Covid vaccine news UK – Social distancing laws will be SCRAPPED and we must learn to live with virus, Matt Hancock says

MP SNUBBED FOR BEING CASUALLY DRESSED AT VIRTUAL COMMONS 

An MP was snubbed from making a virtual contribution to Parliament after being judged to be dressed too casually.

Conservative Jonathan Gullis had been set to address the Commons from home during a debate on support for businesses and individuals during the Covid-19 pandemic.

However, the Stoke-on-Trent North MP was skipped on the order paper by Deputy Speaker Dame Eleanor Laing after appearing without adhering to the proper dress code.

Mr Gullis was able to make his virtual contribution to Parliament after sourcing a jacket to wear.

During the debate, Mr Gullis appeared on screen with Dame Eleanor telling the Commons: “We now go to… we now go… no, I don’t think we do go to Stoke-on-Trent, the honourable gentleman (Mr Gullis) has to be dressed as if he were here in the chamber.

MATT HANCOCK SAYS IT WILL BE ‘QUIETER’ WEEK AS JAB ROLLOUT SLOWS

The Health Sec told LBC’s Nick Ferrari it was “all about supply schedules” — and the nation will bounce back in March.

IN OTHER NEWS…

• Scotland’s stay at home order to end on April 5 and pubs should be open by end of that month
• Rishi Sunak is set to extend furlough until at least July as businesses remain shut
• Boris sets England on snail-paced return to freedom with restrictions not fully lifted until at least June 21
• Foreign holidays banned until May 17 at the earliest but ministers won’t decide until April if travel allowed
• Summer of freedom could be brought to crashing end by FOURTH Covid wave, scientists warn

MISTAKE FOR PEOPLE TO REFUSE VACCINE, SAYS JOHNSON

Boris Johnson has said it is a “mistake” for people to refuse to take a coronavirus vaccine amid warnings that failure to protect all communities could risk a wave of infections.

The Prime Minister said some people “genuinely refuse” to receive a jab but he believes that everyone should have a vaccine if they are able to.

His comments came as Dr Mike Tildesley, a member of the Government’s modelling advisory panel SPI-M, said it is important to improve the uptake of the vaccine in deprived and inner-city areas.

Meanwhile, No 10 insisted the Government remains confident in the supply of vaccines following a dip in the number of doses administered in recent days.

BORIS JOHNSON REFUSES TO GUARANTEE LOCKDOWN WILL BE ‘IRREVERSIBLE’

The Prime Minister can’t guarantee that the lockdown will be “irreversible”, However he said “intention is that it should be and that’s why we’re going in the way that we are”.

He continued: “A lot of people will say why don’t you go faster, or see if you can bring some of this earlier if things are going well and there are signs that the disease is continuing to retreat.

“The answer to that, you’ve got to listen to what Chris and Patrick were saying about the need for an interval between the relaxations, and the need to look at the data and see what’s happened.

“This variant is capable of spreading really very fast when you unlock. We saw that at the end of last year, we’ve seen how fast it can take off.

“That’s why we’ve got to look at the way the vaccinations are going, the way the data is looking, and then proceed cautiously, but I certainly hope irreversibly.”

MUSIC VENUES ‘SHOULD BE ABLE TO PUT ON FULL PROGRAMME OF CONCERTS THIS SUMMER’

The public should be able to enjoy a full programme of concerts this summer, says the Music Venue Trust’s boss.

Mark Davyd, CEO of the organisation which represents grassroots venues, said the sector should be in a position to bounce back despite the “enormous amount of debt” accrued over the course of the pandemic.

He said while it may be “two or three years” until music venues have “fully recovered” from the effects of the pandemic, the public should expect a full calendar of concerts this summer.

“We are on course to bring live music back, to revive live, by the summer,” Mr Davyd said.

While Glastonbury has been cancelled for 2021, many in the live music sector hope other events will go ahead.

IN-PERSON UNI GRADUATION CEREMONIES TO RESUME

Students could be offered face-to-face lessons after Easter and they may graduate with classmates in small ceremonies, a vice-chancellor has said.

Prof Adam Tickell, the University of Sussex’s VC, said thousands of students had already returned to the institution’s own accommodation despite most teaching remaining online since December.

A number of UK unis, including the London School of Economics (LSE) and St Andrews, have decided to move the majority of their lessons online for the rest of the academic year amid the pandemic.

