Britain's ambassador, Julian Braithwaite, told the WHO board. “We need a global vaccination campaign if we are to overcome this global pandemic.” Protect yourself and your family by learning more about Global Health Security