The UK’s Covid-19 infections have increased by 44.6 per cent in a week as Boris Johnson today suggested NHS staff could be moved to plug shortages amid fears about the Omicron wave triggering a lockdown by default.
Department of Health bosses reported a further 157,758 cases today, a rise from the 109,077 cases which were reported in the country last Monday.
The number of people dying with the virus saw a 70.6 per cent decrease, Today, 42 UK-based deaths were reported today, as opposed to the 143 recorded on December 27, 2012.
As the country transitions out of festive season, this is the 13th consecutive day that the number of cases has been over 100,000. This comes days after the 72.5 percent week-on-week rise on December 29.
The number of London hospital admissions has been falling. On January 1, 314 people were admitted, a 28% decrease on the 437 who were admitted Monday.
Today scientist scientist Tim Spector, who works for the PREDICT studies and the ZOE Covid study app, tweeted: ‘Covid cases in London now decreasing + UK slowing – it is great to see no real change in Covid deaths over last month.
“The potential for a health crisis to be driven by staff issues due to excessive isolation rules” Let’s keep this at 5 days.
The PM announced today that the government was considering redeploying staff after being warned by the public sector to prepare for the worst case scenario in which a quarter (or 1.4 million) of employees would be off work.
Official figures show that one-tenth of NHS staff were out on New Year’s Eve. Of the total 110,000, however, just 50,000 was due to coronavirus.
United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust declared an “incident critical” in connection to staff shortages that were “extremely and unprecedented”.
Nearly one-third of all rail services in some stations have been cancelled in the last few days after staff were sickened with Covid. Major engineering works are planned to go on until next week, but they will be halted for key commuter routes.
To keep things running, councils in the UK have to redistribute their staff among essential services.
Schools are being asked to prepare contingency plans for staff absentees after the Christmas holiday.
Today, Johnson visited Stoke Mandeville’s vaccination center and advised people to stick to the Plan B. Omicron is simply milder.
It would be foolish to think the pandemic has passed. He said that the health system will continue to be under “considerable pressure” for the next few weeks. The government was ‘looking into what we can do’ to help people move to areas most affected.
He resisted calls to reduce the self-isolation time to just five days, arguing that this could worsen staff shortages and fuel spread.
“I believe that the only way to move forward for our country is to keep on the current path.” The PM stated that everything would be reviewed.
“The combination of the things we are doing right now is the best one, according to me.”
‘So, number one, continue with Plan B, make sure that people take it seriously, do what we can to stop the spread, use the Plan B measures, work from home if you can, wear a mask on public transport… take a test before going out to meet people you don’t normally meet, think about the the requirements under Plan B, but also get the boost.’
He added: “I believe we have to acknowledge that the pressure on NHS, our hospitals is going to be substantial in the next few weeks and possibly more.”
Nadhim Zahawi, Education Secretary, stated earlier that the “pattern” of the mutant strain is not identical to Delta. Patients are less likely to require a ventilator and stay in the hospital for longer periods.
He spoke out in a series of interviews and highlighted some of the “really good” signs regarding London’s infection rate.
The UK recorded 137,583 new Covid infections yesterday, a week-on-week increase of 14.7 per cent – a slower rate of growth than preceding days, but not including an update from Scotland.
Scots were warned by the Scots that it could be too early to plan large parties south of the border. This is in contrast to mood music from South Africa. It could also be a warning that Nicola Sturgeon could extend her stricter Covid rules for several months.
On Wednesday, ministers in England will examine the restrictions and increase their confidence that they will not tighten further.
According to the latest data, growth in Covid hospitalisations has slowed in London. However holiday reporting problems could have affected the number.
31/12/2011 saw 319 admissions to London hospitals, a 14% increase over the week prior and 450 by 30/12/2011. That’s a 15% week-on week rise.
The holiday effect could be keeping these numbers artificially low but the growth rate is far behind those days, which saw a 32 percent increase from December 29 to 511 admissions.
Other Covid developments
- Daily Coronavirus cases reported in Scotland reached their highest ever record of 20,217
- NHS England figures show that more than 25 million people received boosters or the third dose of Covid-19 over the New Year’s weekend.
- Due to shortages of staff, bin collection has been cancelled in Manchester, Essex, and Somerset.
- Recent figures show that the number of NHS employees who have stayed at home to provide Covid care has increased by two-thirds.
- Local officials stated they needed to move staff across services so that everything ran smoothly.
