Covid-19 Daily Bulletin

21 Sep

21 September 2020

A series of daily updates for CHO members regarding relevant updates pertaining to Coronavirus from home and abroad.

Key Announcements:

  • Chief medical adviser and chief scientific adviser , Chris Witty and Sir Patrick Vallance, are set to give a televised update at 11 am this morning on the challenges faced by the nation ahead of Winter and in light of rapidly increasing Covid cases.
  • Over the weekend, the two men, and others, met in 10 Downing Street to consider what measures should and could be introduced in England to stem the spread of the virus. Whilst on the Andrew Marr show, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Matt Hancock , said the country was at a “tipping point and we have a choice”.
  • £215m have been returned by UK firms to the Government from furlough scheme payments, where they had been incorrectly sent or taken in error.
  • Today is the penultimate day of Labour Connected, the party’s online virtual conference. Anneliese Dodds is set to be giving a speech during which she will accuse ministers of financially mishandling the pandemic.

Regional/ Devolved

  • In North East England, local restrictions are still in place. Hospitality venues can only serve food and drink to customers sitting at a table; and must be closed between 22:00 and 05:00 each day. People are only allowed to mix in their own household or support bubble. The same rules will apply from tomorrow, 22 September in North West England.
  • In Bolton, hospitality venues can only provide take away services; and a host of business must close between 10pm and 5am. People are only allowed to mix in their own household or support bubble.
  • In Greater Manchester , People are only allowed to mix in their own household or support bubble. The same goes in certain areas of West Yorkshire and in areas of the West Midlands .
  • A review will take place in Leicester by 25 September. Until then, people are only allowed to mix in their own household or support bubble. This will newly apply to Oadby and Wigston from Tuesday 22 September.
  • In Scotland, Jeane Freeman has said that large fines are being discussed as a potential penalty for individuals who fail to self-isolate. There were 245 new cases reported of coronavirus in Scotland on Sunday.
  • Similar discussions have been taking place in Wales, where Eluned Morgan, International Relations Minister, said that they had to make sure there was a “carrot as well as stick” approach.
  • There were 398 new positive cases recorded in Northern Ireland over the weekend. Health Minister, Robin Swann, has said it was “deeply concerning” and that “important decisions” had to take place in the days ahead.

International

  • Protests have been taking place in the southern districts of Madrid , against the imposition of new strict lockdown measures. Increasing infection numbers have led to the Spanish Government introducing rules which mean that people are not allowed to leave their homes either for work or for emergency medical treatment.
  • New measures have also been introduced in Greece, Denmark and France whilst cases rise across Europe.
  • Lockdown restrictions have been eased in Uganda, despite the number of cases continuing to increase

Stakeholders

  • Shadow secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Jonathan Ashworth, said at a Labour Party Fringe event over the weekend that the pandemic had shone a light on the “fault lines” of society; and that health inequalities had to be central to the Labour party’s approach to the pandemic.
  • The Mayor of Newham , Rokhsasa Fiaz, has called on the Government to extend the ban on evictions which took place on Sunday.
  • It has been suggested by the Children’s Commissioner, Anne Longfield , that one in 20 children are currently out of school due to the coronavirus in England. She said that teachers and pupils should be prioritized for testing alongside health and social care professionals. She has warned that the situation could worsen as we enter winter.

Unconfirmed

  • It has been widely reported that one option beings considered to stem the spread of the virus, is a two-week mini lockdown in England, a “circuit breaker”.