Latest on coronavirus as infections rise in every English region except Yorkshire and the Humber, with South West seeing the largest spike; the UK becomes the first country to approve Merck's "game changing" pill to treat COVID; a Met police officer, 30, dies after six weeks in hospital.
Germany breaks daily cases record
Another 33,949 cases of the coronavirus have been reported in the latest daily update – a new record for Germany.
The previous peak was on 18 December 2020, when 33,777 cases were added.
Last week, 28,037 cases were reported in a day.
Jens Spahn, the federal health minister, is to meet with the 16 state health ministers to discuss the next steps for winter.
Another 165 deaths were recorded yesterday in Germany – up from 126 seven days ago.
Earlier, the WHO said that Europe could see another 500,000 COVID deaths this winter.
More than 100 million vaccine doses administered
Maggie Throup, the vaccines minister, tells the house than more than 100 million coronavirus vaccines have been administered in the UK.
She shares that more than eight million booster or third jabs have been given out.
More than 650,000 people aged 12 to 15 have now had a jab too.
Ms Throup says the rollout has, by their estimations, prevented more than 24 million infections and stopped 127,000 deaths.
Vaccine minister is giving a statement in the House of Commons
Maggie Throup is speaking from the dispatch box.
Office for National Statistics says that 1.2 million people in private households in the UK have reported having long COVID in the past four weeks.
Last month, the figure was 1.1 million.
Of those who reported suffering with the after effects of the virus, around 780,000 said it was affecting them day-to-day.
And 233,000 people said their activities had been “limited a lot”, according to the ONS.
Long COVID prevalence was higher this month in those aged 16 to 24 when compared to last month.
An estimated 1.3% of 12 to 16-year-olds experienced long COVID in the four weeks to 2 October – equivalent to 49,000 people – up from 0.9% (35,000 people) in the four weeks to 5 September.
The figure for 17 to 24-year-olds was 2.4% (142,000), up from 1.9% (112,000).
UK approves first coronavirus treatment pill
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has approved Merck Sharp & Dohme’s (MSD) molnupiravir for use in the UK.
The pill, which is taken orally, “is safe and effective at reducing the risk of hospitalisation and death in people with mild to moderate COVID-19 who are at increased risk of developing severe disease,” according to a statement.
Health Secretary Sajid Javid said: “Today is a historic day for our country, as the UK is now the first country in the world to approve an antiviral that can be taken at home for COVID-19.
“This will be a gamechanger for the most vulnerable and the immunosuppressed, who will soon be able to receive the ground-breaking treatment.”
He added: “We are working at pace across the government and with the NHS to set out plans to deploy molnupiravir to patients through a national study as soon as possible.”
Also known as Lagevrio, the drug was developed Ridgeback Biotherapeutics and Merck Sharp & Dohme (MSD).
The statement from the MHRA added: “Based on the clinical trial data, Lagevrio is most effective when taken during the early stages of infection and so the MHRA recommends its use as soon as possible following a positive COVID-19 test and within five days of symptoms onset
“Molnupiravir has been authorised for use in people who have mild to moderate COVID-19 and at least one risk factor for developing severe illness. Such risk factors include obesity, older age (>60 years), diabetes mellitus, or heart disease.”
Europe could see half a million more COVID deaths by February – WHO
Another 500,000 people could die due to COVID over the winter in Europe, according to the World Health Organisation.
The WHO’s Europe director, Dr Hans Kluge, added that hospitalisations had more than doubled in a week according to their data.
“Insufficient” vaccine coverage and easing of restrictions are behind the worsening situation, he said.
“The current pace of transmission across the 53 countries of the European Region, is of grave concern,” Dr Kluge said.
He added the preventing surges, rather than reacting to them, should be the tactic used to tackle COVID-19.
Almost all organisations looking to have hybrid working – survey
A survey has found that 97% of companies have put in place or are planning to put in place hybrid working schemes.
The research, commissioned by XpertHR, quizzed 375 organisations which together employ around 711,000 people.
It found that 75% of employers have people who are reluctant to return to the office – although 26% of companies found this was tied to concerns about colleagues’ and the public’s vaccination status.
XpertHR says it has found many candidates applying for new roles put flexible working above pay as their top priority.
Despite this, 32% of businesses are only letting some staff work remotely – with the rest office based, and 4% want all workers back on site.
The most common arrangement is three days at home and two in the office.
Noelle Murphy, senior HR practice editor at XpertHR, said: “Many employees have made clear they have a preference for some form of hybrid working, while others feel there is little need to return to the workplace to carry out their work.
“There is also a sizeable number of employees whose roles have been deemed unsuitable for hybrid working who may feel aggrieved about the lack of flexibility on offer.
“With the ‘great resignation’ and the ever-growing war for talent, employers who ignore or do not meaningfully engage with these employees will lose key talent and vital experience over the coming months that will be much needed as the world looks to move on from the pandemic.”
Metropolitan Police officer dies with COVID
A serving Metropolitan Police officer has died after contracting COVID.
Amar Kalirai was 30 when he passed away on 21 October, according to the Metropolitan Police Association.
A Just Giving page set up following his death said: “Amar had spent much of 2020 shielding in order to protect members of his family who he shared responsibility for caring for when not at work. As a private, quiet individual, it is something many will not have been aware of.
“He came back to frontline policing in April 2021 and was excited to be back doing what he loved.
“Sadly, at the end of August, Amar tested positive for COVID-19 and, by the beginning of September, the illness resulted in him being hospitalised. For the next month, Amar fought and fought as we all expected he would, but sadly his body could not fight the infection anymore.
