COVID-19:PM hails nation's courage and says he'll be dealing with fallout 'for as long as I live'

The prime minister has hailed the "courage, discipline and patience of the nation" one year after he first announced a lockdown to combat coronavirus.

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  • Prince Philip dies: Why Prince Harry will travel for the Duke of Edinburgh's funeral - and who else might be there

    Prince Harry is planning to attend his grandad Prince Philip's funeral - and government guidance suggests it is within lockdown rules for him to fly in from the US. The monarch is close to the children of her late sister Princess Margaret - her nephew the Earl of Snowdon and niece Lady Sarah Chatto - so they may also be on the list.

  • Husband walks in on wife being allegedly sexually assaulted at Sydney aged care home

    Husband walks in on wife being allegedly sexually assaulted at Sydney aged care home. José says he hasn’t been able to sleep since alleged assault, which was described as ‘cuddling’ in incident report

  • The Long Mile put down after Grand National 2021

    The seven-year-old was euthanised after suffering an injury while running on the flat between fences

  • France extends gap between mRNA vaccine shots to accelerate rollout

    France will lengthen the period between the first and second shots of mRNA anti-COVID vaccines to six weeks from four weeks as of April 14 to accelerate the inoculation campaign, Health Minister Olivier Veran told the JDD newspaper on Sunday. Although France's top health authority advised a six-week period between the two shots in January in order to stretch supplies, the government at the time said there was insufficient data on how well the vaccines performed with a longer interval.France could safely do so now because it was vaccinating a younger age group, Veran said."(It) will allow us to vaccinate more quickly without reducing protection," the minister told the paper.France has approved use of the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna mRNA vaccines.Veran also said that from Monday the AstraZeneca vaccine would be made available to all over-55s and not just those with serious pre-existing conditions.After a glacial start, France's vaccine rollout is hitting its stride, reaching a target of 10 million first doses a week ahead of a mid-April target. The government aims to deliver another ten million first shots by mid-May.Johnson & Johnson would deliver its first 200,000 doses destined for France on Monday, a week early, Veran said.President Emmanuel Macron, who was forced by a spiralling infection rate and overloaded healthcare system to impose a third nationwide lockdown, is counting on an accelerated vaccine rollout to allow a gradual reopening of the country from the middle of next month.The numbers in intensive care continue to rise and France will almost certainly cross the 100,000 deaths threshold this week. It reported over 43,000 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday and said there were now 5,769 patients receiving critical care.However, Veran said there were signs that a new lockdown was beginning to slow the infection rate."It remains very high," Veran told the JDD. "We can expect that after a period of stabilisation comes the fall. But for that, we must keep going."(REUTERS)

  • Coronavirus latest news: South Africa variant can 'break through' Pfizer's vaccine

    Half of people in England live in areas that are Covid free Why Europe's approach to AstraZeneca jab differs from ours Two-thirds of pubs lack outdoor space to open on Monday Private Covid tests to be subject to quality checks Subscribe to The Telegraph for a month-long free trial The coronavirus variant discovered in South Africa can "break through" Pfizer's Covid-19 vaccine to some extent, a real-world data study in Israel found, though its prevalence in the country is low and the research has not been peer reviewed. The study, released on Saturday, compared almost 400 people who had tested positive for Covid-19, 14 days or more after they received one or two doses of the vaccine, against the same number of unvaccinated patients with the disease. It matched age and gender, among other characteristics. The South African variant, B.1.351, was found to make up about 1 per cent of all the Covid-19 cases across all the people studied, according to the study by Tel Aviv University and Israel's largest healthcare provider, Clalit. But among patients who had received two doses of the vaccine, the variant's prevalence rate was eight times higher than those unvaccinated - 5.4 per cent versus 0.7 per cent. This suggests the vaccine is less effective against the South African variant, compared with the original coronavirus and a variant first identified in Britain that has come to comprise nearly all Covid-19 cases in Israel, the researchers said. Follow the latest updates below.

  • ‘My dear Papa was a very special person’: Prince Charles pays touching tribute after death of Prince Philip

    The Prince of Wales last night paid a touching tribute to his father, the Duke of Edinburgh, saying: “My dear Papa was a very special person.” In an unscripted, televised address, an emotional Prince Charles, 72, said: “As you can imagine, my family and I miss my father enormously. He was a much loved and appreciated figure.” He said the Duke had “given the most remarkable, devoted service” to the Queen, the Royal Family, his country and the Commonwealth.

