Covid-19 Daily Bulletin

13 Jul

13 July 2020

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

Key announcements

  • Health Secretary, Matt Hancock wrote in the Telegraph yesterday, stressing that the test and trace system was essential in tackling smaller outbreaks of the virus. He said that each week the system took action on “over a hundred local {outbreaks}…across the country”.
  • His article comes after news broke over the weekend that a farm in Herefordshire is in lockdown, after 73 of its workers tested positive for the virus.
  • Beauty salons, spas and tattoo parlours can reopen today in England under new Government guidance. However, many salons may not be able to reopen as the guidance states that close contact services, including face waxing, eyebrow threading, facials and eyelash treatments, will not be allowed.
  • Despite the Prime Minister insinuating on Friday that the rules around mask wearing could be made stricter in the coming days, it appears as though the current guidance – which makes mask wearing on public transport, but not in shops, compulsory in England – will remain unchanged. Speaking to BBC Breakfast this morning, Justice Secretary Robert Buckland said wearing a mask in enclosed spaces was “sensible” but that the public could be trusted “to do the right thing.”
  • Amnesty International have published a report which states that the U.K. has the second highest recorded number of health and social care worker deaths from Covid-19, with Russia recording the highest. The report links the shortage of protective equipment to the high numbers of deaths.
  • A cross group of MPs have formed the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Coronavirus and will launch an inquiry into the Government’s handling of the pandemic. The inquiry will see MPs take evidence from health experts, professional bodies and bereaved families, with its conclusions and recommendations expected to be released before September. Although APPGs do not hold the same significance as Select Committees, the report is likely to be important. Lib Dem MP, Layla Moran chairs the group.
  • Doctors at Edinburgh University have published research which suggests the virus could cause heart problems. Heart scans taken from patients who were hospitalised with Covid-19 have shown that one in seven patients had “severe abnormalities” with their heart, including damage to the ventricles.

Regional/Devolved

  • Pubs, bars, restaurants and cafes will reopen today in Wales. However, unlike England they will only be allowed to serve customers outdoors, meaning many will be unable to reopen.
  • Hospitality businesses could reopen indoors from 3 August, Wales’ First Minister Mark Drakeford has said.
  • Non-essential shops can reopen in Scotland from today. Scotland’s First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon told the Andrew Marr show yesterday that quarantine for visitors travelling into Scotland from across other parts of the UK could not be ruled out.

International   

  • The World Health Organisation reported a second rise in cases yesterday, with the biggest increases seen in the US, Brazil, India and South Africa.
  • Mexico’s death toll has now overtaken Italy’s, making it the fourth highest in the world.
  • South Africa has reinstated a ban on the sale of alcohol following a rise in cases.

Stakeholders    

  • Save the Children have warned that ten million children may never return to school following the pandemic.
  • A group of millionaires have urged governments to immediately raise taxes on them, to help mitigate the impact of the pandemic.