“Amar passed away peacefully in the early hours of 21 October 2021 at Northwick Park Hospital, surrounded by his beloved family.”
Government update on jabs today
The government is set to give an update about the vaccine rollout today.
While details are in short supply, there has been media speculation about mandatory vaccinations for NHS workers being announced at some stage.
The statement from vaccines minister Maggie Throup will likely be heard this morning.
Worsening situation in eastern Europe
As the latest daily figures are revealed for Europe, a number of countries appear to be suffering.
We reported earlier how Russia recorded it highest ever death toll.
Here is the situation in other parts of central and eastern Europe
- Hungary has seen a surge in cases, with a 6,268 new diagnoses yesterday – more than double the daily figures seen last week.
- Slovakia has reported a daily record of 6,713 new cases.
- Poland has recorded more than 15,000 cases in a day for the first time since April.
- Ukraine surpasses three million COVID cases, after recording record high case and death numbers in recent weeks.
The map below shows how European countries have been impacted through the pandemic.
Row over mask wearing in Australian McDonald’s
Footage on social media has shown a row in an Australian McDonald’s – believed to be in Sydney.
In the video, which was shared on TikTok, a man can be seen arguing with a cashier.
What is being said by the customer is largely unintelligible, but the worker can be heard saying a mask needs to be warn inside – as per government rules.
The member of the public then takes a mask and goes on to launch the plastic barrier separating the pair over the counter towards the worker.
It is believed the incident took place on 31 October
Speaking to News.com.au, a company spokesman said: “At McDonald’s the health and safety of our people and customers is our top priority.
“We are committed to providing a workplace free from harm and are taking the necessary action to support the health and safety of our people and customers at all times.
“We expect our people to be treated with respect.
“We will always do our best for our customers, but we won’t accept abuse, intimidation, threats or violence towards our employees.”
Booster jabs ‘urgent’ for those eligible
Dr Jenny Harries, the chief executive of the UK Health Security Agency, has encouraged people to get booster jabs and follow other advice in preventing the COVID pandemic.
Following the publication of the REACT survey, she said: “Although the number of hospitalisations and deaths remain lower than in previous peaks, these findings are a powerful reminder that the pandemic is far from over and remains a serious threat to health and wellbeing.
“This new data strongly reinforces the need for all eligible age groups to get vaccinated and to take mitigating measures such as wearing a face covering in crowded places and ensuring good ventilation indoors.
“This is particularly urgent for older people whose immunity may be waning given that several months have passed since they received their jabs.
“I strongly encourage everyone who is eligible for a third dose or a booster shot to come forward without delay.”
A closer look at REACT study shows infection increases in every region but one
More now on the REACT study that says the next 10 days will be “critical” for the England.
The report says that, across England, the overall prevalence of the virus was 1.72% compared with 0.83% in September.
As we have reported, this is the highest rate ever.
The regional breakdown of the data shows an increase in infections in all areas, apart from Yorkshire and the Humber, with prevalence highest at 2.18% in the South West.
Scientists say one “viable hypothesis” for the cluster of cases in this region could be related to mistakes at a private laboratory in Wolverhampton, which wrongly told thousands of people from the South West their tests were negative.
The South West rate is four times higher than the previous round.
There was one note of optimism in the report: though data since the last round showed increases almost everywhere, looking at the most recent data only, there has been a fall in prevalence in East Midlands, East of England and the South West.
Nurses sounding out possibility of strike over pay
A ballot is under way among nurses as they consider taking strike action over a 3% offered pay rise.
Speaking to Sky News, Patricia Marquis, director for England at the Royal College of Nursing, said the current ballot was a first step, but not the one which would initiate a walk-out.
Asked by Kay Burley what a strike would look like – and whether patients should be worried – Ms Marquis said that any industrial action would follow the template of what happened in Northern Ireland in 2019.
She added that wards would likely function with staffing levels consistent with Christmas Day.
It comes as the National Health Service faces a backlog of treatments and care in the wake of the COVID pandemic.
The NHS is thought to be short around 40,000 nursing staff.
US starts vaccinating children aged five to 11
Following approval being granted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the United States has started vaccinating children aged five to 11 against the coronavirus.
The CDC recommended the Pfizer-BioNTech jab be used.
There has been criticism from many in the developing world – and from the likes of the World Health Organisation – about developing countries rolling out booster schemes while many go completely unvaccinated elsewhere.
Diwali celebrated amid COVID pandemic
Countries like Sri Lanka, India and Malaysia are celebrating Diwali today amid the coronavirus pandemic.
While cases and deaths are not peaking in these countries at the moment, many people were seen wearing masks as they gathered for the festival of light.
Russia reports record high death toll
Another 1,195 people have died with COVID in Russia in the latest daily figures.
This is the highest figure on record in the country.
Another 40,217 new cases were reported in the past 24 hours, with 6,305 in the capital Moscow.
Researchers warn next 10 days are ‘critical’ with recorded COVID infections at highest level ever
COVID infections are at their highest ever recorded levels according to new research, which has been tracking cases since May 2020.
The findings from the REACT-1 study show the increase is driven by high rates among school-aged children, with 1 in 17 children infected between 19 October and 29 October.
Researchers warn the next 10 days will be “critical” as children return to the classroom.
Read more below…
COVID-19: REACT-1 study shows infections are at highest ever recorded level as researchers warn next 10 days will be ‘critical’
Sky News
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