- A brighter sign was the Fuller’s pub’s announcement that London’s absence rates had improved and were now at their lowest point.
- Because of the absence of teachers, Mr Zahawi suggested that whole classes could be split into more groups. coronavirus
- It has been shown that fewer Covid patients are using ventilation in hospitals than during previous pandemics.
Boris Johnson visited Stoke Mandeville Stadium, Aylesbury, today to see a vaccine hub
LONDON: Cases in the capital have been plateauing recently although holiday reporting glitched could be to blame. These grey bars indicate incomplete data. They will continue to rise
Nadhim Zahawi spoke out about the positive signs in London, where infections rates are ‘plateauing’.
After the New Year holiday, images show that there are very few drivers on the M1 or A41.
On Wednesday, ministers in England will examine the restrictions and increase their confidence that they will not tighten further.
According to the latest data, growth in Covid hospitalisations has slowed in London. However holiday reporting problems could have affected the number.
31/12/2011 saw 319 admissions to London hospitals, a 14% increase over the week prior and 450 by 30/12/2011. That’s a 15% week-on week rise.
The holiday effect could be keeping these numbers artificially low but the growth rate is far behind those days, which saw a 32 percent increase from December 29 to 511 admissions.
BBC Breakfast’s Mr Zahawi stated that Plan B’s measures will be reviewed on Wednesday. He added, however: “There is no data in my database that makes me feel that we should go further than we are.”
“There is some good information from London showing that the rates of infection are declining, but not quite at this point.” We are still seeing infections in the 50-plus population, but it is the latter who suffer from the most severe and often hospitalizations.
Sky News reported that minister John McDonnell said: “The number of patients with coronavirus in hospitals has started to increase in the 50-plus years, which is concerning. However, overall the ICU population has declined which is a good thing.
“On the whole, we don’t see the same patterns as Delta. We had more people ventilated and people in ICU for a longer time.
“And those admitted with Covid and not for Covid are also around a third of this number.”
Zahawi stated that the infrastructure in place for staff deployment to help fill shortages has allowed the health system to provide adequate care. He said that the NHS was very adept at moving staff within its system. They are able to move staff around within the system because they have infrastructure. The NHS now has 10,000 additional nurses than last year and 3,000 more doctors.
“But, the NHS is very skilled at monitoring staff shortages and dealing with them pretty effectively,” he said. This has been done for many years during winter, when large flu outbreaks have occurred.
Matthew Taylor, the chief executive officer of NHS Confederation said that it is currently in a “state of crisis”.
“We are at the moment in crisis across many aspects of our health care system. Some hospitals must declare a “critical incident” because of the high level of demand and absence of staff, he stated.
Some hospitals have been calling exhausted staff for them to quit their rest days in an effort to keep the core of services running. In an effort to prevent infection spreading, more hospitals have to ban visitors. NHS England plans for increased capacity.
“Community services and social care, already severely overburdened, are now at breaking point. Ambulance services in many places are not able to respond within the timeframes they have set. The primary care includes caring for Covid-19 patients, keeping them out of hospital and driving booster programmes. It also has to deal with the unprecedented demand for primary care which is partly driven by millions of people who are waiting to be seen and operated on.
Public services are struggling to cope with this weekend’s announcements by councils in Manchester and Essex, Somerset, and Buckinghamshire. They also announced a reduction or complete suspension of waste collection services as staff numbers have been slashed because they were positive for Covid and isolated.
Chelmsford City Council cancelled food waste collection for three days after 23 staff members were called sick. North Somerset did not collect 1,000 bins.
The ministers in England held firm, but the Scottish national clinical director suggested that the ban against large gatherings at high Covid rates could be extended well into spring.
Pub, restaurant and nightclub bosses believe firms in Edinburgh missed out on around £20million on Hogmanay due to coronavirus measures.
Jason Leitch, however, declined requests for the New Year Street Party to be moved to April. He said it might be too soon to host mass events.
He made these comments as many hospitality companies continue to struggle with Ms Sturgeon’s restrictions. These restricts mean that pubs and restaurants can only serve table service and must be separated by one metre.
Nightclubs were closed on December 27 for at least three weeks, and officials have been warned that some hospitality businesses currently closed will never reopen.
Yesterday, another 137,583 Covid cases was reported, and figures for New Year’s Day indicated a 33.4% week-on-week rise in new cases.