  • COVID-19: England's pubs, restaurants and shops prepare for Monday reopening - but PM postpones his pint

    England's coronavirus restrictions will be eased further on Monday, with pubs and restaurants allowed to serve customers outdoors. Hairdressers will reopen, as will non-essential shops, indoor gyms, swimming pools, libraries, zoos and nail salons. Prime Minister Boris Johnson has postponed his celebratory pint and is not expected to mark the reopening of businesses with a statement.

  • Pub-goers ‘will be forced to wear masks in beer gardens’ by ‘overzealous’ councils

    Pub-goers will be forced to wear masks in beer gardens in some parts of England as further lockdown restrictions are eased. From April 12, outdoor restaurants, non-essential shops and pub gardens will be allowed to open to the public. The rule is being enforced by some “overzealous councils” who have set up enforcement teams to monitor beer gardens, the Telegraph reports.

  • Wellwishers continue to leave flowers for duke despite Covid concerns

    At Buckingham Palace a steady stream of people arrived to lay bouquets at the front gates.

  • Florida anti-masker who coughed on cancer patient sentenced to 30 days in prison

    Debra Hunter has been sentenced to serve 30 days in prison, pay a $500 fine, take anger management classes – and pay for her victim’s Covid test

  • Who will be the 30 people attending Prince Philip’s funeral?

    Queen must take into account strict limit on numbers due to Covid crisis

  • Alison Hammond says Amanda Holden is getting in trouble while filming new show

    "It was so much fun. Jimmy and Amanda put a smile on my face."

  • Man charged with murder of ‘bright and beautiful’ Black trans woman Dominique Lucious

    A man has been charged with murder for the fatal shooting of Dominique Lucious, a 26-year-old Black trans woman from Missouri.

  • Donald Trump takes swipe at Mitch McConnell and Mike Pence in speech to Republican donors

    Donald Trump vowed to help Republicans win seats in Congress in 2022 elections but lashed out at two top party figures, Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell and former Vice President Mike Pence, at a donor retreat on Saturday. At a dinner at his Mar-a-Lago Club for Republican National Committee donors in Palm Beach, Florida, the former president made clear he is still irked at his inability to hang on to the White House despite losing the Nov. 3 election to Democrat Joe Biden, who is now president. Mr McConnell drew Mr Trump's ire in the aftermath of the election for stating the obvious - that Mr Biden had won the presidency - and the two remain at odds. Parting from the prepared text of his speech, Mr Trump called the senator a "son of a bitch," an attendee told Reuters. Before leaving office, Mr Trump had scolded Mr Pence for not intervening to stop the congressional certification of the vote tally, an authority the vice president did not have. The vote certification was the backdrop for the events on Jan. 6 when pro-Trump protesters stormed the U.S. Capitol. Departing again from his prepared text, Mr Trump said he had spoken to Mr Pence recently and told him he was still disappointed in him, the attendee said. Representatives for Mr McConnell and Mr Pence did not immediately respond to requests for comment. In prepared remarks seen by Reuters, Mr Trump sought to position himself as the Republican kingmaker, saying he wanted to talk "about the future of the Republican Party - and what we must do to set our candidates on a course to victory." "I stand before you this evening filled with confidence that in 2022, we are going to take back the House (of Representatives) and we are going to reclaim the Senate. And then in 2024, a Republican candidate is going to win the White House," he said. Mr Trump has spent the 2-1/2 months since his chaotic exit from the White House considering requests from 2022 candidates for his endorsement and has been giving them his blessing based on whether they support him and his agenda or not. He has said any talk of his own plans - the Constitution gives him the right to seek another four-year term - should wait until after the November 2022 elections. A variety of other Republicans are considering their own potential runs for the party's presidential nomination in 2024, such as Trump's former secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. While Mr Biden defeated Mr Trump by millions of votes, the Republican made inroads among traditional Democratic voters such as Hispanics and African Americans. Mr Trump, who also sprinkled his remarks with attacks on Mr Biden, said the key to victories in 2022 is to build on those gains, saying "the Republican Party will succeed and grow in the future by embracing its destiny as the champion of working-class Americans." Mr Trump's active role in Republican politics despite losing the 2020 election is unlike other former presidents, who have tended to retreat from the limelight after leaving the White House. “Saturday’s speech will be welcomed words to the Republican donors visiting Mar-a-Lago to hear directly from President Trump. Palm Beach is the new political power centre, and President Trump is the Republican Party’s best messenger," said Trump adviser Jason Miller.

