Coronavirus news: UK records over 12,800 new cases in highest-ever rise, amid hopes for vaccine by Easter

Opinion: People are growing tired of lockdowns

One consequence of Donald Trump contracting coronavirus might be positive: a reduction in the coronavirus infection rate, writes commentator Sean O’Grady.

“Yet the effect of this dramatic development may not be permanent. The shock will wear off, as it eventually did when Boris Johnson fell ill in the spring.”

‘Significant escalation’ in Ireland

Ireland is seeing a "significant escalation" in COVID-19 infections, the acting chief medical officer has said.

It comes after the country reported the highest daily death toll since May (10) and the third-highest number of daily cases recorded to date (613).

Dr Ronan Glynn, acting chief medical officer, said: “The numbers being reported today and over the past week represent a significant escalation in the profile of COVID-19 in Ireland.

"For those aged 70+ and those who are medically vulnerable to COVID-19, it is strongly recommended that you should limit the number of people you meet to a very small core group of family members, carers or friends, for short periods of time, while remaining physically distant.

"We need to work together once again to make a significant impact on the number of cases in the community, and ultimately to reduce the number of people getting sick, being admitted to hospital and critical care, while protecting non-COVID healthcare services. I urge people in every county to follow the public health advice to stop the further spread of COVID-19.”

Israelis protest against Netanyahu in defiance of lockdown

Thousands of Israelis have protested across the country in defiance of a new law meant to curb anti-government demonstrations during a coronavirus lockdown.

The street rallies took place just three days after parliament approved an edict banning Israelis from holding demonstrations more than 1 km (about half a mile) from their homes.

Protesters are calling for the resignation of prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu over his handling of the coronavirus crisis and long-running allegations of corruption.

Most protests on Saturday night were small and scattered throughout the country, though a crowd of thousands gathered in Tel Aviv. A small number of protesters scuffled with police and tried to block city streets. About fifteen people were arrested, a police spokesman said.

Starmer calls for new coronavirus 'roadmap’

Labour leader Keir Starmer has redoubled his criticism of the ‘serial incompetence’ of Boris Johnson and the government with an article in The Observer.

“The government’s incompetence has left people angry, anxious and frustrated," he says, adding that the PM has ‘lost control’ of the situation.

“We need a roadmap to give people hope that there is light at the end of the tunnel.”

Shadow justice minister David Lammy has also been laying into Boris Johnson, after the prime minister suggested that coronavirus cases were now rising because of a lack of public discipline.

“Who was it who said the young people should go back out to the pub, go to our restaurants, go back to work? It was Boris Johnson.”

UK hits record high in daily cases

More than 12,800 new cases have been reported by the UK government in its latest daily update - the highest figure so far in the pandemic.

Government says ‘technical issue’ adding to increase in cases

The Department of Health and Social Care has put this statement at the top of its Covid dashboard following the release of the latest coronavirus figures.

“Due to a technical issue, which has now been resolved, there has been a delay in publishing a number of COVID-19 cases to the dashboard in England. This means the total reported over the coming days will include some additional cases from the period between 24 September and 1 October, increasing the number of cases reported.”

Rise in Covid hospital patients

The official figures also show there were 2,194 Covid-19 patients in hospital in England as of Saturday, up from 1,622 a week ago.

 Meanwhile 307 Covid-19 hospital patients were in ventilation beds, up from 223 a week ago.

A total of 368 patients with confirmed Covid-19 were admitted to hospitals in England on Thursday, compared with 288 a week earlier.

Today’s surge in the number of cases reported - almost double that of yesterday - has prompted questions about the reliability of the government’s figures.

It has been suggested that delays in processing tests mean that the daily figures actually include results from more than a week ago. It therefore takes some time before we get an accurate picture of the positive tests based on the date the test was carried out.

Labour leader sets out ‘action plan’

Sir Keir Starmer called on the government to publish the criteria it uses to decide when local restrictions are introduced, amid claims that ministers are sparing wealthy areas and their own constituencies.

The labour leader unveiled his five-point action plan in The Observer as follows:

• Follow the model used by Germany by publishing the criteria the Government uses for deciding when local restrictions are introduced and when they can be lifted.
• Improve public health messaging by expanding the NHS Covid-19 app so people can type in their postcode and get a rundown of the restrictions that apply to them in their area.
• Invest in NHS labs and university labs to expand testing and put local public health teams in charge of contact tracing in their areas.
• Ensure routine regular testing for all high-risk workplaces and high transmission areas with a guarantee of results within 24 hours to improve infection control, including for NHS staff and carers.
• Outline a programme to ensure the manufacture and distribution of any resulting vaccine.