This was the 12th straight day when cases were above 100,000 as the country gets out of festive season. Although the week-to-week rise in cases was as high at 72.5 percent, the numbers have been distorted by the holiday season lags.
Yesterday’s Covid statistics for Scotland weren’t available, and Sunday updates aren’t made to hospitalisations.
This comes after official statistics revealed that almost one in ten NHS workers fell ill over the New Year’s Eve holiday as coronavirus continued its assault on the healthcare system.
Meanwhile, secondary school pupils will be told to wear face masks from the moment they arrive until they leave when they return to classrooms this week.
In an effort to protect the education of millions of youngsters amid a sharp rise in cases of the Omicron variant, Ministers have requested that pupils cover their faces all day – including while they are being taught. They are already asked to wear masks in communal areas.
Johnson acknowledged that he doesn’t like the idea schoolchildren have to cover their faces, but claimed there is scientific evidence they reduce transmission rates.
He added: ‘There’s an increasing body of scientific support for the idea that face masks can contain transmission.
“We don’t wish to keep them.” Although I do not like the idea that facemasks are in (the classroom), we will never keep them longer than necessary.
Schools raised concern that schools’ plans for additional testing and masks would be “challenging” and might inadvertently prompt the return to online education.
According to The Department for Education, the Department for Education states that head teachers can have their own supply coronavirus wipes to fulfill demand.
This is despite the nationwide shortage of tests – ministers having already sent a stash to all schools. After being swabbed at the school on their first day, they will then be sent home to undergo lateral flow testing twice per week.
Pub, restaurant and nightclub bosses believe firms in Edinburgh missed out on around £20 million on Hogmanay due to coronavirus measures. Jason Leitch (National Clinical Director) rejected requests for New Year Street Party to be rescheduled for April. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon’s (R) restrictions are likely to remain in place until spring.
Robert Halfon from the Tory Chair of the Commons Education select committee expressed concern about the masks news. He stated that he worried the move would cause harm to children’s mental well-being.
Shadow health secretary Wes Streeting said that he prefers to see children wearing face covers in school than those who are left at home.
Following the Christmas recess the Commons is due to see MPs return on Wednesday. On the same day, the Government will review Plan B.
Although the regulations will not expire before January 26, Downing Street stated that they would be reviewed three weeks following their implementation.
Scots could face an extended “fun-ban” when Professor Leitch suggested that the planned rescheduling Edinburgh’s Hogmanay new year’s celebration to April might be a little too soon.
He added, “I enjoy an Edinburgh night-out as much or more than any other person.” It is not clear if we will be able to bring this forward until April.
“We have high hopes. Now we have data from South Africa from University College London and from Edinburgh. This suggests that the risk of serious illness is lower with this variant. Perhaps as high as three quarters. But let’s put that in perspective – 2,500 Delta cases [per day]You can have 50 patients in the hospital
“You will need to have 10,000 Omicron admissions, and Scotland has at 15,000.” Omicron seems more encouraging than Delta. But Delta is a low bar.
Gavin Stevenson, vice-chairman of the Night Time Industries Association in Scotland, claimed there had been an 80 per cent drop in footfall on Hogmanay, which may have cost the sector £20million.
According to him, the Sunday Mail reported that Hogmanay was a disaster for licensed trades. Hogmanay alone has cost the hospitality industry tens to millions of pounds, according to me.
“It could prove to be the final nail in the coffin of small businesses.”
After allegedly seeing ‘dancing’, a group of Glaswegian police officers stormed a Glaswegian bar on New Years Eve.
As 25 police officers stormed Glasgow’s Avant Garde restaurant, two people were arrested. The raid was on a venue that hosted a New Year’s Eve celebration for the socially disengaged.
Billy Tetmichalis (33) plans to lodge a formal complaint with the police.
Police Scotland however stated that this visit was part a “routine visit” and didn’t enforce Covid restrictions.
Officers arrested a Glasgow man as he tried to get his coat back after being stopped by police.
MailOnline was informed by the owners that they were unable to provide proof of compliance with licensing conditions. Enforcement action was initiated.
MailOnline officers walked into Mr Tetmichalis’s bar on King’s Street in Glasgow after they saw some people “dancing” and were served by him.
“We were compliant with all requirements. We were performing table service when some folks got up from their chairs to reach the bar.
“This venue can hold 306 people. We stopped selling tickets at 80 to make sure they had enough space. Everyone was very well-spaced.
