The UK economy returned to a reverse gear in November as tightened coronavirus restrictions took their toll on the fightback from the steepest recession on record, according to official figures. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported an estimated 2.6% drop in output during the month - building on a loss of momentum that began late last summer. November was the month that England joined other parts of the UK in a second lockdown. Live UK and world COVID news Where jobs have been lost across the UK The first, which was UK-wide and began in March, was responsible for tipping the nation into the unprecedented slump that saw most of the economy placed in virus hibernation. The ONS said the economy was 8.5% below its pre-pandemic level by November. … 阅读全文

A regional breakdown of England's vaccines rollout shows the Midlands leading the way in the number of jabs administered, while London has the lowest vaccination rate. New NHS data shows 2,371,407 doses have been given in total across the country - that includes 1,997,304 first doses and 374,103 second doses - in the week leading up to 10 January. Most coronavirus vaccines have been delivered in the Midlands (447,329), followed by 433,045 in the North East and Yorkshire and 411,257 in the South East. A total of 237,524 have been administered in London. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player 0:33 0:33 'I didn't feel that': COVID jabs begin in pharmacies The city's mayor Sadiq Khan has claimed the capital is not getting its fair share of … 阅读全文

The COVID vaccine rollout is the biggest in the history of the NHS, but we're not being given the information to judge how well it's going. Yes, we know how many people are getting their first dose, so we can track progress towards the government's target of protecting the 15 million people most vulnerable disease. But the rollout isn't happening anywhere near fast enough. Live COVID updates from UK and around the world The health secretary blames vaccine supply, which, he says, is constrained. But AstraZeneca, the pharmaceutical company manufacturing the Oxford vaccine, said it had been asked not to divulge weekly figures on how much vaccine it is handing over to the NHS. It has been told by the Vaccines Taskforce it is for security reasons, but how that … 阅读全文

Boris Johnson has pledged coronavirus jabs will be given 24/7 "as soon as we can" - as AstraZeneca said it expects to release two million doses a week of the Oxford vaccine by mid-February. The prime minister said a huge network of 233 hospitals, 1,000 GP surgeries, 200 pharmacies and 50 mass vaccination centres is already working "exceptionally fast", but "at the moment the limit is on supply" of the vaccine. "We will be going to 24/7 as soon as we can," he told MPs during Prime Minister's Questions in the Commons, adding Health Secretary Matt Hancock would be setting out further details "in due course". Live COVID updates from UK and around the world His comments came minutes after his vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi confirmed the government is considering … 阅读全文

How often have you stood in a queue and caught the whiff of someone smoking several metres away? Now imagine that's a cloud of the COVID virus that you're inhaling. That's the concern of Dr Julian Tang, a virologist at the University of Leicester. Image: Virologist Dr Julian Tang says people need to rethink their social distancing Image: Virologist Dr Julian Tang says people need to rethink their social distancing He says each exhaled breath of someone with COVID symptoms can contain 200 virus particles - and we need to rethink our approach to social distancing. Dr Tang says the old rules that brought the epidemic back under control in the first wave may not be enough for the new, more transmissible variant of the virus this time round. The … 阅读全文

Pressure on the NHS will not start to reduce until March, ministers have been warned - amid fears that new infections could be running at more than 250,000 a day. Downing Street has been told by government scientists that the rollout of the vaccines is unlikely to cause the mortality rate to decline until later in February. The vaccines are unlikely to have an impact in January because of the three-week lag time it takes before they have an effect. Boris Johnson is under pressure from backbench MPs to announce he is lifting restrictions on 8 March. Mark Harper, chair of the COVID Recovery Group of Tory MPs, said that after this date - three weeks after the deadline set to vaccinate the four most vulnerable groups - "what possible … 阅读全文

Climbing a mountain in the dark in trainers and a road trip to visit all 92 football league grounds are just two of the excuses people have given to police after being recently caught flouting lockdown rules. Though the rules on the government website state "stay local means stay in the village, town, or part of the city where you live", one minister has conceded the term is "open to interpretation, but people broadly know what local means". Two women who were fined £200 after travelling to a reservoir for a walk around five miles from their homes have had their penalties cancelled. Here is a look at some of the reasons people have given for leaving their homes and breaching current COVID-19 regulations. Live COVID updates as Britons warned … 阅读全文

People travelling to England from abroad will have to show they have tested negative for coronavirus before being allowed to enter the country from Friday. The COVID-19 test will need to be taken up to 72 hours before departure - and those who fail to comply will face an immediate £500 fine. Inbound passengers on boats, planes and trains are covered by the regulation, which also applies to UK nationals. Live COVID updates as Britons warned over lockdown Transport Minister Robert Courts said arrivals in England from 4am on Friday would be subject to the rule. "Both globally and domestically we are seeing significant increases in levels of coronavirus, including the emergence of worrying new strains," he said. "It is therefore imperative that we ensure we are doing all we … 阅读全文