  • PM chooses not to attend Philip’s funeral because of coronavirus guest limits

    Boris Johnson will not attend the Duke of Edinburgh’s funeral to allow for the attendance of as many family members as possible during coronavirus restrictions, No 10 has said. Meanwhile, sporting bodies are in discussions regarding plans for next Saturday’s fixtures

  • Gun salutes across UK mark Duke of Edinburgh’s death

    Saluting batteries began firing 41 rounds at one round every minute from midday on Saturday in cities including London.

  • While world leaders looked dignified paying tribute to Prince Philip, Boris Johnson was a shabby embarrassment

    Please send your letters to letters@independent.co.uk

  • 7 Casualty spoilers for next week

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  • Black Army lieutenant files $1m law suit against police officers who ‘pepper-sprayed and assaulted’ him

    Caron Nazario filed a $1million federal law suit last week claiming he was assaulted by two Virginia police officers

  • Saudi Arabia announces the execution of three soldiers for 'high treason'

    Saudi Arabia on Saturday executed three soldiers for "high treason", the defence ministry said, in a rare public announcement that accused them of colluding with an unspecified enemy. The executions come as a Saudi-led military campaign intensifies in neighbouring Yemen and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom's de facto ruler, consolidates his grip on power.The soldiers were convicted of "the crime of high treason in cooperation with the enemy" in a way that threatens the kingdom and its military interests, the ministry said in a statement carried by the official Saudi Press Agency.The statement named the three soldiers -- Mohammed bin Ahmed, Shaher bin Issa and Hamoud bin Ibrahim -- without identifying which enemy they were accused of aiding.Saudi Arabia, a Sunni powerhouse, views Shiite Iran as its main regional foe and identifies Yemen's Tehran-aligned Houthi rebels as a major security threat to the oil-rich kingdom.The statement makes a rare announcement of military executions in the kingdom, which is known to be highly secretive about its armed forces."The fact that the names of the decedents were publicised means the Saudis must consider their alleged misconduct to be exceptionally egregious and thus worthy of exemplary punishment," David Des Roches, from the Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies in Washington, told AFP.The defence ministry said the soldiers were executed in the military's Southern Command, based close to the border with Yemen, where Saudi Arabia is leading a six-year campaign against Houthi rebels.Riyadh led a military coalition into Yemen in March 2015 to prop up the internationally recognised government, but it has struggled to oust the Houthis.It has also faced a surge in missile and drone attacks against the kingdom.Fighting has intensified for the key Yemeni region of Marib, with 53 pro-government and Houthi rebel fighters dead in the past 24 hours, loyalist military officials said Saturday.The Houthis have been trying to seize oil-rich Marib, the government's last significant pocket of territory in the north, since February.Consolidating powerThe executions come as Prince Mohammed, the 35-year-old heir to the throne, tightens his control on power.Prince Mohammed -- the son of King Salman, the kingdom's ageing monarch -- is already viewed as the country's day-to-day ruler, controlling all the major levers of government, from defence to the economy.He holds the title of defence minister, while his younger brother Prince Khalid bin Salman is the deputy.Over the past three years, the crown prince has mounted a sweeping crackdown on critics and rivals, with the imprisonment of prominent royal family members, business tycoons, clerics and activists.In March last year, Prince Ahmed bin Abdulaziz al-Saud, a brother of King Salman, and former crown prince Mohammed bin Nayef were detained, multiple sources said.Saudi authorities have not publicly commented on their ongoing detention, which analysts see as an attempt by Prince Mohammed to stamp out traces of internal dissent.The kingdom has long faced criticism for one of the world's highest rates of executions and what human rights campaigners call an opaque judicial system.But earlier this year, the government-backed Human Rights Commission (HRC) reported a sharp drop in executions in 2020, as the kingdom seeks to blunt international criticism of its human rights record.The HRC said it documented 27 executions in 2020, a decrease of 85 percent over the previous year, due in part to a moratorium on the death penalty for drug-related offences.Since the beginning of this year, Saudi Arabia has carried out the death penalty against 20 people, according to a tally based on official figures published by state media.(AFP)