But Prof Tickell said: “I do hope that we’re able to have students back both in terms of practical classes from March 8, which will be allowed in England, but also from after Easter.”

At a webinar, when asked whether in-person graduations could be on the cards amid the Government’s plans to remove all restrictions on June 21, he replied: “We may have small school-based or subject-based graduations.”

LONDON STRUGGLING TO JAB OVER-70S

NHS North East Hampshire is storming ahead with protecting residents from Covid – vaccinating a whopping 99.8 per cent of its over-70s.

But the capital is seriously lagging by contrast, according to the latest provisional inoculation figures.

The NHS Central London (Westminster) clinical commissioning group had given a first dose to an estimated 60.9 per cent of over-70s by February 14 – and all of the 10 lowest performing groups were in the capital.

The initial stats showed a marked difference in the estimated proportion of people aged 70 and over in England who had received a a first jab by February 14.

EUROPE FACES LONGER LOCKDOWNS IN BOTCHED JAB ROLLOUT

Sickly Europe will have to stay in lockdown while Britain breaks free – with EU leaders publicly turning on Brussels over its bungled vaccine rollout.

The bloc’s PMs and presidents will admit during a video call on Thursday that the pandemic there is too “serious” to start lifting restrictions.

And they will call for a ban on non-essential travel from outside the bloc to be extended, dealing a blow to Brits’ holiday hopes.

EU chiefs have been alarmed by stubbornly high infections across most of the continent while their botched vaccines drive stutters.

Their efforts are being blighted by low take-up of the AstraZeneca jab after French and German politicians spread misinformation about its efficacy.

SCOTLAND’S STAY-AT-HOME RULE LIFTS APRIL 5

The Scottish Government hopes to remove the country’s stay at home restriction by April 5, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has said.

She told MSPs in the Scottish Parliament today that lockdown would ease in phases, separated by at least three weeks, culminating in the removal of the stay at home order and education returning fully on April 5.

After lockdown is lifted, Scotland will move back to the levels system.

The remaining primary school years, as well as more senior phase pupils in secondary schools, will be part of the second phase – which will come no earlier than March 15 – along with an increase in outdoor mixing to four people from two households.

Communal worship, a further extension to outdoor mixing and more freedoms in retail are also hoped to be put in place from April 5.

BRITISH AIRWAYS DELIVERS RUSSIA’S SPUTNIK V VACCINE TO MEXICO

Mexico has received its first batch of Russia’s Sputnik V Covid vaccines, after President Andrés Manuel López Obrador spoke with Russia leader Vladimir Putin.

Some 200,000 doses arrived at Mexico City’s international airport late Monday night aboard a British Airways flight from Moscow.

Officials will begin vaccinating seniors in the capital’s most marginalised boroughs on Wednesday.

Mexico received its first shipment of vaccines from Pfizer in mid-December, but turned to Sputnik V in January when other expected vaccine shipments were delayed.

In early February, Mexican regulators gave Sputnik V emergency approval and the government signed a contract to bring 400,000 doses to Mexico in February. It’s unclear when the next shipment of Sputnik will arrive.

British Airways delivers a large batch of Sputnik V vaccines to Mexico CityCredit: Getty Images – Getty

REGIONAL LEVELS RETURN TO SCOTLAND

Scotland will return to a regional levels system from the last week in April if its coronavirus suppression continues, says Nicola Sturgeon.

She said: “From the last week of April we would expect to see phased but significant reopening of the economy, including non-essential retail, hospitality and services like gyms and hairdressers.

“And, of course, the more of us who are vaccinated and the more we all stick by the rules now, the faster that safe pace is likely to be – if we all stay in this together, our progress will be greater.”

The First Minister told MSPs the five-level system, separated by council areas, will return and she hopes those in Level 4 will be able to drop down to Level 3, which would see sectors such as non-essential retail reopen.

HANCOCK UNDER FIRE FOR CLAIMING THERE ‘NEVER’ WAS A NATIONAL PPE SHORTAGE

Health Secretary Matt Hancock has been slated for saying there was “never” a national shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) after a High Court ruling over failings in publishing details of coronavirus-related contracts.

Fuming medics criticised the minister online, and Labour said it was an “insult” to claim there was no shortage of the equipment medics need to help prevent them from being infected with the virus.

