Covid-19 Daily Bulletin

3 June 2021

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

Key Announcements:

• The number of people who tested positive for the virus yesterday in the UK was 4,330 and 12 people died within 28 days of testing positive.
• As of the 2 June , 39,585,665 people had received the first dose of a vaccine in the UK and 26,073,284 people had received a second dose of vaccine.
• The government is expected to review England’s traffic light system for international travel later today, amid fears that the UK’s testing system could be overwhelmed if popular holiday destinations are added to the green travel list.
• Portugal could be moved from the green to amber list, as Labour calls for the amber list to be scrapped altogether “because of the huge confusion it is creating and the huge number of travellers coming through our airports.”
• International travel could be under threat this summer amid fears over a new variant thought to have originated in Nepal.
• More than 20 healthcare organisations have called for stricter guidelines on face masks and PPE, as professionals fear that existing rules leave them vulnerable to infection.
• The National Education Union (NEU) has called for a week of home learning in Lancashire to stem the spread of Covid-19.

Devolved

• Ministers from the four devolved administrations will take part in a virtual meeting chaired by Boris Johnson today on how to emerge from the pandemic.
• Northern Ireland’s Health Minister has warned his party that the health service is in “big trouble,” as emergency departments across Northern Ireland face severe pressure. The public have been urged to use emergency services “appropriately.”
• Businesses affected by the pause in Scotland’s lockdown easing have been allocated up to £12m of additional support. Funding has been allocated for businesses in the hospitality, events, culture and taxi sectors.
• Wales’ Health Minister, Eluned Morgan, has warned that a cluster of the Delta variant in Conwy County is “very serious” and could affect the easing of restrictions in Wales.

International

• President of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics organising committee, Seiko Hashimoto, has said she is “100 per cent” certain that the Games will go ahead, although she cautioned that they may proceed without spectators in the event of a coronavirus outbreak.
• US President Joe Biden has announced a “month of action” to get 70 percent of Americans vaccinated by the Fourth of July holiday, as he promises a “summer of freedom.”
• India’s Supreme Court has criticised the Federal Government over its vaccine programme, especially its requirement to register for a vaccine via an app, which it said has hampered vaccinations across rural India where internet access is limited.
• A Brazilian town has seen a 95 per cent drop in Covid-19 deaths after almost all adults were vaccinated as part of an experiment. The results suggest that the pandemic is controllable once 75 per cent of people are fully dosed.

Stakeholders

• Research from University College London suggests that the risk of being infected twice with Covid-19 falls “substantially” for up to 10 months following a first infection.
• The UK government is negotiating with AstraZeneca to secure a “variant vaccine” that can tackle the South African variant. AstraZeneca’s current vaccine is only 10.4 per cent effective against mild to moderate infections caused by the variant.
• Researchers have called for a more restrictive approach to antibiotic prescription, amid fears that needless use of antibiotics may have fuelled antibacterial resistance to Covid-19.