Yahoo News Coronavirus: The 17 major developments that happened on Tuesday
Here’s what you need to know on 25 August. This article was updated at 4.30pm.
Deaths: Figures published on Tuesday by the ONS show that 52,091 deaths involving COVID-19 had occurred in England and Wales up to August 14, and had been registered by August 22. Figures published last week by the National Records for Scotland showed that 4,216 deaths involving COVID-19 had been registered in Scotland up to August 16, while 866 deaths had occurred in Northern Ireland up to August 14.
There were no new deaths recorded in Wales. NHS England said there had been 15 more deaths reported.
Lockdown: Reports of abuse against children rose by 53% during lockdown, according to the NSPCC. Police records indicate adolescents are more at risk than younger children. Read more here.
Local lockdown: Birmingham has been placed on a government watchlist with the local authority given new powers to help it prevent a lockdown. Police will be able to shut down pubs, and other businesses, as well as ban weddings or funerals. Read more here.
Education: Hours after Scotland announced action on face coverings in schools, the Welsh government confirmed a review. Welsh health minister Vaughan Gething has asked a scientific advisory group to look at the guidance as pupils there prepare to return next week, and said he hoped to make an announcement on Wednesday. Read more here.
Boris Johnson has said advice on wearing face masks in schools could change as pressure mounts from unions. A Number 10 spokesman said on Monday there were "no plans" to review the guidance on face coverings in schools but on Tuesday Johnson said “we’ll look at the changing medical evidence as we go on”. Read more here.
More than 50 schools have announced pupils and staff will be made to wear face masks – in defiance of Boris Johnson. The Oasis Academy chain, which has 32,000 pupils across 52 schools in England, said face masks will be considered part of the school uniform when they reopen next week. Read more here.
Sally Collier, chief regulator of Ofqual, has quit over the management of A level grades as no exams could be sat. An algorithm which was used to calculate results was met with fury as thousands of marks were downgraded and pupils missed out on their first choice university. Read more here.
Travel: France is set to impose “tit-for-tat” coronavirus quarantine measures on travellers arriving from the UK in the coming days. The move would follow the UK placing its own restrictions on travellers arriving from France earlier this month. Read more here.
Switzerland could be the next country to find itself on the UK’s quarantine list as its seven day rolling rate of infection rises to 20.7 per 100,000. People returning to Scotland from there already have to quarantine for 14 days. Read more here.
Treatment: AstraZeneca has launched a new trial of an antibody therapy it hopes could prevent and treat the coronavirus. It comes as the UK biopharmaceutical giant also said its separate potential vaccine, created in partnership with the University of Oxford, could be sent to regulators for approval this year if clinical trials progress as hoped. Read more here.
Health: Symptoms of so-called long COVID have been identified and include lasting breathing problems, exhaustion and purple coloured toes. The condition is thought to impact one in 10 people who get coronavirus and have longer term problems. Read more here.
Healthy pregnant women have no increased risk of severe COVID-19, according to a new study. The observational study from Kings College concludes that healthy pregnant women are at no higher risk of severe disease than women who are not pregnant. Read more here.
Business: The Co-operative Bank has announced plans to close 18 branches and slash around 350 jobs, becoming the latest major UK firm to confirm mass layoffs during the pandemic. The company blamed the Bank of England’s record-low interest rates, falling customer numbers in branches and “prolonged economic uncertainty ahead” for a cost-cutting drive. Read more here.
Sport: Usain Bolt has tested positive for COVID-19 days after his 34th birthday. Bolt, an Olympic sprinter, attended a party for his birthday with other sports stars, including Raheem Sterling. Read more here.
Read more about COVID-19
How to get a coronavirus test if you have symptoms
What you can and can’t do under lockdown rules
In pictures: How UK school classrooms could look in new normal
How public transport could look after lockdown
How our public spaces will change in the future
Rest of the world
The case of a man being reinfected with coronavirus should not cause alarm, according to researchers. The man’s second case was picked up months after his first recovery, and he had no symptoms, with one expert saying it’s how immunity should work. Read more here.
Schools have been closed in South Korea after a rise in the number of coronavirus cases. Nearly 200 staff and pupils have been infected in the last two weeks in the Seoul area. Read more here.