One doctor wrote on Twitter that Mr Hancock’s remarks are “categorically not true”.

Dr Rachel Clarke, a palliative care doctor, wrote: “I say this as someone who begged local veterinary practices and schools for masks and visors.

“Whose hospice nearly closed down through lack of PPE. This was happening up and down the country. It was horrendous.”

“The fact is, it was a smash-and-grab for Tory donors and friends. And protecting workers who were putting themselves in harm’s way to look after people seems to have been an afterthought.”

ON A ROLL – TOILET LOOPHOLE FOR DESPERATE BRITS

Brits will be able to nip into friends’ homes and even the pub to go to the loo when outdoor lockdown rules are lifted.

No 10 confirmed today that short toilet breaks will be allowed once restrictions are relaxed in England.

That will start with other people’s homes on March 29, when outdoor mixing with friends is permitted once again.

It will then be extended to professional premises like pubs once they reopen, which is set to be on April 12.

People will be expected to wear a mask and to maintain social distancing at all times when heading indoors to spend a penny.

CORONAVIRUS JABS ‘CRITICAL’ TO ROAD MAP OUT OF LOCKDOWN

Matt Hancock says the vaccination programme is “critical” to the road map out of the UK’s Covid pandemic.

Tory MP Richard Holden (North West Durham) today disagreed with glowing descriptions of the government’s ‘world beating’ jab rollout.

The Health Secretary replied that “we’ve seen this wonderful data yesterday about how effective they are at reducing hospitalisations and deaths.

“But it is also the vaccination programme that is critical to the road map out of this pandemic and it’s only because of the success of the vaccine programme that we’re able to set out the road map in this way.

“So the vaccine is good for you, but it’s also good for all of us because by taking a vaccine, you’re helping protect yourself and you’re helping all of us get out of this pandemic situation.”

MORE THAN A THIRD OF ALL UNIVERSAL CREDIT CLAIMS MADE SINCE START OF PANDEMIC

More than a third of claims made since Universal Credit was introduced have been made during the coronavirus pandemic, figures show.

There were 4.5million claims for the benefit between March 13 2020 and January 14 this year, according to figures from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).

This represents 39 per cent of the 11.4million claims made since Universal Credit was introduced in April 2013.

The latest quarterly figures take the total number of people on UC to 6million as of January 14 – a 98 per cent rise from March 12 2020.

SOCIAL DISTANCING LAWS WILL BE SCRAPPED & BRITS MUST ‘LIVE WITH CORONAVIRUS’ – HEALTH SECRETARY

Health Secretary Matt Hancock says Brits must – post lockdown – maintain “personal responsibility” rather than continuing with social distancing laws “that get in the way of normal life”.

He told Times Radio this morning: “But, it is also clear that eradication is unfortunately not possible with this disease, so we are going to have to learn to live with it.

“In the same way that for instance we live with flu, but we don’t let flu get in the way of living our lives.

“But we do vaccinate against it every year – in the case of flu we vaccinate those who are most vulnerable – and so I expect to have that vaccination programme as a regular feature of future life.”

UK’S HOTEL QUARANTINE SYSTEM ‘LIKE A SIEVE’

A leading Australian epidemiologist has compared the UK’s new hotel quarantine system to a sieve with too many holes in it.

Professor Catherine Bennett, of Deakin University in Victoria, said a strict border closure had been one of Australia’s “main tools” in keeping coronavirus rates low and protecting its domestic economy for months.

She said Australia had tightened up its hotel quarantine system in response to the new variants, including adding extra testing – including of hotel staff on their days off.

Prof Bennett noted that the British system of hotel quarantine – which has only just been introduced, is only ten days long and allows people out for exercise.

“If you’re going to… have too many holes in the sieve, then why bother with the sieve?” she said.

 

NATIONWIDE PARTY FOR JUNE 21 AFTER LOCKDOWN LIFTS?

Downing Street has confirmed that June 21 was the “earliest” date for all coronavirus measures to be eased.

The comment came after people on Twitter called for it to become a new national bank holiday.

When asked if this was something Boris Johnson would consider, the PM’s official spokesman said: “As it says, June 21 is the earliest for step four.

“And as the road map sets out we need to continue to look at the evidence and data as we move through the road map.”

