Coronavirus UK update live: Latest news as doctors attack second vaccine dose delays

Professor Susan Michie, a scientist advising the government on coronavirus and director of the Centre for Behaviour Chance at UCL, has called for tighter lockdown restrictions.

Responding to the government’s new advert, which asks people to “look in the eyes” of frontline medical workers and Covid-19 patients, she told Times Radio: “The advert, the Government messages and Priti Patel talking about fines is all on the basis that the main problem is that people aren’t adhering to the rules that exist.

“But actually all the data show that the overwhelming number of people are sticking to the rules with one exception which is self-isolation.

“In fact I would say that it’s not so much people not sticking to the rules, but it’s the rules themselves that are the problem,” she added.

Prof Richie said current rules were not enough to tackle the more infectious variant of Covid-19, and said there were twice as many people going to work and using public transport compared to the first lockdown last March.

She also said more children were going to school after the government “widened the definition of who’s a key worker”.

Prof Michie said: “Do what we did in March but consider are there other things we could tighten? The better the lockdown is now the shorter it will be.

“I think we should throw everything we can at really driving transmission down to a low level.

“Make a really effective test, trace and isolate system so when inevitable outbreaks occur there’s a system there that can manage it and prevent it getting out of control again.”

The increase in wealth of the world’s top 10 billionaires during the coronavirus pandemic is more than enough to both pay for a Covid-19 vaccine for everyone on the planet and to reverse the rise in poverty caused by the crisis, claims Oxfam.

The charity is calling for higher taxes on the very richest, reports my colleague Jane Dalton.

Read more on the story here:

Boris Johnson warned the nation that the new variant of Covid-19 spreading rapidly in the UK could be up to 30 per cent deadlier than the original virus.

My colleague Samuel Lovett reports on what the government has said about the new variant so far:

Professor Peter Horby, chairman of government advice group Nervtag, has warned that it is “almost impossible” to have complete control over the spread of other coronavirus variants, but certain measures would slow them down.

Speaking to BBC Breakfast, he said: “The variants are a concern… I think complete control of variants moving around the world is going to be almost impossible but we know that certain measures can slow the movement of these viruses around the world.

“Certainly measures like stricter quarantines and putting people in hotels for long periods will have an impact and it’s up to the Government to decide whether they think the imposition of those is worth the benefits they’re likely to see.”

Prof Horby agreed that the UK would be safer “from a scientific point of view” if more measures were put in place.

He also defended the government’s decision to announce that the new variant that emerged in the UK may be deadlier than the original version, saying: “I think a very important principle is transparency. Scientists are looking at the possibility that there is increased severity… and after a week of looking at the data we came to the conclusion that it was a realistic possibility.

“We need to be transparent about that. If we were not telling people about this we would be accused of covering it up.

“What we need to do is get that message out and put it in context so instead of headlines saying 30 per cent increase in risk we need to explain this in terms of the absolute risk we may be seeing and also explain the uncertainties.”

On Monday, ministers are set to discuss whether to introduce tighter restrictions at the UK borders to avoid the spread of new coronavirus variants.

This could include the possibility of hotel quarantines for travellers, the BBC reports.

Currently, all international arrivals, including UK nationals, must present a negative coronavirus test taken in the 72 hours before departing for the UK, as well their passenger locator form. If they fail to do so, they face a fine of up to £500.

All passengers must also quarantine for 10 days upon arrival, but this can be shortened if they test negative for the virus after five days.

It comes after the prime minister hinted during yesterday’s Downing Street press conference that the government may have to introduce more border restrictions.

Read what Boris Johnson had to say about possible new restrictions in Jon Stone’s report below:

The British Medical Association (BMA) has written to England’s chief medical officer, Professor Chris Whitty, to slash the gap between the first and second doses of the Pfzer/BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine.

The gap between doses was extended from three to 12 weeks in order to get more people inoculated with the first jab of the vaccine, but the BMA said the current plan was “difficult to justify”.

In a letter seen by the BBC, senior doctors are calling on the gap to be reduced to six weeks. The BMA agreed that the vaccine should be rolled out “as quickly as possible”, but called for an urgent review of the gap between doses.

“The absence of any international support for the UK’s approach is a cause of deep concern and risks undermining public and the profession’s trust in the vaccination programme,” said the letter.

Dr Yvonne Doyle, medical director of Public Health England, defended the decision to delay the second dose of the coronavirus vaccine to 12 weeks.

She said the decision had been taken on “public health and scientific advice”.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Dr Doyle said: “The more people that are protected against this virus, the less opportunity it has to get the upper hand. Protecting more people is the right things to do.

“People will get their second dose. As supplies become available more people will be vaccinated.

“It is a reasonable scientific balance on the basis of both supply and also protecting the most people.”

Government scientists have warned that delaying doses of coronavirus vaccines will increase the chances of a vaccine-resistant strain of Covid-19 emerging.

New reports released by the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) warn that resistant new variants were a “realistic possibility” driven by the virus reacting to increasing levels of natural immunity among the population.

Read the detailed report by our Health Correspondent Shaun Lintern: