More than 32 million people in the UK have had a first dose of a coronavirus vaccine, new figures show. A total of 32,010, 244 have had one dose - and almost 7 million (6,991,310) have received both, Department of Health numbers have revealed. The number of people who have died within 28 days of a positive COVID test in the past 24 hours is 40, bringing the UK total to 127,080. The government also said that, as of 9am on Saturday, there had been a further 2,589 lab-confirmed cases in the UK, which brings the total to 4,368,045. Between 4 April and 10 April 18,970 people had a confirmed positive test result, which is a decrease of -32.0% compared to the previous seven days. Ministers had said they aimed … 阅读全文

All pupils across Scotland will be back in the classroom full-time following the Easter holidays, Nicola Sturgeon has said. Speaking at a Scottish government coronavirus briefing, the first minister said the decision has been taken following an assessment of relevant data. "When the Easter holidays end, virtually all pupils will return to school full-time, so secondary schools will go back to in-person, full-time learning," Ms Sturgeon said. Live COVID updates from the UK and around the world She said the exception to this is children who are shielding, who are asked to remain at home until 26 April. Ms Sturgeon added: "This, I know, will be a huge relief to many children and young people and of course to many parents and carers…" The first minister also confirmed every person … 阅读全文

The European Medicines Agency's (EMA) head of vaccine strategy has said it is "increasingly difficult" to say there is "no cause and effect relationship" between the Oxford-AstraZeneca jab and "rare cases of unusual blood clots". However, Marco Cavaleri did tell an Italian newspaper that full evaluation work was still "far from being completed" and that the risk-benefit ratio was still in favour of the vaccine. Live COVID updates from UK and around world He added: "We are a regulatory agency and we must have very precise data on the risk-benefit ratio. "We are trying to get the precise picture of what is happening, to define in detail this syndrome due to the vaccine." Of the 18.1 million people who have had the Oxford vaccine in the UK, 30 people have … 阅读全文

The highly contagious UK COVID-19 variant first discovered in Kent has now been reported in every state in the US. More than 15,000 cases of the B117 strain have now been confirmed and experts are concerned variants are behind a surge in infections in many states. "America appears to be done with the pandemic," Dr Michael Osterholm, director for the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota told reporters. "The virus is not done with us." Live COVID updates from the UK and around the world The COVID variant threat: The dangers of new forms of coronavirus emerging The US has administered 167,187,795 doses of COVID-19 as of Monday morning and distributed 207,891,395 doses, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said. Official figures … 阅读全文

Tests on a new COVID vaccine in the UK have so far shown it produces a "strong immune response", Health Secretary Matt Hancock has said. The Valneva COVID-19 vaccine is being developed in Livingston, Scotland, and data from an early-stage phase one/two study involving 153 people showed promising results for the jab, paving the way for a phase three clinical trial. Live COVID updates from the UK and around the world The vaccine was safe and generally well tolerated, with no safety concerns identified by an independent data safety monitoring board. The company said the results showed the vaccine was "highly immunogenic with more than 90% of all study participants developing significant levels of antibodies" to the COVID virus spike protein. The vaccine also induced T-cell responses, which help the … 阅读全文

The chief executive of easyJet has warned that foreign holidays risk becoming the preserve of those with expendable income , as the industry eagerly awaits news on when international travel can restart. Johan Lundgren told Sky News that a planned traffic light system for destinations, which will demand pre-departure and post-arrival COVID-19 tests for passengers, would pile costs on travellers. The measures were outlined on Monday as the government works towards a planned restart for holidays from 17 May, under the PM's roadmap for England. Live COVID updates from the UK and around the world Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player 3:56 3:56 Ryanair boss expects 'unrestricted' travel from June However, Boris Johnson was only able to tell reporters that he hoped that would be the … 阅读全文

North Korea won't compete in this summer's Olympic Games in Tokyo due to fears over the coronavirus pandemic, officials have said. The country's national Olympic Committee decided not to participate in the Games to protect athletes from the "world public health crisis caused by COVID-19," a website run by the North's sports ministry said. It is the first country to drop out of the delayed event - now scheduled to open on 23 July - which has been swamped with problems and organisers scrambling to put in place preventative measures, such as banning international spectators, to ensure the safety of athletes and residents. Live COVID updates from the UK and around the world Image: Kim Jong Un's country claims to be COVID-free Image: Kim Jong Un's country claims to be … 阅读全文

Boris Johnson is poised to announce pilots of either "vaccine passports" or before-and-after testing at nine entertainment venues from mid-April. COVID status passes have been used in China since last spring to manage infections, and as the vaccine rolls out, Israel has also been an early supporter of the concept. But with a historically sceptical view of "identity card culture", it was perhaps inevitable the scheme would be more controversial in the UK. Image: More than 31 million adults in the UK have had at least a first dose COVID vaccine Image: More than 31 million adults in the UK have had at least a first dose COVID vaccine The government has already had to reassure a Liverpool comedy club that the pilot night it's running this month will only … 阅读全文

Vaccine hesitancy among black people in the UK has halved, recent data suggests. Office of National Statistics (ONS) figures from 17 February to 14 March suggest that 22% of black adults in the UK reported coronavirus vaccine hesitancy, down from 44% the previous month. The news comes in the same week Sir Lenny Henry penned an open letter calling on black people to take the COVID vaccine. Live COVID updates from the UK and around the world Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player 3:55 3:55 Sir Lenny Henry tells Sky News why he is calling on black people in the UK to have the COVID-19 vaccine The letter was signed by several household names, including Oscar nominee Chiwetel Ejiofor, actor Thandie Newton, radio host Trevor Nelson … 阅读全文

Europe's vaccination rollout has been "unacceptably" slow and is prolonging the pandemic, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has said. A WHO report says "variants of concern" are continuing to spread across the continent and the "strain on hospitals grows" so speeding up the vaccination rollout was "crucial". Dr Hans Henri Kluge, WHO regional director for Europe, said: "Vaccines present our best way out of this pandemic. Not only do they work, they are also highly effective in preventing infection. "However, the rollout of these vaccines is unacceptably slow." He added: "Let me be clear: we must speed up the process by ramping up manufacturing, reducing barriers to administering vaccines, and using every single vial we have in stock, now." Live COVID updates from UK and around world To date, only … 阅读全文