Here are just a few reactions on Twitter:

Not sure about the ice diet, but Brits are gearing up for a celebration on June 21

NO 10 CLAMS UP OVER INFECTION SPIKE WORRIES

Downing Street today declined to give details on how long each stage of Boris Johnson’s four-step lockdown freedom plan could be delayed if evidence suggests that any further easing would push up coronavirus infections.

The PM’s official spokesman told a Westminster briefing: “There is a five-week period between each of the steps.

“As the chief medical officer said yesterday in the press conference, that will allow us to look at the impact that lifting the restrictions, as part of each step, has had.

“And it will give us the time to inform people of the next step and the next stage of the road map. We will look at the four tests to guide where we are in terms of the pandemic and it will be based on those tests that we seek to continue.

“But of course, as we look at that data, we will look as we have done throughout at the latest situation and we will take advice from scientists.”

VACCINE PASSPORTS

Michael Gove has been tasked with leading a review into the possible use of vaccine passports as part of the road map for releasing England’s coronavirus lockdown.

Boris Johnson announced the Cabinet Office minister would head up the review as the Prime Minister acknowledged the “deep and complex issues” surrounding the introduction of immunity certificates.

Senior officials, including the Government’s vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi, have frequently appeared to dismiss the idea of introducing vaccine passports in the UK.

But announcing his road map on Monday, Mr Johnson confirmed that a study into the use of vaccine and testing certificates will be one of four reviews conducted as part of easing the current restrictions.

Speaking at a school in south London on Tuesday, the Prime Minister told reporters that the introduction of vaccine passports should not discriminate against those who opt out of receiving the jab.

ONE STEP BACK

SUMMER freedoms may be capped once again by a fourth Covid wave, scientists fear.

The roadmap out of lockdown has given hope for a world without restrictions by June 21 at the earliest – with even the return of packed nightclubs.

But scientists say it’s unlikely the fun will last very long because of a resurgence in cases. 

Modelling shows that even with the slow unlocking planned, there will be an unavoidable third wave which could see several thousand die.

And this could drag on for months, potentially causing a fourth wave in the autumn when schools and universities return.

JAB STATS

Public Health Wales said a total of 869,653 first doses of the Covid-19 vaccine had now been given, an increase of 7,405 from the previous day.

The agency said 49,729 second doses had also been given, an increase of 6,977.

In total, 90.7% of over-80s in Wales have received their first dose, along with 92.7% of those aged 75-79 and 92.1% of those aged 70-74.

For care homes, 84.9% of residents and 85.9% of staff have received their first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine.

Public Health Wales said 84.7% of people in the clinically extremely vulnerable category had received their first dose.

BORIS JOHNSON REFUSES TO GUARANTEE LOCKDOWN WILL BE ‘IRREVERSIBLE’

The Prime Minister can’t guarantee that the lockdown will be “irreversible”, However he said “intention is that it should be and that’s why we’re going in the way that we are”.

He continued: “A lot of people will say why don’t you go faster, or see if you can bring some of this earlier if things are going well and there are signs that the disease is continuing to retreat.

“The answer to that, you’ve got to listen to what Chris and Patrick were saying about the need for an interval between the relaxations, and the need to look at the data and see what’s happened.

“This variant is capable of spreading really very fast when you unlock. We saw that at the end of last year, we’ve seen how fast it can take off.

“That’s why we’ve got to look at the way the vaccinations are going, the way the data is looking, and then proceed cautiously, but I certainly hope irreversibly.”

FARMERS THANKED BY PM FOR FILLING SHELVES POST-BREXIT

Boris Johnson has thanked farmers for keeping the UK’s supermarket shelves stocked and delivery boxes filled during the pandemic.

Post-Brexit, he added that, freed from the “shackles” of the European Union’s Common Agricultural Policy, “I hope that this can be the moment when we start to realise the many opportunities we now have, not just for the benefit of our fantastic farmers, for all of you, but for our entire country.”

In a video message the PM also told the National Farmers’ Union (NFU) annual conference there were opportunities to make farming more profitable, productive, sustainable and resilient.

This could hopefully be done while protecting the environment, cutting carbon, improving animal health and using “potentially revolutionary technology” such as gene editing.

“Now is the time to embrace a new, modern age for farming, building on what we do best, with high-quality produce made to a high standard, while at the same time, pursuing all farming can do to protect nature and tackle climate change, as we look forward to Cop26 in Glasgow in November”, he added.