“Some people came up to the bar but we didn’t stop them.
On Wednesday, Ms. Sturgeon will update the Scottish Parliament regarding the restrictions.
Jackie Baillie, spokesperson for Scottish Labour Health said that any restriction would result in lost revenue from businesses already struggling for survival.
“The Scottish government must make sure that everyone who is eligible receives support.”
Fears for face-to-face teaching are growing: A lack of school staff could lead to a return to online classes. Masks can make a class comeback
- Nadhim Zahawi stated that face-to-face instruction might be impossible for schools.
- A Omicron-based variant of the GNU could result in teacher absenteeism and mass staff shortages
- He was admitted by the Department of Education after it was confirmed that secondary school students will need to use masks in class and take tests twice per week.
Yesterday, Education Secretary John H. Smith stated that entire classes could need to be combined into smaller groups or sent home for work from home because of teacher absences due to coronavirus.
Nadhim Zhawi stated that face-to–face instruction may be difficult for schools due to the Omicron version, leading to mass staff shortages.
He was admitted by the Department of Education as secondary school students will need to be wearing masks inside classrooms. They also have to test themselves two times a week after returning from vacation.
Yesterday, Zahawi sent an open letter to schools. He stated that remote learning “should not be on a temporary basis” and that schools should return to in-person full-time attendance for all students as soon as possible.
He stated that if you have to teach face-to–face because of operational problems or a shortage in the workforce, then I urge you to look at flexible learning options.
It could mean that all staff are used to “maximize on-site education for the most pupils possible” while schools can ‘flexibly provide provision on-site and remotely for some pupils’. He stressed however that these arrangements should be temporary.
He stated that if you have to teach face-to–face because of operational problems or a shortage in the workforce, then I urge you to look at flexible learning options.
The schools could use all of their staff to provide on-site support for some students, while the school’s can handle other aspects such as delivering provision remotely or on-site. He stressed however that these arrangements should be temporary.
If you don’t have the option of sending your children home to study remotely, there are other alternatives. You can bring in staff or combine classes into larger groups.
Last month’s absence rate of less than 3 percent was recorded. But worries are growing that numbers could rise sharply – with one of Britain’s largest academy trusts saying it had experienced staff absence levels of 10 per cent.
Unions also predicted disruption that ‘looks sadly inevitable’ when the new term begins.
There has been a lot of criticism directed at the Government for reintroducing face masks. Critics have called it a declaration of war on children (file image).
It has come under fire from critics for its decision to reinstate face masks.
Teachers unions and teachers have generally welcomed this move, insisting it’s better than remote learning.
Boris Johnson in August 2020 called the idea that students should wear masks to school ‘nonsensical. However, the recommendation was put in place for two more months in March. It will still be in effect from January 26th to the end of the next term.
Geoff Barton is the general secretary of Association of School and College Leaders. He stated that “Face covers are recommended in communal areas to pupils in years 7 and higher.”
“Pupils have grown to use them and it is not difficult for schools or colleges to reintroduce face covers in the classrooms.
Dr Mary Bousted (joint general secretary) of the National Education Union said that masks are unlikely to have any’significant mental effects’ on students.
She said that mask-wearing is common in secondary schools across Scotland and Wales, but it’s not a major problem. The founder of Oasis Community Learning academy trust, Rev Steve Chalke said that although it wasn’t ideal, having masks enforced in schools was better than doing so at home.
Sky News interviewed him and said: “We don’t have the money to pay for lost school days. We know from media reports that children left alone are not only bad for them but also for society.
Robert Halfon (Tory MP and chairman of the Commons Education Committee) told Sky News that he wants the Government to present the evidence in the Commons to support the decision.
“Masks in restaurants and offices are not necessary, then why should we be requiring young people to use them?” He said.
And Us For Them was founded by parents who have fought to stop schools closing during pandemics. It said that it is ‘dumbfounded” by this decision.
“Kids should not be treated as political pawns.” The group stated that this is “a declaration of war on children”.
To improve air quality in schools and colleges, approximately 7,000 air-cleaning units were also promised. The announcement also stated that staff and students are encouraged to perform self-tests at home prior to returning and begin testing two-weekly at school.
According to the Department of Education, schools and colleges may obtain test results through an alternative supply route. They will also have access to additional resources as required.
According to a Government spokesperson, masks and other methods will help’maximize the number of students in school’ over the’maximum time frame’.